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It's Official: Governor OKs O'Hare Expansion
A $6.6 billion expansion bill for Chicago's O'Hare International
Airport recently became law with the signature of Gov. Rod
Blagojevich.
The modernization program includes reconfigured runways; improved
road access, including from the west; new terminals; additional
parking; and the closing of two northwest-to-southeast runways.
The project will be financed through fees paid by airport
users; no new state or local taxes will be assessed.
An agreement between the Chicago and the airlines has secured
$2.9 billion of funding to build the project's first phase.
This represents more than 60 percent of the airfield work
that needs to be done.
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, who was present at the signing
ceremony, praised the plan. A modernized O'Hare will reduce
delays, save money for passengers and airlines, make it easier
for travelers to get to and from Chicago and generate $18
billion of annual economic activity on top of the $38 billion
the airport generates today.
242-Acre Industrial Park Planned for McCook
Oak Brook-based CenterPoint Properties Trust has announced
plans to build a 242-acre industrial business park on the
grounds of the former Reynolds Aluminum plant at First Avenue
and the Stevenson Expressway in McCook.
Plans call for 3 million sq. ft. of light manufacturing and
distribution facilities. A portion of the property is being
marketed for retail use.
Demolition of the site's existing 3 million sq. ft. of manufacturing
facilities will begin in the third quarter.
In other news, CenterPoint has announced two build-to-suit
developments at the CenterPoint Intermodal Center in Elwood.
The firm is developing a 216,000-sq.-ft. paper conversion
facility for Potlatch Corp. adjacent to Potlatch's 408,000-sq.-ft.
distribution center completed last year.
In addition, CenterPoint will also build a 213,500-sq.-ft.
high-speed distribution center for a logistics company.
40-Story Office To Begin on Dearborn
Construction of a 40-story, 825,000-sq.-ft. office will begin
this fall at 1 S. Dearborn Ave. in Chicago.
The project was announced by Chicago-based DeStefano Keating
Partners Ltd., an architecture firm.
Sidley Austin Brown & Wood, a law firm with more than
1,400 lawyers, will occupy the majority of the building.
40-Story Elysian Hotel To Feature Luxury
Chicago-based Elysian Development Group has announced plans
to build the ultra-luxurious 40-story Elysian Hotel on Walton
and Rush streets in Chicago.
The hotel will feature 27 private condominium residences,
126 hotel suites, elegant dining, private health club and
luxurious spa and grand salon. Architect Lucien Lagrange's
design will feature a classical facade and subtle Greco-Roman
architectural elements.
Service will feature the highly refined personal service and
undivided individual attention practiced by hotels in Europe.
Largest Arts Donation Goes to Theater
The largest monetary gift to a performing arts organization
was reportedly made to the Music and Dance Theater Chicago.
Irving and Joan Harris made a $15 million donation plus $24
million construction loan.
Because of their generosity, the facility has been named the
Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance,
which is located at 205 E. Randolph St. in Millennium Park.
The theater is expected to open in November.
Joan Harris has spent more than 25 years as an arts advocate
in Illinois, and Irving Harris is the chairman of the board
for The Harris Foundation, a philanthropy.
Two Projects Win Landscape Awards
Two Chicago projects were recipients of American Society
of Landscape Architecture 2003 Professional Awards.
Michigan Avenue Streetscape won a 2003 Design Merit
Award. Evanston, Ill.-based Douglas Hoerr Landscape Architecture
Inc. was the landscape architect.
Tasks included making 33 blocks of Michigan Avenue welcoming
and lush and cultivating a sense of human scale in this place
dominated by such dramatic architecture. In addition, providing
visual continuity between North Michigan Avenue and the older
less regaled part of the street south of the Michigan Avenue
Bridge was critical.
The City in a Garden: A Photographic History of Chicago's
Parks won a 2003 Communications Merit Award. Julia Sniderman
Bachrach, planning supervisor with the Chicago Park District's
Department of Planning and Development, was the writer.
IDOT Commissions Study For New Interstate
The Illinois Department of Transportation has awarded a
contract to Parsons Brinckerhoff to provide engineering
services for a proposed new regional highway in northeastern
Illinois linking Interstate 88 with Interstate 80.
Known as Prairie Parkway, the 35-mi. corridor is located
in southwestern suburbs of Chicago in Kendall County and
portions of Grundy, DeKalb, LaSalle and Will counties.
Phase-one preliminary engineering will take an in-depth
look at current and future transportation needs in a 1,500
sq. mi. study area, and if a need is identified, define
and evaluate a wide range of alternatives for addressing
the mobility requirements of the area. The project will
evaluate the full range of alternatives, including a no-build
alternative, upgrading of existing roads, enhancing other
modes of transportation, and creating a new highway on a
new alignment.
As part of the project, Parsons Brinckerhoff will prepare
financial plans, a corridor report, design report, environmental
impact statement and other required reports. The firm will
also develop and implement a public involvement program.
The phase one study will be completed in late 2007.
Groundbreaking Occurs For Brinks Facility
Groundbreaking has occurred for a 76,984-sq.-ft. Brinks
Inc. security facility in the California Avenue Business
Center in Chicago.
The new facility will be situated on a 6.9-acre site at
919 S. California Ave.
Site preparation has entailed the demolition of multiple
below-grade structures and utilities. Features include 16-ft.
clear height, two truck docks, six drive-in doors and parking
for 326 vehicles.
Itasca-based FCL Builders Inc. and Chicago-based UBM are
serving as the general contractors on the project. Design
services are being provided by Itasca-based Cornerstone
Architects, and Oak Brook-based CenterPoint Properties Trust
and Chicago-based Sphere Development Group are the developers
of the project.
Two DuPage Schools To Get Additions
Two schools in DuPage County are being renovated and receiving
additions.
About 16,000 sq. ft. of additions and 20,000 sq. ft. of
renovations are planned for Monroe Elementary School in
Hinsdale.
Prospect Elementary School in Clarendon Hills is to get
55,000 sq. ft. of new construction for classrooms, gymnasium,
media center, offices and cafeteria.
Both projects are expected to be complete in the spring.
Chicago-based Paul H. Schwendener Inc. was awarded the contracts.
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