80-Story Tower Planned for South Loop

An 80-story condominium marketed as the Park Michigan has been announced and would rank in the top-10 of Chicago's tallest building and be the tallest in the city south of the Van Buren Street in the Loop.

The tower, which is initially estimated to cost $200 million, at 830 S. Michigan Ave. will reach 855 ft.

It will include 900,000 sq. ft. of space and hold 376 residential units. In addition, it will hold 35,000 sq. ft. of retail space, including a 9,000-sq.-ft. restaurant, grocery store and spa.

The developer is Oak Brook-based Renaissant Development Group. Construction is expected to begin in late 2007 for delivery in 2010.

The units will consist of one- to four-bedroom condos ranging from 700 to 3,000 sq. ft. Lower levels will be comprised of six units each narrowing to two units per floor at the top.

Amenities include landscaped decks, green roofs, indoor and outdoor pools, fitness center, 470-plus condo parking spaces and an illuminated crown to serve as a beacon for the South Loop skyline.

Though buyers have a large number of choices, South Loop developments are among the most successful, said Gail Lissner, vice president of Chicago-based Appraisal Research Counselors Ltd.

"I would say it [the South Loop] is outperforming other submarkets due to its very strong view amenity [of Lake Michigan] and the fact that it is so accessible to the Loop," she said.

The tower is set back on Wabash, behind the 19th century YWCA building on Michigan Avenue. The Michigan Avenue facade will be preserved and restored with its original architectural features, and serve as the main entrance and lobby.

Hoffman Estates-based Leopardo Construction is serving as general contractor with Chicago-based Pappageorge/Haymes as the architect.

24-Story Apartment Planned for South Loop

Chicago-based Amli Residential has broke ground on a 24-story apartment tower with 440 rental residences at 900 S. Clark St. in Chicago's South Loop. Project costs were not released.

Located on 2.2-acres at Clark Street and Roosevelt Road, the tower is part of the 22-acre LaSalle Park, a master-planned, mixed-use community combining Amli's rental property, condominiums, 420,000 sq. ft. of retail developed by Centrum Properties, a Target store and a new public park.

The tower was designed using glass, aluminum, poured concrete and stucco.

Exterior color will be used to highlight some building elements.

Plans call for a mix of studio, convertible, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, with a combination of soft-loft finishes and traditional styles. Most apartments will feature balconies. Rental rates, not yet finalized, are expected to range from $1,300 for studios to $2,400 for three-bedrooms.

The residential mix is designed to appeal to young professionals, graduate students, downtown workers and staff at the nearby Illinois Medical District, including those renting with roommates. Property amenities include a parking garage, a large fitness center, internet café, rooftop party room, four seasons room and outdoor roof deck.

Chicago-based Solomon, Cordwell, Buenz and Associates is the architect.

Woodstock Getting New High School

The ground was recently broken for a $65.5 million high school for Woodstock Community Unit School District 200 in north suburban Illinois.

The school will encompass 329,000 sq. ft. and allow for the enrollment of up to 1,600 students in grades 9 through 12.

Among the 78 education spaces are regular, special needs and resource classrooms; computer, science and multi-disciplinary labs; music, business and vocational classrooms; auditorium and library; full indoor athletic facilities including an eight-lane competition swimming pool; and outdoor athletic and PE facilities including stadiums, fields and concession areas. The school is scheduled to be complete in fall 2008.

Elgin-based IHC Construction Cos. LLC is the general contractor, and architectural design services are provided by Waukegan-based Legat Architects.

Groundbreaking Scheduled For New High School

Ground was recently broken in Dardenne Prairie, Mo., for a Catholic high school.

Barat Academy is scheduled to open for the 2007-2008 school term. The co-educational high school is being founded in the tradition of the Society of the Sacred Heart education, but it is not affiliated with the order.

The brick and stone Founders (Academic) Building initially will accommodate 150 freshmen: 75 girls and 75 boys. Each of the following three years, a new freshman class will enter, until the 2007-2008 freshmen are seniors in 2010, at which time the school anticipates a student body of 600.

The school incorporates the latest technology to further support its mission.

