What I really like about the Hotel is the double facade, those have a tendency to look absolutely crystalline and beautiful. I mean the only one currently in Chicago that I know of is in Loyola's Internet Commons and it looks fantastic and adds a ton of interest to the building. I can't imagine 50 floors of that with skygardens interspersed. If they build this I hope it is done with excellent execution and becomes revolutionary not for its aesthetics but for its engineering.

It's like the BIC lighter for the giant stoggie that is the Sears Tower. It's looking so futuristic and cool in the renderings. Not sure how I feel about the proximity to Sears, but the contrast is quite striking.

And as Nowhereman1280 said, the double facade has the chance to look really slick against the black of Sears.

It's a very interesting proposal.

I love it! Build it!!!

This is a very nice building, however I do not feel that it will be that noticeable being next to the sears tower because it is extremely small in comparison and is very close. Does anyone have an idea of an aproximate height of this hotel?

Heh, cool idea, both in design and urban positioning. Realistically, how likely is it to get built?

The render puts it at Sears first setback. That's 200 meters.

It's amazing how small a 50 story building looks next the Sears tower. It would be seen for miles away in all but the major cities of the U.S.

Net Zero Energy? Doesn't it take alot of energy to *build* it?? One way or another, its going to consume energy.

I think it would be a cool idea on it's own merits, but merged close together with Sears it comes off awkward at best. Like the tower, but not fond of the location.

^ I like anything that makes the sears look even more monstrous than it already is

Building this hotel would (in my humble opinion) destroy the integrity of the architectural program of Sears Tower. Both building would not serve each other.
Plus the fact that the original design would be transformed totally on the base of the building : that should not be authorized. Like it or not, this is an icon of modern architecture of the 1970's !! It shouldn't be altered...
Plus the fact that the hotel would be so close from the tower that there would be a lack of intimacy from customers being in rooms so close from the offices spaces !!

I can understand your other arguments, but this part is just complete BS. Using that arguementation means we should not build any hotels downtown since they will invariably have other windows just meters away. Heck, we should not build any residential either for that matter.

Not to mention the fact that peak office use and peak hotel use are polar opposites. Hotel rooms are most used at night while office is most used during the day. If you are going to put two uses next to each other, office and hotel are probably the best.

How does building this hotel alter the sears/ willis tower? The building will be essentially the same, and just the horrendous plaza that isn't good enough for this city anyways- yet alone one its greatest masterpieces- will be all that's lost. This is a quite significant upgrade from the current plaza setup that in no way gels with the building as is, and it's not like this is some VE'd garbage like block 37. This hotel- along with 235 van buren- are symbolic of the city becoming more cosmopolitan and user-friendly in that area of the loop and I welcome it.

Well it is a nice looking hotel. But it is so close to the ST. Hmm but if it will help it out, why not. I say go for it...

The modification of the base/plaza is an interesting issue - of course, the base has already seen various modifications since the original construction, so it's tough to say what exactly is "original" and "authentic" and worthy of preservation.

It's a potentially cool proposal, but I share concerns given that Sears (Willis) isn't just any International-style office highrise - it's one of the most important and iconic of it's architectural style ever built.

I think ultimately I do like the proposal - just because something may represent a pristine architectural example doesn't automatically merit preservation if the strict adherence to those principles has a serious negative impact at street level, which I think is definitely the case at Sears.

As to dramatic aesthetic juxtapositions, I'm almost always in favor for the visual interest it generates.

"Willis Tower"

That just seems wrong:(

The "Sears Tower" sign at the base has not been removed or permanently altered, they have simply placed plywood over it and painted it black then painted "Willis Tower" on it. I hope they don't destroy that sign, I like it a lot.

^^^ It would be cool in a museum somewhere.

I like the hotel tower, but I think the plaza is too small and tight.

At 5:00 the sidewalk/plaza is jammed with people going to Union Station, this hotel would really make this area tight and difficult for pedestrians. Why not tear down the parking garage next door, and build this tower there? They can even make some cool connections over the street into Sears.

Some tenants might be quicker to move out because they will now have a building just meters from their windows.

But they should definitely redesign the plaza.

I personally dislike this entire design -- although not necessarily the concept. The hotel as its envisioned simply does not fit aesthetically within the South Wacker Drive corridor given the existing architecture in these two blocks.

The current rendering looks remarkably out of place framed between Sears Tower and 311 S Wacker. It doesn't even attempt to complement either building -- almost suggesting that it was designed in a vacuum -- with no regard for the neighboring architecture. And crammed so tightly into a corner of the existing lot beneath the very shadow of its nearby cousins, visually suggests that the proposal is nothing more than a developer's desperate band-aid solution for revitalization.

I think there are far better ways to incorporate a marketable green hotel into the existing Sears Tower property while similarly redeveloping the infamously tacky street-level plaza. There is a parking garage on Franklin St that is just begging to be razed. It is the perfect location for a hotel tower with an integrated parking deck. Simply construct a graceful skybridge across Franklin St to the mezzanine of Sears Tower.

That makes the most efficient use of the valuable real estate in the Chicago Loop. And it adds the convenience of direct, on-site parking for occupants of the new hotel which could be an additional selling point (not to mention being one block closer to the nearest "L" stop, since it is important to encourage use of public transit).

--Randall

The Developer's Hatred! The People's Love!
 

Why is this opportunistic developer hijacking the public space surrounding the Sears Tower?!!! ... because this ungentle gentleman has the land and property rights to do so! I say no thank you to unjust justice! There is no reasonable reason why the Sears Tower should change anything period! ... other than the fact that the person(s) who control the rights to this land and this property control this precious land and property! The developer is morally bankrupt! The public is morally ethical! Shame unto those who crave shamelessness! Power! Power! Power! The People are powerful! The People shall prevail! Long live the People! Our spirit shall last forever! Your building's body is merely material! Our spirit shall last forever!
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