Union Station Redev Dumps Ugly Hat, Gains Pretty Tower
The latest plan to turn Chicago Union Station into more than what it currently is has a lot of people breathing a sigh of relief. Riverside Investment and Development, and Convexity Properties dished their new plan for the historic property last night, and it’s a significant improvement over what was previously on offer. The June version of this project featured an ugly, square hat sitting on top of the the city’s best...
Devs Try To Get Union Station Project Back On Track
Remember back in June when plans to redevelop Union Station came out and you were all, “Haven’t we been to this dance before?” Well, you were right to be skeptical. Riverside Investment and Development, and Convexity Properties are back with a new redevelopment plan for Union Station. A move necessitated by 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly, who roundfiled the previous proposal. In that plan, a seven-story glass...
Union Station Redevelopment Making Tracks Tonight
The redevelopment of Chicago Union Station (210 South Canal Street) continues to chug along (see what we did there?) and the next step in the process is a public meeting to go over the most recent plans for the 93-year-old transportation hub. It was just about a year ago that Amtrak tapped neighbor Riverside Development to turn the aging, but vital, piece of the city’s infrastructure into something more than it is, and something...
Chicago Union Station Finally Gets Its Towers, Plus a Hotel and More
Riverside Investment and Development has been selected by Amtrak to redevelop its property in Chicago’s West Loop, including the historic Chicago Union Station. In the decade-and-a-half that this blog has been chronicling Chicago’s built environment, Amtrak has put forward a series of increasingly ambitious plans for maximizing its real estate assets in downtown Chicago, which include the station’s...
Amtrak Honored For Union Station Renovations
If you prowl the halls of Congress, you don’t hear a lot of good things said about Amtrak. It’s a popular punching bag among beltway insiders who like to grips about money not spent in their districts. But if you’re a regular Amtrak rider (3k miles this year for me), you’ve probably noticed that things are — slowly, but surely — getting better at America’s largest passenger railroad. One of those...
Big Names, High Hopes for Chicago Union Station Redevelopment
The redevelopment of Chicago Union Station and the surrounding properties continues to creep along like a Hiawatha Service train a stuck behind yet another Canadian National freight mess. The latest bit of news is that Amtrak has narrowed down the list of developers (well, developer groups) to just four. Not surprisingly, the developers are mostly deep-pocketed heavy hitters. But we’re additionally pleased by the high caliber...
Yet Another Huge West Loop Tower Proposed – Will This One Actually Be Built?
Real estate developers in Chicago are an unusually tight-lipped bunch. So it was refreshing to read that Sterling Bay Managing Director Andy Gloor was overcome by the gift of gab during an event at the Standard Club sponsored by Crain’s Chicago Business. Mr. Gloor told the audience about his company’s plan for a 958-foot-tall office tower for the Union Station area. If completed, it would become...
Union Station Transit Center Coming Together
Work continues in the West Loop on the Union Station Transit Center that will connect Amtrak and Metra passengers to CTA buses, while alleviating the traffic tie-ups long a part of everyday life on South Canal Street and West Jack Boulevard. It took awhile for progress to be visible here, beyond the digging up of the former surface parking lot, and foundation work. But now, the future bus shelters look a lot like, well, future bus...
Status Update: Union Station Transit Center
The Union Station Transit Center (300 South Canal Street) is moving forward, trying to take some of the snarl out of the mess that is South Canal Street. The Chicago Architecture Blog’s Daniel Schell rapidly transited the Loop on a Divvy bike to bring us these pictures of the construction progress. The completed project will serve as an intermodal connector linking commuters on Amtrak and Metra trains with CTA buses....
Amtrak Commits $12 Million To Union Station Rehab Project
If you’ve spent much time at Chicago Union Station lately, you probably noticed a chilly reception. I don’t mean the Amtrak staff. It’s been downright cold inside the station itself. There’s good news, though: the station’s drafty waiting rooms could be much toastier this time next year. The 90-year-old Chicago Union Station will be getting a facelift later this year. Mayor Rahm Emanuel today announced Amtrak would pay $12 million...
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