An IBM-partner school, all students will have a laptop, as well as wireless Internet access throughout the school. Some spaces also will have wired connections available to increase computer speed for specific lessons that may need more memory. This is particularly true in locations such as the junior- and senior-level science laboratories, where students are more heavily involved in scientific modeling.

Barat Academy views education as a learning street, with class "neighborhoods" intersecting with that street as areas in which students congregate and transformation and growth occur.

Upon entering the school, visitors encounter the "town center," where people congregate and obtain information. From there the "learning street" leads to "neighborhoods," one for each class, in which basic courses are taught.

Students leave their "neighborhoods" for science and art classes located behind the "neighborhoods," (in the neighborhood's theoretical "back yard").
O'Fallon, Mo.-based Paric Corp. is the design-build contractor, and St. Louis-based Hastings & Chivetta Architects Inc. is the designer.

Joliet YMCA to Get New Life, Become Senior Center

Chicago-based Senior Lifestyle Corp. and the United Neighborhood Organization were recently joined by Joliet Mayor Arthur Schultz and city officials to break ground for Senior Suites of Joliet, a redevelopment of the vacant Joliet YMCA building, which was recently listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

This preservation and redevelopment will provide 90 apartments for seniors while conserving and revitalizing one of Joliet's buildings, which was originally constructed in 1927. The $18.7 million project represents the second largest private development ever in Joliet, and is the first Senior Suites location outside Chicago.

The project, located at the corner of Ottawa and Webster Streets, is hoped to enhance the residential market in downtown Joliet while preserving the architecturally significant features of the building designed by famed Chicago architecture firm D.H. Burnham & Co.

Each apartment is equipped with a full kitchen, wall-to-wall carpeting, a spacious bathroom, window treatments and individually-controlled heating and air conditioning. Specially-designed features take into account the changing needs of residents, such as easy-access cabinetry and appliances, conveniently located electrical outlets and light switches, and an Up-and-
About system for residents to check-in with staff each morning.

Chicago-based Walsh Construction Co. is the general contractor, and Chicago-based Cubellis MGDF is the architect.

Facelift Planned for 78-Year-Old Park Facility

The Glencoe (Ill.) Park District has unveiled plans for the renovation of its 75,000-sq.-ft. Community Center.

Originally built as an elementary school in 1928, the project will include extensive renovations, remodeling and new construction. It will provide space for cultural and social programs, including space for education, athletics and fitness programs along with administration areas.

Central elements of the project will include a new gymnasium, life-safety updates, new plumbing, HVAC improvements and window replacements. The existing gym will be transformed into studio space for aerobics, dance and karate.

An upper floor will be added and serve as early childhood rooms. The space will become community program and meeting rooms and a large function space. A new main entrance at the north end of the facility will access this portion of the Community Center and the new gym. A larger, dedicated drop-off area and entrance will secure the fully modernized early childhood wing.

Completion is scheduled for spring 2009. Chicago-based OWP/P will be providing architectural services and Hickory Hills-based Henry Bros.

Construction Management Services LLC will be acting as the construction manager.

Life Care Center to Serve
Homeless of East St. Louis

The Continuum for Life Care Center Inc. has announced it will expand services to the homeless with construction of an $800,000 facility in East St. Louis, Ill.

The Continuum for Life Care Center provides holistic care to people in the Metro East area who are homeless, near homeless, or transitioning into independent living.

Construction of the 7,600-square-foot center will begin with a groundbreaking and is scheduled for completion in spring 2007.

The new facility will house offices for center operations and counseling, a conference room, restrooms with bathing facilities, a kitchen for food preparation and a large common room.

The building will replace a 730-sq.-ft. space at 3116 State St. in East St. Louis, where the organization has a small work area, a tiny kitchen and limited storage.

Corrections

The name of Paul Matthews, assistant vice president for facilities management at Saint Xavier University in Chicago, was misspelled in the November issue.

Jim Schoenborn was incorrectly identified as the man on the left in the photograph printed in the Industry Events social page of the November issue. He is on the right in the image, and J.F. Ahern Co. Chairman John Ahern is on the left. The two had celebrated Schoenborn's retirement after 42 years with the Fond du Lac-based mechanical contractor.