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  #241  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 2:12 PM
pottebaum pottebaum is offline
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Historic Uptown may get an encore at last
Interested firms large enough to restore landmark

December 1, 2006

BY DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter

http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/1...town01.article

The landmark Uptown Theatre, 4816 N. Broadway, has been mostly unused for 25 years. Community-based plans for a revival foundered because little but hope was behind them.
Now, the Uptown has another chance. This one involves prospective buyers with money and, maybe, a real plan for putting the huge auditorium to use.

Two companies that specialize in concert promotions and large-scale entertainment, Live Nation Inc. and AEG, have examined the property, sources said.

Greg Harris, an aide to Ald. Mary Ann Smith (48th), confirmed both companies' interest and said either or both are expected to submit a proposal in December. "These are major groups that have the financial capacity to do the job right," he said.

Harris said both would restore the 1925 building for its original use as a live performance venue.
The local aldermanic office is involved because city officials are pressuring the Uptown's owner to sell. The theater is controlled by Robert Lunn, a financial adviser forced into bankruptcy by creditors who accuse him of misusing their money.


Companies have venues here
The City Council has given Mayor Daley's administration authority to forcibly acquire the theater. Threatening condemnation was a tactic to force Lunn to accept an offer.
Harris said the city hopes a voluntary sale can be worked out. Lunn, he said, has voiced a willingness to cooperate.

Lunn did not return calls. Live Nation had no immediate comment and AEG did not respond to messages.

Live Nation bills itself as "the world's leading live entertainment company" and owns such local venues as the First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre in Tinley Park and the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wis. For $354 million, Live Nation bought the House of Blues nightclub chain a month ago.

It also manages the bookings for the Charter One Pavilion on Northerly Island.

AEG owns Toyota Park in Bridgeview, home of another of its properties, the Chicago Fire, one of four Major League Soccer franchises it owns. It also owns the Los Angeles Kings hockey team and the Staples Center in Los Angeles.


Once part of thriving district
The city planning department declined to say if it has met with the companies. Spokeswoman Connie Buscemi said staffers "haven't seen any proposals yet but we look forward to doing so."
The department oversees landmark buildings and would review any zoning changes the site might need.

The Uptown was done in the Spanish Baroque style for the Balaban & Katz theater chain and anchored an entertainment district that thrived before World War II. It later showed movies and the occasional concert while suffering through a series of owners.

Lunn gained control of the building after the collapse of development ventures of a former business partner, Rudy Mulder. In 2002, Mulder was said to be offering the theater for $2.5 million.

droeder@suntimes.com
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  #242  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 3:59 PM
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NICTD wouldn't want these new lines to be electrified?
Are you joking? These new lines are hard to justify as it is. Adding catenary and substations and electric locos or MU cars to run four trains a day would make it unbelievably expensive.

The justification for the South Shore electrification 100 years ago was that it was an interurban line being built through city streets, so it needed to run more like a streetcar than a steam train. The IC was electrified in 1926 because the city demanded it in an era of coal-burning steam locomotives, 10 tracks along the lakeshore, and hundreds of trains a day.
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  #243  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 6:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr Downtown
Are you joking? These new lines are hard to justify as it is. Adding catenary and substations and electric locos or MU cars to run four trains a day would make it unbelievably expensive.

