Columbia's New Building Has A Crunchy Surprise Center

Today was the day that Columbia College debuted its new Media Production Center (1600 South State Street) in the South Loop.  We weren't there because our repeated requests to be added to Columbia College's press release distribution list have fallen on deaf ears.  I guess we're just not good enough for a college that constantly gets confused with a more prestigious institution elsewhere.

Regardless, WBEW blogger Lee Bey was all over it, publishing a piece early this morning with lots of pictures inside and out.  The Chicago Tribune's Blair Kamen came along later with his story, heavier on meat, but lighter on potatoes.  Kamen uses words like "vibrant" and "inspired" to describe Jeanne Gang's latest production.  But then again, I've never read an article by Mr. Kamen involving Ms. Gang that didn't involve a certain amount of gushing.  Bey goes with, "a nice piece of work... that doesn’t visually scream across the intersection, yet it will hardly be ignored."  I'm going to abstain since I haven't been inside.

My primary interest in this new building isn't the new building -- it's the old building trapped inside.  Back when it was still warm in Chicago, I wandered past this construction site and saw the wonderful arch behind glass.  At the time I wondered if it was historic or a recreation, and couldn't find anything on the internet about "Famous Players Lasky."  Fortunately, Mr. Bey is a better researcher than I.  According to his write-up, the arch once stood as part of a building on 13th Street and Michigan Avenue, designed by Rapp & Rapp.

It's a wonderful piece of Chicago history, and if you're not aware of the city's historic leading role in the film industry (Chicago was Hollywood before there even was a Hollywood), take some time to do some research.  It's a shame that Chicago is now a studio backwater, but it's fascinating to learn about how the film industry was pretty much born here.

30 Things You Don't Know About Block37

Yesterday there was a meeting to update the public about the status of Block37.

The people from Joseph Freed and Associates did the presentation, and while they made every effort to be forthcoming, there were certain things they refused to talk about.*

Much has been written in the news about the project's legal and financial situation, and to date we've entirely avoided even mentioning those things in this blog because, quite frankly, they're boring and we don't care.  Open or closed is all we (and the wider public) care about.  We don't want to get bogged down in the minutiae of who appointed what receiver that can't get insurance for blah blah blah blah.  Open or closed.  That's all we want to know.

In our many explorations of the retail complex, we've come to certain conclusions:

• The exterior facade is not great, though it's our understanding that by the time Joseph Freed and Associates gained control of the project it was too late to make any changes.
• The multiple-level LED screens are pretty cool, especially when there are sharks swimming in them (See our CrappyCameraPhone™ video).
• Block37 has some of the cleanest public restrooms on State Street.
• Beard Papa's creampuffs are OK.  They're a little bland, but some people consider that a virtue.  It's also in keeping with its homeland's fondness for the appreciation of subtle flavors.
• WBBM-TV really screwed the public, and should be ashamed of the way it half-assed the screens above its streetfront studio.

On a different note, a lot was said in the meeting that we knew, but there were a number of new nuggets of information presented.  Here are 30 things about Block37 that you may or may not already know:

1. The first time a proposal was floated to demolish the entire block and start again was back in the 1980's.
2. There was once a plan to open Block 37 as a walkable, low-height suburban-style outdoor mall.
3. The planned hotel and residential towers haven't been cancelled.  They can still be added when the economy improves.
4. The hotel and residential portions of the building must be built at the same time for structural reasons.
5. When the hotel and residential towers are completed, a green roof will be planed on top of the retail podium.
6. The planned green roof will open as a small public park, like the one atop the Pepsico offices in the West Loop.
7. The planned hotel is expected to have 385 room.
8. The planned condo/apartment block is expected to have 400 residences.
9. If you look at the building's columns from the pedway level, you may be able to see that there have been diagonal rows created going southeast to northwest.
10. The diagonally arranged columns were done that way to accommodate future express train service below the building.
11. Block37 already has all of the infrastructure in place for the CTA to open an express train station with high-speed service to Midway and O'Hare airports.
12. The developer of the project was required to bring in a certain amount of stores that were new to the region.
13. The reason that the Anthropologie and Puma stores are both two levels is because ground floor stores were given reduced rents if they went vertical.  The idea is to lure shoppers into going higher in the building to explore the stores on the upper levels.
14. In 2009, seven million people passed beneath Block 37.  Two million going through the CTA Blue Line's Washington Street station, and five million through the CTA Red Line's Lake Street station.
15. Each day, 25,000 people use the CTA stations at Block 37.
16. Block37's southeastern ground floor exit was positioned to deliberately give its users a view of the former Marshall Field's building.
17. Block37's northeastern ground floor exit was positioned to give people a view of the Chicago Theater sign as they leave.
18. Block37's western ground floor exit was positioned to open up on Daley Plaza.
19. These three things were done to provide a sense of cohesion with the rest of the Loop, so that Block37 wouldn't feel like yet another isolated island of commerce.
20. Block37's mission is "A public-private partnership that creates a vibrant and successful mixed use development to strengthen downtown Chicago's reputation as a shop, dine, work, live, and play destination while embracing the community's desire for a central transportation hub."
21. 140,000 people live within two miles of Block37.
22. 65,000 college students go to school near Block37.
23. "108 North State" was not meant to be the building's final name, it was just a placeholder.
24. The name "Block37" was chosen because "108 North State" had the potential to alienate retailers in the building who were not positioned on State Street.
25. The big ugly empty steel spaces that wrap around the corner of Washington and Randolph Streets are where CBS was supposed to put in a huge Times Square-style wraparound video screen.  Instead, it went the cheap route and put in a single square screen, leaving the rest of the structure exposed.
26. Block37 has 280,000 square feet of retail space.
27. Block37 has 1,000 restaurant seats.
28. Block37 has 1,630 live and movie theater seats.
29. Block37 has underground parking for 350 vehicles.
30. Block37 has 440,000 square feet of office space.

* To be perfectly clear here, the Freed people stated that they couldn't talk about certain things for "legal reasons."  While they are very likely acting on the advice of their lawyers not to talk about stuff, there is nothing in the law which actually prohibits them from doing so, which is why we used the phrase above "refused to talk" instead of the more common and journalistically lazy "could not talk."  It is a choice made by people at the company, not an actual restriction imposed by law.  Anytime you see a company say "we cannot comment on pending litigation" or "we cannot speak for legal reasons" it's not that they cannot speak.  It's that their lawyers advise them not to and they choose to follow that advice.  For the time being we still have the right to free speech in the United States.  With this in mind, you'll notice a pattern develop over time -- that companies with strong leadership and policies of public openness will talk to the media; while companies with weak leadership, a culture that stifles employee thought, and a "circle the wagons" mentality will go with "no comment."

Three Lectures Upcoming in the Prairie Avenue District

Got this e-mail today from the people down at the Glessner House (1800 South Prairie Avenue).  It's a list of their upcoming lectures.  Looks like good stuff.

Winter and Spring Lectures

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The Autobiography of Irving K. Pond

Lecture by David Swan

Wednesday February 24, 2010 at 7:00pm

Irving K. Pond was a distinguished Chicago architect, author, gifted storyteller, and national president of the American Institute of Architects. His richly anecdotal autobiography, published for the first time in 2009, gives us an irreverent account of Chicago architecture and its architects at the turn of the last century. It should be read alongside the autobiographies of Sullivan and Wright to remind us that seminal developments in architecture, like those of the Italian Renaissance, emerge from a collaborative environment, and are not the product of an individual genius working alone. The lecture is presented by Chicago architect David Swan, who along with Terry Tatum (Supervising Historian and Director of Research for the Landmarks Division, City of Chicago) edited the text of the autobiography and gathered several hundred photos and line drawings that accompany it. Copies of the book will be available for sale following the lecture.

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Edgar Miller and the Handmade Home

Lecture by Richard Cahan and Michael Williams

Wednesday March 24, 2010 at 7:00pm

Edgar Miller was a Chicago artist who used recycled material to turn old homes into works of art. He called it a "social adventure." His four apartment complexes in the Gold Coast have changed over the decades, but much of Miller's work and the spirit he brought to each home remains. They offer lessons about beauty, creativity and honesty. Now, for the first time, Miller's life and the homes that he built are documented in a 400-page book by architectural historians Richard Cahan and Michael Williams, with stunning photography by Alexander Vertikoff. The book carefully details the forces that shaped an artist who was called "the blond boy Michaelangelo" in the 1920s, "a new luminary" in the 1930s, and "one of the most versatile artists in America" in the 1940s. The illustrated lecture will shed light on "Chicago's forgotten Renaissance man" who is a legend in the Chicago architectural community. Copies of the book will be available for sale following the lecture.

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White House Interiors, 1865 - 1902

Lecture by Robert Furhoff

Tuesday May 11, 2010 at 7:00pm

Robert Furhoff, a nationally recognized expert on historic interiors will guide us through the constantly changing interior of the White House during the last half of the nineteenth century. Using his extensive personal collection of stereoview images, Furhoff will discuss how the interior continued to evolve through various administrations, and how these changes reflected and influenced popular taste at the time. The lecture begins with the post-Lincoln era, the first time the interior of the White House was extensively photographed, and concludes with the McKim, Mead and White remodeling in 1902, during the administration of Theodore Roosevelt. A fascinating journey for anyone with an interest in 19th century interior design.

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Lectures are $10 per person, $8 for members of the museum. All lectures will be held in the East Gallery, please use the front entrance on Prairie Avenue. For reservations or further information, please call 312.326.1480.

TweetEcho: January 11-31, 2010

For those of you who don't subscribe to our Twitter feed, here are the items we tweeted in the last week or so:

1. Interesting clouds this afternoon. We could be in for a good sunset.about 19 hours ago from HootSuite
2. The renovated Kate Spade store on Oak Street reopens tomorrow (Saturday, January 30).1:15 PM Jan 29th from HootSuite
3. @goldendragon35 Didn't get the message till just now. I'll update the blog. Thanks!6:48 AM Jan 29th from HootSuite in reply to goldendragon35
4. We now have a shorter, easier to remember web address for our Facebook page. Bookmarkhttp://www.facebook.com/ChicagoArchitectureInfo6:47 AM Jan 29th from HootSuite
5. Old Saint Mary's is getting a new school building:http://ow.ly/11wgd1:00 PM Jan 28th from HootSuite
6. Small progress made on Chicago's newest chocolate shop:http://ow.ly/11kJ39:30 AM Jan 28th from HootSuite
7. Loyola University's new TV studio looks ready to go:http://ow.ly/11kIG8:30 AM Jan 28th from HootSuite
8. Pat Quinn announces the Wacker Drive reconstruction we told you about weeks ago: http://ow.ly/11kHD Our detailed report: http://ow.ly/11kIa7:30 AM Jan 28th from HootSuite
9. Illinois getting $1.2B for high-speed rail: http://ow.ly/11kFKAlso see our series about where it's going:http://ow.ly/11kGm5:17 AM Jan 28th from HootSuite
10. Sorry about the site being slow. There's a network issue. A tech is working on it right now.7:44 AM Jan 27th from HootSuite
11. Kennedy King College to be demolished and turned into a park: http://ow.ly/10OvN7:22 PM Jan 26th from HootSuite
12. Water Tower Place architect dies: http://ow.ly/10DsD9:22 AM Jan 26th from HootSuite
13. The Yves Saint Laurent boutique on Oak Street is closed for the next few months: http://ow.ly/10fUO10:14 AM Jan 25th from HootSuite
14. Coincidence? Illinois unemployment up to 11.1% while CTA says ridership is down (fewer people going to work?)http://ow.ly/ZzEt5:54 PM Jan 22nd from HootSuite
15. Blommer Chocolate chief Joe Blommer has died | Crain's Chicago Business http://ow.ly/ZzE65:53 PM Jan 22nd from HootSuite
16. Michigan Avenue retail shakeup: Fratelli Rossetti out. Omega (watches) in: http://ow.ly/ZyUo4:38 PM Jan 22nd from HootSuite
17. Yet another store closes on Oak Street: http://ow.ly/ZyTR4:37 PM Jan 22nd from HootSuite
18. On this gloomy Thursday, another reason to hope for better weather ahead: http://ow.ly/Z3dh9:56 AM Jan 21st from HootSuite
19. How the Midwest high-speed rail network will affect Chicago:http://ow.ly/Z39W9:54 AM Jan 21st from HootSuite
20. We have an answer to the mystery of Chicago's new "Heritage Center" building designation: http://ow.ly/YyiQ12:55 PM Jan 20th from HootSuite
21. Part 3 of our series on the Midwest high speed rail plan: How Fast is Fast? http://ow.ly/Yyg310:55 AM Jan 20th from HootSuite
22. There's a super-useful animated map in part two of our Midwest High Speed Rail series: Who Gets It First?http://ow.ly/Yyei7:30 AM Jan 20th from HootSuite
23. Hiding in a Chicago neighborhood: Snacks on Wheelshttp://ow.ly/YycO5:50 AM Jan 20th from HootSuite
24. Can you live off the land in Chicago? Some people try:http://ow.ly/XK1I9:15 AM Jan 18th from HootSuite
25. Kate Spade's Oak Street boutique is closed for renovations:http://ow.ly/XJXH8:15 AM Jan 18th from HootSuite
26. Wondering if we'll ever see high-speed rail in the midwest? Looks like "yes!" http://ow.ly/XJSq7:01 AM Jan 18th from HootSuite
27. Will Target open a new store in the Loop? In the old Carson Pirie Scott building? http://ow.ly/Xtwt4:14 PM Jan 17th from HootSuite
28. Yet another plan floated for rehabbing Wrigley Field:http://ow.ly/Xo0410:02 AM Jan 17th from HootSuite
29. Oak Park is closer to getting a new 20-story skyscraper:http://ow.ly/WQje7:57 AM Jan 15th from HootSuite
30. Months later, the International Olympic Committee tries to sell Chicago a bridge in Brooklyn: http://ow.ly/WC2U3:10 PM Jan 14th from HootSuite
31. New book about historic Chicago architect Irving K. Pond:http://ow.ly/WqrK11:10 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
32. Filming A Lincoln in Lincoln Park: http://ow.ly/Wqr310:10 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
33. @frostyplum Glad you liked it.9:10 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite in reply to frostyplum
34. One of Chicago's best public restrooms just got better:http://ow.ly/WqpI9:10 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
35. Pix: Cable news network shooting on the Magnificent Mile:http://ow.ly/WqoA8:10 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
36. This is why we endure Chicago winters: http://ow.ly/Wqtc7:30 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
37. Loop food court closes: http://ow.ly/WqnS6:58 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
38. Both of Chicago's Olympic logos have been named among the best logos of the decade: http://ow.ly/Wq0S6:47 AM Jan 14th from HootSuite
39. Ultimo boutique closing after 40 years of fashion on Oak Street | Crain's Chicago Business http://ow.ly/Whfs7:09 PM Jan 13th from HootSuite
40. Trib: Demolition underway at 830 S. Michigan Avenue:http://ow.ly/W1Tr7:12 AM Jan 13th from HootSuite
41. Mentioned this last year, now it looks official - Art of Shaving coming to Michigan Avenue: http://ow.ly/W1JJ7:06 AM Jan 13th from HootSuite
42. AllSaints to take the space that was formerly the front entrance of the Chicago Place mall: http://ow.ly/W1Gv7:05 AM Jan 13th from HootSuite
43. One of the worst jobs in Chicago: http://ow.ly/UO8k8:45 AM Jan 11th from HootSuite
44. Commute into Chicago on I-290, or work in the west Loop? April 1 is the date your life becomes hell: http://ow.ly/UPIO4:50 AM Jan 11th from HootSuite

Last Night's Sunset in Time-Lapse

Last night I tweeted that the high clouds in the sky could make for an interesting sunset.  So I set up the iPhone and made a time-lapse movie of the sun going down behind the Chicago skyline as seen from the John Hancock Center (875 North Michigan Avenue).

Unfortunately, the clouds cleared out just as the good colors were coming on, but you can still see its light making rainbows in the ice crystals.

There are a couple of times when the picture jumps.  Those are when someone called on my phone.  Oops!

Status Update: Deconstructing The Deconstructed

Work continues on the Thompson Center (100 West Washington Street) where the granite panels were found to be deteriorating and in danger of falling off of their posts.

The panels are arranged around the perimeter of the block, outlining where the building might have gone if it were square and not a series of balconies surrounding a curved glass atrium.  The granite panels get smaller and more deconstructed as they get father from the main body of the building.  Now demolition crews are deconstructing the deconstruction so people don't get bonked on the head by Helmut Jahn's creative expressions.

Although it hasn't been called the "State of Illinois Building" in a decade, certain media organizations (*cough*WGN-TV*cough*) continue to use the outdated name which has since been assigned to another building across the street.

Video and pics: Helicopter Lift at Water Tower Place

Several streets in the Gold Coast were shut down this morning so that new HVAC units could be lifted to the roof of Water Tower Place (845 North Michigan Avenue).

The sky crane picked up the HVAC units one at a time from the ball field at nearby Lake Shore Park, ferried them down Chicago Avenue, and then up to the top of the skyscraper.  Getting them over that lip is quite a feat, as it is 1,059 feet high.

The original lift was scheduled for January 23, 2010 but had to be postponed a week because of bad weather.

Helicopter lifts are much like baseball games -- simultaneously boring and fascinating.  I made a video of a portion of the lift to give you an idea what it looks like. I didn't bother shooting the transport of all six giant silver boxes.

More pictures follow the video.  Click on them to enlarge.

Slice of Life: The Definition of Lonely

Every time you brush your teeth, clean your pits, flush the toilet, give the dog a drink, or otherwise use water in Chicago, you have some of the loneliest people on earth to thank.

While most Chicagoans know that their supply of fresh water comes from a network of cribs located miles off shore, like the one pictured above, or Four Mile Crib, they don't realize that there are people there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  People who monitor, maintain, and otherwise ensure that you have water.  It's my understanding that they stay on the crib in shifts of a week or longer, and eagerly anticipate the arrival of the next supply ship.

Status Update: Loyola Television Studio

The Fall, 2009 timeframe came and went, but Loyola University's streetfront studio inside The Clare at Water Tower (55 East Pearson) looks like it's finally ready to go.

We first told you about the $400,000 project back in November as part of an article about Chicago's Seven Storefront Studios.

The Loyola setup seems like a nice little studio.  The cameras are a bit small, so I don't think they're professional grade.  More like "prosumer."  And the orange-and-gray color scheme reminds me of the studios of KHOU television in Houston where I worked back in the 1990's.  And the monitor wall is, of course, just for show for visitors and people walking by.  They're too far away to be used as preview or program monitors for the people on the set.

There also appears to be a little area off to the side to do radio interviews and chat shows.  It would be nice if Loyola would start its own radio station.  So many of the city's college radio stations are so low power that they're worthless where I live.  In fact, the only one I can receive reliably is WDCB out of Glen Ellyn.

If there are any forward-thinking people at Loyola reading this, here's a tip for you -- Start your college station on an HD subchannel of full-power FM station.  That way you get full market coverage without the expense and responsibilities of launching a full radio station, and the host station can write off the expense of carrying your signal as a charitable donation.  Just a thought.

Update: January 29, 2010:

Just got a Twitter message from one of our readers letting me know that Loyola already has a radio station.  WLUW is on 88.7, and comes in pretty good here on top of the John Hancock Center.  Here's a helpful diagram to see if you can get WLUW where you are:

Still, it would be nice to hear Loyola student radio on a full-power station.  Something like this:

Even though WLUW is only 100 watts, it still has a much better signal than the scatter-and-splatter 200-watt directional mess that was my college radio station:

Status Update: Leonidas is Still Coming

It was back in November that we first mentioned the new Leonidas store coming to the former Bank of America location at 59 East Chicago Avenue.  Since then, little has changed with the storefront.  In spite of the "coming soon" promise, it didn't manage to open in time for the Christmas shopping season.  But there are signs that things are still progressing.

Recently a permit was posted showing the Leonidas is still moving forward with the project.  It was issued January 7, 2010.  Also, there is a promotional placard for a Red House, a company that specializes in renovations.

Presumably, Red House is doing the interior design.  But we'd be more impressed if it let us see the work being done inside, or at least posted renderings of what the finished product should look like.  The Leonidas project isn't even mentioned on the company's web site.

Status Update: The Sullivan Center

Last Wednesday (January 20, 2010) I was standing at a Loop bus stop waiting for any CTA vehicle beginning with a "1" to come by and take me home when a thought struck me.  "Aren't I supposed to be under a scaffold right now?"

I turned around and discovered that the scaffolding surrounding the State Street facade of the Sullivan Center (33 South State Street) was gone.  Years after Carson Pirie Scott abandoned the heart and soul of its home town, the building that made it famous is emerging from its construction cocoon.

If you haven't been by in a while, you should make a trip.  The exterior is magnificent.  Hopefully something good happens to the interior, too.  There have been a few small shops that opened on the Wabash Street side, but the bulk of the retail space remains unclaimed.  A hoped-for grocery store fell through, and the latest out of Crain's Chicago Business is that Target might be interested in opening there -- probably the final nail in the coffin of the flagship Sears store across the way.