Results tagged “spire”

More Trouble For Spire Developer

Already responsible for The City's Most Expensive Hole In The Ground, Spire developer group Shelbourne Development Group Inc. is in more hot water as their sales center is facing eviction from its current home in NBC Tower. Crain's reports that a complaint filed in Cook County Circuit Court claims that Shelbourne hasn't paid rent since April 1 and owes over $300,000 for the space which takes up the entire 18th floor. It's not the only legal wranglings Shelbourne's been involved in; remember, they were sued by Bank of America back in August for allegedly defaulting on a loan. A spokeswoman for Shelbourne said in a statement, “The issue is a typical tenant/landlord dispute that we expect to be resolved amicably. During our time there, we've experienced a few minor issues, and hope the management is more responsive to our concerns.” And, in a display of optimism that suggests Shelbourne lives in a land of rainbows, leprechauns, and unicorns, she added, “The Chicago Spire project is very much alive and yes, we are still talking to potential buyers interested in purchasing units."

You know that giant hole at 400 N. Lake Shore Drive where the Spire was supposed to rise and tower over the city? Well don't expect it to be back-filled just yet. Despite construction being halted a year ago and the developer being sued this past summer, Spire architect Santiago Calatrava says the project is not dead. He asked for "patience" about the Spire -- he pointed out that one of his projects took 13 years to come to completion. The Spire's developer, Garrett Kelleher, also told the Trib's Blair Kamin that people are still showing up at the sales center, and the company recently arranged for new financing. [Trib]

In Case You Missed It...

There was a lot going on this weekend so we can understand if you didn't have a chance to peruse the site. And we're sure you're already cracking at work, so here are some helpful links from our weekend coverage that might help you catch up on what you missed.

Spire Developer Sued by Bank Of America

It's looking less and less likely that the city's most expensive hole in the ground will ever become the beautiful butterfly of a spire it was meant to be. Bank of America has filed suit against Shelbourne Development Group Inc., the developers of the Chicago Spire. We're not even going to pretend like we can fully comprehend the ins-and-outs of the financial wrangling going on here - we'll let Bloomberg do that - but given the continual financial difficulties of the buildings, we're guessing the day the Spire opens for business is the day Mayor Daley makes the city government fully transparent.

A Spire Revival?

The infamously embattled Chicago Spire may have found new life in its battle to simply get built. While right now it remains Chicago's most famous hole in the ground, developer Shelbourne Development Groupis scheduled to meet today with members of the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trusts to discuss using some pension funds to get the building's construction going again. Construction was halted last fall and, earlier this year, the financial woes of the developer deepened thanks to fallout from the economic crisis in Ireland.

Top O' The Spire

If at first you don't succeed, try try try try again. As we told you yesterday, the oft-delayed installation of the Trump Tower spire is finally complete. And now comes this fantastic pic of the magical moment, courtesy of reader scrapplequeen. Hooray for closure! Now about that Chicago Spire...

Trump Tower Spire Installation <s>Begins</s> Complete

The spire atop of Donald Trump’s began the final stages of installation today, after months of weather delays. When all is finally installed, tThe Trump Tower will now stands at 1,361 feet, only 90 feet shorter than the Sears Tower. This will make the Trump Tower the second tallest building in Chicago and the nation.

Photo by spudart

GQ Magazine has named Chicago its 2008 City of the Year, concentrating on four different categories: Film (Batman, check); Literature (Aleksandar Hemon, check); Architecture (Spire, um...); and Politics (Mayor Daley? Seriously). Okay, so maybe we have a few issues with some of the things they picked. Hizzonah is not exactly high on our happy-with list right now. Still, what with Obama's election and the Olympic bid, we guess we understand the focus on our fair city right now. At least it's better than that New York Times story.

Even as the two-story penthouse has been sold, construction on the Spire has been halted for the time being. Officials blame the slowing economy for the halt but say condo sales continue and that the building will still be completed by 2012 as scheduled. For now, it remains just a hole in the ground, kind of like that fort I meant to build in my backyard when I was 10 years old. [via Gapers Block]

Ty Warner, the man in charge of the Beanie Baby empire, has bought the two-story, 10,000 square foot penthouse that will sit atop the Chicago Spire, giving him a 360-degree view of the city; it will be the highest residential unit IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD. While the asking was price was $40 million, it's not immediately known what Warner shelled out for his new digs. That's a hell of a lot of storage space for those damn toys. We wonder if he'll spend his time sitting on his deck, tossing random beanie babies off the side at unsuspecting pedestrians below. As for the Spire itself, more than 30 percent of the units have been sold and is still on schedule to be completed in 2012.

Construction of the Chicago Spire’s foundation is well underway, as can be seen in a photo the Tribune published today. The 2,000-foot condominium tower will be anchored in a circular concrete hole, 110 feet across and 76 feet deep. Though construction of the actual building is to begin in the middle of next year, interestingly the Spire’s developer, Garrett Kelleher of Shelbourne Development, has yet to hire a contractor to build the thing. This continues to fuel the buzz of skeptics, who are not convinced the Spire will ever actually come to fruition.

$15 million buys a nice apartment, especially in the future. Shelbourne Development has officially open a sales office for the 1,194 residences in the Spire, the upcoming architectural marvel and source of an absolutely endless number of wiener jokes. Units—zing!—are priced at around $1,400 per square foot; according to the Trib, most luxury condos in Chicago cost between $750 and $1,100 per square foot. And...our eyeballs just turned to dollar signs.

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