Union Station, other development addressed at WCA luncheon 

By Susan Fong 

Ambitious plans for developing the old Union Station took center stage at the West Central Association luncheon meeting on Aug. 22, which focused on West Loop development. Held at the Marriott Hotel on the corner of Ashland Avenue and Harrison Street, the meeting featured four presentations from area developers.

Union Station developer Hossein Yossefi attended the meeting, at which Joseph Caprile, vice president of the real estate management firm Jones Lang LaSalle Americas offered information about the Union Station project. The development will transform the historic transportation icon at 222 S. Canal St. into a “contemporary lifestyle destination point,” Caprile said.

With a new 18-story tower, 1.5 million square feet will be available for office, retail, hotel, and residential use. “The foundation of the building was originally built for a larger structure, so no major infrastructure bolstering will be needed when they add on the additional floors," Caprile explained.

A 320-room four-star hotel will occupy the first several floors, with a 40,000 square foot conference room on the third floor. 

Office space entrances on Jackson and Adams Streets will be separate from the entrances for other parts of the development. Offices will occupy 13 floors; 50,000 square feet of column-free space and a 120-by-200-foot court area will provide abundant light.

Residential condominiums will occupy the top floors to provide a city view. The entrance for them will be on Clinton Street, where major retail restaurants will be located. Also, "destination" restaurants will occupy the development’s corners, and underground parking will be available. Shopping, dining, and entertainment venues will total 80,000 square feet.

The developer expects to complete the project in September 2009.

Also at the Aug. 22 meeting, Joel Pickus of Pickus Companies updated the audience on the former Fed Ex building and its neighboring development at 1260 to 1300 W. Adams St. In multiple buildings, Pickus is developing more than 74,000 square feet of ground-level retail and 443 residential units on a 660-foot stretch of Madison Street, including 92 residential units and 8,000 square feet of retail in the MOD condominium project alone, which sits directly east.

According to Pickus, this project will place high-quality retail in the heart of the West Loop, where demand is great. The developments will conform to the City Planning Department’s blueprint to create a retail corridor along Madison Street.

"This is something the West Loop does not have and is part of the reason why large retailers have not moved into the area,” Pickus said.

The retail space will provide dedicated indoor parking, lessening street congestion and allowing a more pedestrian friendly retail environment to evolve. 

Partner James Plunkard of Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture then presented a rendering of his firm's 32-story residential and commercial mixed-used project at 519 S. Clinton St. Its 280 residential units will offer a pedestrian friendly streetscape with "significant" commercial operations on the corner, he said.

Michael Leary of Michael Leary Architects reviewed his work for residential developers Campus Construction at 1252 to 1254 W. Jackson St.

“The eight residential units address a need in the community for smaller scale residential units that are family-oriented," he said.

Alderman Walter Burnett attended and spoke about his annual Union Park picnic on Aug. 25.

Chad Fix, chair of the Skinner Park Playground Committee, announced a $100,000 campaign to improve the park’s playground. The group has implemented a buy a brick program that will place bricks with sponsor information in the park in exchange for donations.

            The next WCA meeting will take place Tuesday, Sept. 18, at the Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro, 733 W. Madison St. For more information, e-mail officewca@aol.com or call (312) 902-4922.