Location, location, location is a phrase oft-repeated by those in the real estate industry. And it’s true, where a property is located has a bearing on its marketability, which is why choosing the right spot to buy a property or on which to build one should be a well-researched decision.
It seems the planners of the newest luxury residential/mixed-use development in the Windy City chose a good spot to build.
Ground recently was broken on a development in fertile soil, so to speak, in the Chicago area. One Chicago, a dual-tower skyscraper, commenced its 41-month construction in late April. When completed, it will offer hundreds of luxury residences, and a green-roofed podium as big as a city block. It also will include office and retail space, including a Whole Foods Market.
The complex’s large roof garden is a lifestyle feature that will fit well with the development’s plan for a Life Time Fitness and wellness center onsite.
See Also: Nerves of steel: 150 North Riverside
The development at 1 West Chicago Avenue is in the upscale River North area. That section of the city’s North Side has many hotels, luxury shops, restaurants, cocktail bars, nightclubs, artist’s lofts and other attractions.
Developed by JDL Development, the luxury residential/mixed-use complex was designed by Goettsch Partners and Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture. Its size, style and amenities will make it stand out, planners say.
“One Chicago has the scale and location to be spectacular,” says Jim Letchinger, president of JDL Development. “We carefully selected a project team to collaborate on this world-class design helmed by two of the city’s leading architects, both with deep Chicago roots and known nationally and internationally for large-scale urban complexes.”
The development’s 76-story main tower will change the Chicago skyline, and set the development apart, as well as making it an easily recognizable destination point.
“The main tower emphasizes a strong verticality and elegant image that will create a new landmark on the skyline. We fully appreciate the significance of this project in the context of the city,” says James Goettsch, FAIA, chairman and co-CEO of Goettsch Partners.
The main tower will be composed of five vertical, rectilinear bars that drop off at varying heights and allow for large terraces. Expressive fins will reinforce the building’s verticality, while giving the buildings’ façades a distinctive appearance.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Silver Award: Palmer House Hilton Hotel & Shops Chicago, Ill.
Chicago's Palmer House Hilton holds the record for the longest continuously operated hotel in North America. It was originally built in 1871 by Potter Palmer, one of America's first millionaire developers. When it was rebuilt after the Great Chicago Fire it became the first hotel in the U.S. to put a telephone in every room.
| Aug 11, 2010
Gulf Coast Hotel's Stormy Road to Recovery
After his initial tour of the dilapidated 1850s-era Battle House Hotel, Ron Blount, construction manager with Retirement Systems of Alabama, said to his boss: “You need a priest more than you need a contractor.” Those words were more prescient to RSA's restoration of the historic Mobile landmark than he could have known at the time.
| Aug 11, 2010
Lifestyle Hotel Trends Around the World
When the Rocco Forte Collection opens the Verdura Golf & Spa Resort in Sicily in early 2009, the 200-room luxury property will be one of the world's newest lifestyle hotels. Lifestyle hotels cater to guests seeking a heightened travel experience, which they deliver by offering distinctive—some would say avant-garde, or even outrageous—architecture, room design, amenities, and en...