The justification for the South Shore electrification 100 years ago was that it was an interurban line being built through city streets, so it needed to run more like a streetcar than a steam train. The IC was electrified in 1926 because the city demanded it in an era of coal-burning steam locomotives, 10 tracks along the lakeshore, and hundreds of trains a day.
So why do they maintain the catenary all the way out to South Bend? Why not switch to a system more like the Metro North or LIRR, switching to electric in the city but using diesel-electric in the outer reaches?
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  #244  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 7:38 PM
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So why do they maintain the catenary all the way out to South Bend? Why not switch to a system more like the Metro North or LIRR, switching to electric in the city but using diesel-electric in the outer reaches?
Inertia, and the street running in Michigan City. For now, it's easier to maintain what Insull built than to order special locomotives or swap equipment partway out the line. When the overhead needs to be rebuilt--and that's coming soon--they'll have to decide whether to get a big federal pork-barrel grant, order new hybrid locomotives (like the New Haven used to have) that can run under wire north of Kensington, swap locomotives in Kensington or Michigan City, or put in exhaust fans under Millennium Park so they can use diesel locomotives all the way into Randolph Street.
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  #245  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 8:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr Downtown
Inertia, and the street running in Michigan City. For now, it's easier to maintain what Insull built than to order special locomotives or swap equipment partway out the line. When the overhead needs to be rebuilt--and that's coming soon--they'll have to decide whether to get a big federal pork-barrel grant, order new hybrid locomotives (like the New Haven used to have) that can run under wire north of Kensington, swap locomotives in Kensington or Michigan City, or put in exhaust fans under Millennium Park so they can use diesel locomotives all the way into Randolph Street.
NICTD advertised for bids on new rolling stock, and that new rolling stock is going to be bi-level EMUs similar to the new Highliners ordered by Metra Electric. That's a pretty solid commitment towards keeping the South Shore Line as an all-electric operation for at least a few decades to come.
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  #246  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 8:20 PM
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Pretty easy to convert them them to unpowered trailers at the mid-life rebuild.
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  #247  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 10:26 PM
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I'm not sure if I can think of anything more depressing than the last electric interurban converting to diesel. The end of American wisdom as far as I'm concerned.

And about those new CSS&SB MU's... If they even try to stick us with those same lame ass cars that Metra just got I'm gonna have a fit. Metra Electric's old IC Highliners at least had some style to them, even more before they painted them all patriotic. Those new cars, besides looking just like the diesel coaches with pantographs, are the epitome of bore. Very little consideration of design went into that purchase. Can you imagine that POS design running under overhead in Europe, Japan or Taiwan? Its a rolling toolbox.

Oh and as long as we are on the subject, if these new SSL cars don't have a splash of orange on them I'm gonna flip. The old livery of orange and burgany looks friggin fantastic and they hardly emphasize it at all. These NICTD folks needs a lesson in brand development. Well, that goes for Metra too. Who designed that fugly logo anyway, the chairman's 11 year old daughter? Metra needs a makeover, and if it was me I'd adopt
C&NW's defunct Green and Yellow scheme in a heartbeat.
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  #248  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 10:38 PM
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From the Trib today. The bottom part is the really interesting bit.

Taft



Presidential Towers on the block

BY SUSAN DIESENHOUSE
Published December 6, 2006

The latest major offering in the busy market for multifamily rental buildings is the four-building, 2,346-unit Presidential Towers complex in the West Loop. The mid-1980s era apartment property is owned by a unit of the Chicago-based Pritzker Realty Group LP.

What is likely to be one of the larger recent property sales comes as the Pritzker family seeks to liquidate its $15 billion-plus empire. The realty company's chief executive, Penny Pritzker, declined to comment.

The well-leased, 49-story high-rises are being put up for sale at a propitious time, explained Matthew D. Lawton, a senior managing director at Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP, a mortgage banking firm.

"The downtown multifamily market is white hot," he said.

In the past 12 months, downtown apartment rents have increased 8 to 12 percent, while occupancy rates are in the mid-90 percent range.

When the rental market was weaker in the first half of 2002, "rents were dramatically lower and occupancy was in the low 80 percent range" when landlord concessions are included, Lawton said.

Five years ago, average rents for the best apartments ranged from about $1.85 to $2 square foot a month, he said, and now they're closer to $2.45 to $2.55.

Presidential Towers is not considered a Class A property because of its age, location and somewhat small units. The units fall somewhere between a Class A and Class B building, Lawton said.

While the total sales price it garners will be large, the price per square foot is not likely to surpass the $280,000 per apartment recently paid for 400 N. LaSalle St., said Lawton, who brokered that transaction.

One estimated price of about $450 million would be "aggressive pricing" based on the complex's features and location, he said. The West Loop is a popular new residential area but not a prime location.

"With a plethora of capital trying to purchase real estate, this is the best time since the 1920s to bring property to market," said Dan Fasulo, director of market research for Real Capital Analytics Inc.



BLEAK OUTLOOK: It might be the best of times for those selling large multifamily rental complexes, but for developers of new single-family houses and condominiums, it's still bleak, according to the latest market outlook from the Pacific Investment Management Co.

