Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

950-Foot Tower Next To Union Station Proposed

By David Matthews | September 9, 2016 12:03pm
 Sterling Bay Cos. wants to build this tower next to Union Station. The station, which is undergoing a major redevelopment, is expected to pick a developer in the winter.
Sterling Bay Cos. wants to build this tower next to Union Station. The station, which is undergoing a major redevelopment, is expected to pick a developer in the winter.
View Full Caption
Skidmore Owings & Merrill

DOWNTOWN — One of Chicago's biggest developers has proposed perhaps its most ambitious project yet: a new 950-foot tower that would rise next to Union Station.

Sterling Bay Cos. revealed its plans during a real estate forum Thursday hosted by Crain's Chicago Business. Sterling Bay chief Andy Gloor reportedly told the audience his firm is already negotiating with tenants who would occupy the 958-foot-tall, 2 million-square-foot office tower

The proposal arrives as Union Station continues a massive, multipronged redevelopment expected to take several years. The train station at 225 S. Canal St. opened a new bus depot late last month, and has also replaced the storied marble stairs in its Great Hall. Additional projects will require the help of a private developer. 

Marc Magliari, a spokesman for Amtrak, which owns Union Station and the land next to it, said a "short list" of prospective developers will be announced soon, and the final developer will be chosen this winter. Magliari declined to say whether Sterling Bay is a finalist for the bid.

Gloor and a Sterling Bay spokeswoman did not return messages seeking comment. 


The tower imagined at night. [Skidmore Owings & Merrill]

If realized, the tower would be one of the 10 tallest in the city. Sterling Bay, which got its start rehabbing vintage office buildings, is perhaps best known for developing Google's new Chicago office in the West Loop and renovating the 41-story art deco office tower at 121 W. Wacker Drive. 

Sterling Bay also is expected to redevelop the former A. Finkl & Sons Steel plant along the north branch of the Chicago River. 

Elsewhere, Gloor reportedly told the audience Sterling Bay plans a residential tower at the site it owns at 300 N. Michigan Ave. 

A spokesman for Skidmore Owings & Merrill, which drew renderings for the tower proposed near Union Station, did not immediately return a message seeking comment. 

Should Sterling Bay win the Union Station bid, its projects would require City Council approval. Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), whose ward includes Union Station, said Friday he has not reviewed the developer's high-rise proposal. 

 

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: