COVER STORY, DECEMBER 2004

2005 PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
A look at six projects impacting local communities.
Lindsey Walker

With the new year approaching, Heartland Real Estate Business has searched the Midwest for significant upcoming developments in 2005. With projects ranging from high-rise towers to state-of-the-art research facilities, developers across the Midwest have big plans for the coming year.

Trump International Hotel & Tower

Real estate mogul Donald Trump is bringing his ‘bigger is better’ mantra to the Midwest with his 90-story Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago.

Trump International Hotel & Tower, Chicago.

Originally planned to be the tallest building in the world, The Trump Organization’s tower was scaled back after the attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. However, the 1,110-feet-tall skyscraper will still make quite an impression on the Chicago skyline when it is completed in 2007.

Designed by Adrian Smith of Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and being built by Bovis Lend Lease’s Chicago office, the 2.6 million-square-foot building will feature a modern stainless steel and glass curtain wall façade. The tower will offer 472 luxury residential condominiums and 286 five-star hotel condominiums ranging in price from $636,000 to $16 million. Although the original design called for approximately 1.3 million square feet of office space, Trump abandoned the idea earlier this year to instead add more condominium units.

“Our sales went so well — not only were the prices we were receiving higher than expected, but the absorption rate, the speed of sales, was so strong — that we were able to increase the multifamily and hotel components,” explains Russell Flicker, an executive vice president of the Trump Organization. After 1 year of sales, the Hotel & Tower is approximately 75 percent sold.

Located along the Chicago River at 401 N. Wabash Avenue — the former site of the Chicago Sun-Times Building — the tower will provide its residents with such amenities as a 60,000-square-foot health-and-fitness spa, a 24-hour concierge, more than 90,000 square feet of boutique shopping and dining, 20,000 square feet of conference and meeting space, two ballrooms, 1,000 indoor parking spaces, a 1.2-acre riverfront park and a three-tiered riverwalk.

“Part of what makes Chicago particularly unique is its interaction and appropriate use of all the waterfront,” Flicker says. “We tried to take advantage of that by getting a site that is both on the Chicago River and has a direct view of the lake. That’s what makes our site particularly exciting.”

Currently in the demolition stage, the tower is set to be under construction in the first quarter of 2005.

303 Broadway at Queen City Square

Upon its completion in late 2005, 303 Broadway at Queen City Square will be downtown Cincinnati’s first new office building in 14 years.

303 Broadway at Queen City Square, Cincinnati

“It will be the only true Class A office building in downtown Cincinnati,” says Charlie Thomas, vice president of real estate development for Cincinnati-based Eagle Realty Group, the project’s developer. “With a highly efficient floorplate design, an optimal size of 22,500 square feet per floor and new requirements for today’s telecommunications and Internet systems, 303 Broadway will offer superior building technologies unavailable elsewhere in downtown Cincinnati.”

The 180,000-square-foot building is the first phase of the 1 million-square-foot Queen City Square development. The second phase will include a 37-story office tower with first floor retail.

Located at the corner of 3rd Street and Broadway, in the core office quadrant of the central business district, 303 Broadway has a presence unrivaled in Cincinnati, with views overlooking the Cincinnati Reds ballpark and the Ohio River. The $62.5 million project features office space on eight floors and an underground 650-space parking garage.

“303 Broadway will have downtown Cincinnati’s most generous parking ratio, at 3.6 spaces per 1,000 square feet,” Thomas says.

Gyo Obata of St. Louis-based HOK (Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum) is leading the design team, and New York-based Turner Construction is the general contractor.

Interdisciplinary Research Complex at the University of Wisconsin

Interdisciplinary Research Complex at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin.

Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (HOK) is the design architect for the new Interdisciplinary Research Complex at the University of Wisconsin Medical School (IRC), which will break ground in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2005. The complex will be the third and final component of the University’s HealthStar initiative, a program launched in 1996 to construct new health sciences research and education facilities on the University’s west end, according to Todd Halamka, a design principal with HOK Chicago.

“The new facility will foster interdisciplinary research within health sciences and across the entire campus,” he says. “It will promote translational (laboratory-to-clinic) research and will provide efficient core support.”

Comprised of three five-story laboratory towers that will span 700,900 square feet upon completion in 2010, the IRC will radiate from the existing Clinical Services Center and will link to the hospital at different levels through a series of connections. Inside the towers, the project will include one-story laboratories and support and office space, as well as a series of two-story lounges and pathways meant to create an interactive environment. The development will also feature garden space in between the buildings.

“Framed by a mass of existing buildings — some of which were built 25 years ago and constructed with diverse materials — the IRC is designed to unite the complex visually,” Halamka says. “Kasota stone, glass and brick — distilled from some of the adjacent structures — form the principle façade materials. The employment of low- and high-rise building massing integrates the new facility both to adjacent buildings and the pedestrian experience.”

Broken down into two phases, the $135 million, 437,600-square-foot first phase — which calls for the creation of more than 160,000 square feet of laboratory space; 84,600 square feet of imaging space; 63,000 square feet for a vivarium; and 14,000 square feet for the study of gross anatomy — will be complete in 2008. A future phase encompassing another 263,300 square feet is in the development stage. It will include an advanced biomedical laboratory and increased vivarium space. When completed, the project’s total cost will be $265 million.

The IRC will fill a much needed void at the university, which, according to a recent assessment of the medical school by the Liaison Committee for Medical Education, needs at least another 200,000 square feet of space to meet future demands, Halamka says.

Besides providing the campus with this essential space, the complex also will help to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice. “The building’s proximity to the existing Clinical Sciences Center will foster the exchange of information between research scientists working in the IRC and clinicians treating patients in the hospital,” he says. “The new facility will accelerate the speed of innovative imaging and laboratory research to clinical bedside application — encouraging the rapid movement of new knowledge on fundamental aspects of disease processes to the greater community.”

340 on the Park

340 on the Park, Chicago.

Chicago-based LR Development Company, in a joint venture with Chicago-based Magellan Development Group and Chicago-based NNP Residential & Development, has found the perfect combination for its new high-rise condominium development in Chicago’s Lakeshore East neighborhood — forward-thinking design, unbeatable views and an unparalleled location.

“It is certainly the old real estate adage that “location, location, location” is everything, and this building has that covered every way that you can look,” says Tom Weeks, president of LR. “Add to that 340 on the Park is being planned to be the first residential tower in Chicago to meet LEED standards for environmental design, and its views are the best possible.”

Located at 340 E. Randolph, the 62-story, approximately 1 million-square-foot building fronts historic Grant Park to the south, Lake Michigan to the east and sits across from Millennium Park. To the north, the condominiums overlook a newly-built 6-acre park, Navy Pier and the city’s skyline.

“This building has front-facing views that overlook Buckingham Fountain and one of the most spectacular urban views perhaps in the country, and certainly in Chicago,” Weeks says. “It also has rear and side views that would be exceptional at the front of any other building.”

Set to begin construction within 2 months, 340 on the Park will include 328 one-, two-, and three-bedroom condominiums ranging in size from 1,186 to 3,414 square feet. The property will also contain 16 fully customizable penthouse homes, between 2,360 and 5,489 square feet. There will be more than 4,000 square feet of retail space available on the ground level and a six-story, 206,790-square-foot garage will be located below street level. The residences also will feature an amenity level — with a fitness center, 25-yard lap pool, winter garden with over-sized glass doors and a clubroom — in the middle levels of the building.

“We’ve actually taken the amenity floor, which in many buildings is somewhere down in the basement, and put it on the 25th floor, overlooking some of the best views that the building has to offer,” Weeks says. “We’re taking what otherwise would be a very valuable residential space and committing to a meaningful and important amenity floor — all on a floor with spectacular 360 degree views.”

To obtain LEED certification, LR will be incorporating several design features to improve energy efficiency and indoor air quality as well as minimize the building's impact on the environment. Features allowing the building to achieve a 20 percent reduction in energy costs include a curtain wall exterior skin with tinted low-E glass to reduce solar heat gain. Environmentally sustainable features include using rapidly renewable resources such as bamboo flooring and installing a rainwater collection system to be used for landscape irrigation. The property’s centralized location, within a half mile of public transportation, also complies with LEED certification standards.

While 340 on the Park has only recently begun publicly advertising and marketing, the building is approaching 150 contracts.

“We think [that] is exceptional acceptance of the project,” he says. “It’s been received very, very well.”

The $300 million project was designed by Chicago-based Solomon Cordwell Buenz & Associates, in conjunction with Synthesis Architecture and Design, LR’s design division, and is being built by the Chicago office of Bovis Lend Lease. Delivery is expected in early 2007; Completion is set for a year later.

“With everything that is going on in the Loop, for anyone who wants to experience Chicago at its best, there couldn’t be a better location,” Weeks says. “We’ve taken everything we’ve learned from both our past successe, and, perhaps, mistakes. And we have put a lot of thought into correcting and planning to create the best residential living experience possible.”

Schaumburg Convention Center and Hotel

The Schaumburg Convention Center and Hotel — an idea that has been in development since the mid-1980s — is underway in Schaumburg, Illinois. Once the brainchild of five northwest Illinois municipalities — Schaumburg, Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Palatine and Rolling Meadows — the project originally was to be funded by the State of Illinois and those five communities. However, due to the lack of available state funding at the time, the project was dropped — but not forgotten.

Schaumburg Convention Center and Hotel, Schaumburg, Illinois.

In 1999, more than 10 years later, the Village of Schaumburg once again pursued the project and purchased 45 acres of land located on the corner of Interstate 90 (The Northwest Tollway) and Meacham Road in Schaumburg.

“The Village was in a financial position where we had some general obligation bonds that we were retiring, and there was some revenue that was going to become available for us to use,” says Brian Townsend, assistant village manager for The Village of Schaumburg. “The parcel that we purchased for the project was really the last large tract of land available in the Woodfield area for a project of this size. The Village board realized that if they didn’t do it now, it was not going to happen.”

The $13 million site is now the future home to a 17-story, 419,000-square-foot Marriott/Renaissance hotel and an adjacent 316,000-square-foot convention center.

Being built by Chicago-based Walsh Construction, the Schaumburg Convention Center and Hotel will feature 500 guest rooms, a 28,000-square-foot grand ballroom, 20,000 square feet of meeting rooms, a 200-seat restaurant, a 75-seat café, a lobby bar, a winter garden atrium, an indoor swimming pool and a health club. The complex will also include 1,670 parking spaces. A future phase calls for a 2,400-seat performing arts center.

“The project itself is unique because of what it includes and where it is located, and the spectacular design will be an icon for the Schaumburg area,” Townsend says. “The project will be successful because it is the largest hotel and convention facility in the Woodfield area. It will help to attract additional visitors to the community and strengthen the hospitality segment of the economy.”

John Portman & Associates is providing architectural services for the $239 million project, which is set for completion in June 2006.

Target Distribution Center

The I-39 Logistics Corridor is booming, and Minneapolis-based Target Corporation has taken notice. The company recently purchased 119 acres of land in the corridor’s largest industrial park — the 425-acre Park 88 — where it is now building its 1.5 million-square-foot Chicago distribution center.

Located at 1111 Macom Drive just north of the four-way Peace Road interchange at I-88 in DeKalb, Illinois, the new $100 million project is being built by Chicago-based Walsh Construction. Delivery is set for fall 2005, and the center is expected to be fully operational by January 2006.

The park’s strategic location is what attracted Target to this site, according to Mark Goode, principal at Riverwoods, Illinois-based Venture One Real Estate. With access to Interstate 88, the growth in Chicago and a significant labor pool (DeKalb is home to North Illinois University, which has a logistics division), Park 88 has a lot to offer users.

“Interstate 88 runs East-West from downtown Chicago, and in this location, [Target] believes that they will be in the center line for future growth of Chicago. They feel that they are in the path of development.” Goode says. “Plus, this location allows users to have virtually traffic-free delivery to all Midwestern markets.”

Developed by Venture One, along with St. Louis-based Claycorp, Inc. and DeKalb Associates, Park 88 is located 50 miles west of Chicago and 129 miles southwest of Milwaukee. The development, once complete, will be a central part of the I-39 Logistics Corridor, which covers 10,000 square miles from Janesville, Wisconsin, on the north to Bloomington, Illinois, on the south, and 65 miles from Sycamore, Illinois, on the east to Sterling, Illinois, on the west.

“From Park 88’s perspective, this transaction has allowed us to get our infrastructure completed. We’re building our main road through the park and we will have five pad-ready sites from 160,000 to 750,000 square feet, so we can immediately start building for people who need fast delivery,” Goode says. “We think this will lead to us being able to do commercial development, in terms of hotels and service stations, in the park.”

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