A big hurdle was cleared by the city at this month's Chicago Plan Commission meeting according to Chicago Curbed. The plan to build an Equinox hotel, health club and apartment tower had originally called for 58 stories and 680 feet and was just approved for a revised 52 stories and 615 feet. The project will be located at the corner of Fulton Market's Restaurant Row and the Kennedy Expressway. Even at this lower height, it would still eclipse the new 495 foot tower at 727 W. Madison Street and would become Chicago's tallest building west of the Kennedy Expressway.
The developer is Related Midwest, whose parent company owns Equinox fitness, as well as Connecticut based design firm Roger Ferris + Partners and Perkins Eastman is the architect. The project consists of:
- 165 hotel rooms
- 370 luxury rental units
- 30,000 square foot health club
- 5,000 square feet of restaurant space
- 138 parking spaces on the site
The new revisions from the Plan Commission meeting are as follows:
- Height reduction from 58 to 52 floors
- Removal of the "inverted" three part bay windows from the tower's base
- Floor heights revised
- Glass windscreen shielding the amenity deck has also been tweaked
The project still needs to get the final okay from the Zoning Committee and the Chicago City Council. The developer of the $395 million project will pay $4.85 million into the #ChicagoNOF system and anticipates breaking ground on this project in early 2019. They will also be presenting a temporary retail market housed in repurposed shipping containers.
"Our focus is to engage the surrounding community instead of fencing in the site. We're hoping it's received well and is something we can replicate at other projects."
Related Midwest | Michael Ellch
The Box Shops are to remain in place at the eastern gateway of Chicago's Restaurant Row through the end of the year.
July's Plan Commission meeting also resulted in the city approving a 225,000 square foot Fulton Market office proposal for 310 N. Sangamon Street, a four story, 62 unit senior housing project at 4801 S. Cicero Avenue and a turning the Chicago Housing Authority's former Ickes Homes at 2200 S. State Street into a six story, 228 unit multi use complex called "Southbridge."
