I think this is a slightly better design despite the reduction in height and it still being another blue glass box. Then again, this was always a filler that no one was going to see. I do wish they would have gotten rid of that little kickstand on the side altogether, ugh. Hopefully this means an increase for site I...highly doubtful.

Eyeballing it, looks like it has dropped to about 46 floors (from the Columbus side) from the original 54. Assuming the floor to height ratios remain about the same, the building will drop by about 100' to roughly 550' which isn't too bad, because:

Magellan should be able to shift more density (and therefor height) to Parcel I because (IIRC) LSE's PD was allowed a total amount of units as a whole, and the developer can shift them around between buildings. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

The kickstand looks dumb, but I do like the street frontage on Columbus.

Basically. Magellan's revisions to the PD up until now have been swaps - they reduced the number of hotel rooms and eliminated any office component, and in both cases they were able to get additional residential density in return. The theory here is that the overall "intensity" of development is the same as what was originally envisioned in the late 90s when the PD was first approved, even though the specific mix of uses has changed.

After Site O and Cirrus/Cascade are built, Site I is Magellan's last real bite at the apple, their last chance to use up the remaining development rights in Lakeshore East (except for the small parcel at the corner of the park, which was in theory meant for a new CPS school).

Yea I get the same (not sure if they count the 13th though), 550' is a nice filler and the design has grown on me a bit (I like the fins at the top).

The thought of an 1000+ foot Parcel I Tower is incredibly exciting and I would gladly shave 100 feet off this one for that. Not sure if it'll definitely happen but it seems like it could.

^^Like ardecila said, Site I will be the last opportunity for Magellan to use up their remaining development rights. The small corner parcel where the cps school was supposed to go is too small for any sizable structure. Personally, I'd say there is 0 chance Site I starts anytime soon (even though that was the original developer timeline after cirrus and cascade). I think Magellan will wait a while and then start construction on a supertall on the site that uses up their remaining residential units. I'm also expecting a redesign of the structure, although that's just all speculation. I'm guessing it'll be years before Site I breaks ground, it'll be the very last thing Magellan does.

I like the older design. Eh... I'm just not feeling it. IDK if its the quasi-wavy nature of it but doesn't settle in. Just kind of seems like a lackluster design, with minimal thought into it.

I wasn't implying that it would start anytime soon, but when/if it does get built and it's 100 feet higher that'd be perfect for its location.

The revised plan also includes three floors of co-working space and about 9,000 square feet of retail space, according to the alderman’s update. The height of the tower has been cut by about 43 feet, to 502 feet, according to Magellan. The building is losing five stories, down to a proposed 47 stories.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/colum...aym-story.html

As a longtime fan of LSE, I vastly prefer the new design. Standing there in the park looking up, one is a sharp blade, and one is a blocky mess.

And I will note that new, based on those renderings at similar angles, blocks no more sunlight into the park as Standard Oil already does. It's better. I think they also managed to give their pool deck a lot more sun.

It will look great from this angle too, if it's nice and sharp.

Filler!

^ city defiantly needs more 600 ft plus fillers in lakeshore east and streeteville..enough of this 500 ft stuff

I certainly didn't dislike the previous version nearly as much as many others here.....in fact I thought it was fine, in spite of the 'frankenbuilding' aspect which often irritates.

What can we say about the new design? Inoffensive? It's kinda......whatever? Not bad? It works. Hope this is the right formula so that this tower can finally get out of the ground this year (or I suppose technically 'out of the ground' sometime early next year. Feels like this one has taken forever.

I do have a feeling they've nailed down the hotel flag/operator, since they are going through the amendment process here. Very curious as to identity. And like to see these developers/hotel cos' that are placing bold bets on the economy (and particularly the travel/tourism/hospitality economy) rebounding from the pandemic with vigor.

No more filler space available in LSE. You have this and Site I which is currently approved at 950'.

Spotted:

Some type of equipment on site - only glimpsed top of it passing by on Lower Columbus but seemed consistent with a soil testing rig. Not sure though....if someone's on foot in the area further up, maybe take a look?

We've had soil testing here I believe on multiple occassions over the years, so if that is what's happening, who knows if we're actually getting closer to something.

At least the latest version had far fewer hotel rooms, which is a positive still at the moment for finally getting this one out of the ground - if that version is still current.

Woah! I'll go check it out today.

There a soil sampling/drilling rig on site this morning.
Ive noticed heavy tire tracks on the site here and there over the past few months but today is the first time I've seen some actual equipment.

I wonder why they keep doing soil testing. It's not like the soil has changed? If Magellan still owns the property, they should be able to use test data from 5 or 10 years ago.

So this project seems to be active, just moving very slowly through the permit review process (two years now). They passed their Geotech review in May. The only things they have left to pass through are Planning review and Architectural/Fire Review. Their application is listed under 193 N Columbus Dr