State Place
Mixed-Use Project Steers Clear of CTA
by Craig Barner

Teams for the $100 million State Place mixed-use project in the South Loop navigated around the Chicago Transit Authority.

advertisement

State Place, a four-building residential and retail project, is located between State Street and Holden Court, and a below-grade CTA tunnel goes through the property, said Tom Conroy, project manager for Chicago-based James McHugh Construction Co., the general contractor. The passageway allows pedestrians on the transit system to cross between two different train lines.
The subway that carries the Red Line is to the project's west, and the elevated tracks that hold the Green and Orange lines are to its east.

Accommodating these and other CTA structures - escape hatches and an elevator on State that handicapped riders can use to access the subway - was critical to ensure against a conflict between the State Place and the transit system.

Sarv Nayyar, president of Chicago-based structural engineer Nayyar & Nayyar International, said transfer beams were incorporated into the design to shift pressure to foundations away from those supporting the pedestrian tunnel.
The placement of the transfer beams was a knotty issue.

Putting them below the tunnel was out of the question. The CTA instructed the team to stay clear of the tunnel.

Plus, underpinning the tunnel for the placement of the beams would have been dicey. The soil under it was not satisfactory for the caissons and steel H-pile foundations used throughout the project.

Locating the beams above the tunnel but below grade was also impossible because the pedestrian tunnel's top is only about 4 ft. under the surface, and the design called for the transfer beams to be 4 ft. deep, Nayyar said. Slating the project's ground level for the beams was unfeasible because space was needed for the 60,000 sq. ft. of retail that planning had called for.

As a result, the project's second level was picked for the beams' location.
Other transfer beams, some of which measure 20 to 25 ft. in length, are below grade to avoid existing caissons from previous structures. The beams shift pressure to new foundations.

advertisement

CTA on My Mind

Even with the placement of the beams solved, CTA structures like the pedestrian tunnel were always kept in mind.

Excavation included the use of backhoes positioned above, and the machines were used to their maximum reach to remove debris, Conroy said. In addition to the operator, a "seasoned" employee was designated to monitor the excavation to ensure against damage to other structures.

"We worked closely with American Demolition [Corp.] to probe during the demolition process for below-grade obstructions at locations where we had piles or caissons going in," Conroy said.

Above grade, a platform was erected over the CTA's elevated line to catch debris. "Our coordination came down to how far the hook would extend out toward the track," he added.

The project's east wall comes within "inches" of the elevated structure. Because masons could not easily form the walls from the outside, they constructed the exterior at that area from the inside.

Stages were hung so that the masonry could be washed, but good safety practices precluded performing this task while the trains were running. As a result, the work was done between 1 and 4 a.m. - the only period when the elevated trains do not run.

Coordination was so deeply imbedded in the team's mindset that a sudden city request could be accommodated.

Lanes of State and Roosevelt Road had been barricaded so that materials and equipment could be staged adjacent to the site. In February, the Chicago Department of Transportation requested that the lanes be cleared by March 15 in anticipation of a flood of people and traffic for the city's mammoth St. Patrick's Day parade.

The construction team mobilized immediately.

A 350-ton crane was brought in to lift a smaller crane that had previously been on grade, and it was placed on the fourth level that had been shored to handle the pressure. Precast concrete clads the project's four lowest levels, and the precast contractor began erection immediately. Other materials were lifted from street level to a low-rise building for staging.

And during this period, the People's Energy utility was laying a gas main on State while concrete was being poured for the mostly cast-in-place concrete project. An extra rig was brought in so as much concrete as possible was pumped into the building before the barricades were withdrawn.

"We spent most of that week talking with the city to reconfigure the [street] canopy and to accommodate more material movement onsite," he said.

Former Police HQ

The project is on the storied site of the former Chicago Police Department headquarters. In spring 2000 the CPD moved to 3510 S. Michigan Ave.
Construction began in July 2003 and will finish in March, though some units will be turned over to residents sooner.

The most dramatic element is the 26-story tower on State Street, which is interconnected with the other structures via the first three levels.

The first level holds the retail space, and second and third floors incorporate 243 parking spaces, said Denise Kallow, senior project manager for Chicago-based Mesirow Stein Real Estate Inc., a partner in the State Street Associates development team.

Four courtyards are atop the parking garage, and between them are the three "terrace" buildings. Each rises four levels.

There will be 243 residences in the project, comprising 159 condominiums and 84 houses. Unit prices range between $300,000 and $800,000, and penthouse units could fetch about $2 million each.

In early August, the residential units were about 72 percent sold, Kallow said. Six businesses had leased the retail space.

Amenities include a pool, guest suites, community room and 24-hour security. Chicago-based Fitness Formula has leased some of the retail, giving residents who join the club access to athletic facilities.

'Green' Design

The city wanted the "maximum" amount of space for trees and grass, and these were located on the courtyard level.

The greenery echoes Mayor Richard Daley's strong emphasis for a green Chicago. More important, it might help attract buyers.

"It's bringing the suburbanites into an urban setting and not stripping them of that suburban, homey feel," Kallow added.

Soundproofing was key to allay concerns about traffic and CTA noises.
Above the fourth floor, brick and concrete dress the building, and there is double insulation throughout. Aerated concrete block, a material developed in Europe and used there for 30 years, was used structurally.

Besides soundproofing, the advantages of aerated block include lower weight compared with conventional block, insulation and fire rating, Kallow said.

Accelerating the Project

The project was put on a fast track so that residences can be turned over to buyers quickly.

Rather than the typical four or five days, concrete pours were performed in three-day cycles, Kallow said. Crews were doubled to accomplish this goal.

The extra time allowed for changes to plans to be executed.

For instance, the original plans called for individual water heaters in the low-rise structures, but a concern emerged about whether these would provide sufficient supply.

A redesign was done, and the low-rise units will be fed with hot water from boilers atop the tower, Conroy said. The boilers were sized to be larger than the originals to accommodate the increased demand.