Sales volume and housing starts will continue to fall and drag down U.S. economic growth by at least 1 percent in 2007, said Scott Simon, a PIMCO managing director.

The good news, in his opinion, is that the lackluster housing sector will spur the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates next year. The bad news is that housing prices, especially those for new residences, will decline.

Average sale prices in 2007 will drop by 1 percent compared to a likely 4.5 percent increase this year and a 13 percent rise in 2005 and '04, he said. "If we're wrong," said Simon, "it will be because things will get worse than we thought."
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  #249  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 11:43 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by orulz
NICTD advertised for bids on new rolling stock, and that new rolling stock is going to be bi-level EMUs similar to the new Highliners ordered by Metra Electric. That's a pretty solid commitment towards keeping the South Shore Line as an all-electric operation for at least a few decades to come.
How many are they looking to procure? Is this just for fleet expansion or are they looking to start replacing the current stock from the 1980s?
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  #250  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 11:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Busy Bee
I'm not sure if I can think of anything more depressing than the last electric interurban converting to diesel. The end of American wisdom as far as I'm concerned.

And about those new CSS&SB MU's... If they even try to stick us with those same lame ass cars that Metra just got I'm gonna have a fit. Metra Electric's old IC Highliners at least had some style to them, even more before they painted them all patriotic. Those new cars, besides looking just like the diesel coaches with pantographs, are the epitome of bore. Very little consideration of design went into that purchase. Can you imagine that POS design running under overhead in Europe, Japan or Taiwan? Its a rolling toolbox.

Oh and as long as we are on the subject, if these new SSL cars don't have a splash of orange on them I'm gonna flip. The old livery of orange and burgany looks friggin fantastic and they hardly emphasize it at all. These NICTD folks needs a lesson in brand development. Well, that goes for Metra too. Who designed that fugly logo anyway, the chairman's 11 year old daughter? Metra needs a makeover, and if it was me I'd adopt
C&NW's defunct Green and Yellow scheme in a heartbeat.
Get the CTA back to Mercury Green, Croyden Cream, and Swamp Holly Orange, all done up in Futura font, while we're at it.
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  #251  
Old Posted Dec 6, 2006, 11:57 PM
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Originally Posted by Busy Bee
I'm not sure if I can think of anything more depressing than the last electric interurban converting to diesel. The end of American wisdom as far as I'm concerned.
Nostalgia is not a good way to make public policy decisions. Except for the street running/braking issue in Michigan City, there's just not any good reason to stick with expensive, hard-to-maintain electrification. The pollution and energy efficiency and acceleration issues are substantially different now than in 1907.

Quote:
Metra Electric's old IC Highliners at least had some style to them. . . Can you imagine that POS design running under overhead in Europe, Japan or Taiwan?
The new ones were designed in Japan. Other than Shinkansen sets and Kansai Electric Railway's Ra:pit trainsets, Japanese railways are not noted for railcar design.

But I agree with you that they're butt-ugly. In my opinion, the Highliners were a nice bit of industrial design, the end of the Loewy-Bel Geddes-Teague era of train design.
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  #252  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2006, 5:47 AM
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^Yeah I forgot about them actually being Japanese built. Isn't it Kawasaki or KinkiSharyo? Anyways, I wouldn't neccessarily say they were "designed" in Japan though. The exteriors are virtually the same as the Pullman-Standard's from 40 years ago! I think Budd made some similar coaches too.

Here is a picture of CalTrain's redesigned trains that shhould enter service sometime in the near future. We should try to make a statement like these do:

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Last edited by Busy Bee; Dec 7, 2006 at 4:45 PM.
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  #253  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2006, 3:05 PM
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Bertrand Goldberg's Marina City to be proposed for Landmark Designation

Tomorrow, Thursday December 7th, architect Lynette Stuhlmacher of Docomomo Midwest and Lisa DiChiera from Landmarks Illinois will recommend that Bertrand Goldberg's Marina City complex be designated an official city landmark.

One of the most important complex of buildings in Chicago's history, Marina City, best known for the iconic, 578-feet-tall twin "corncob" towers that have become an icon of the city throughout the world. One of the first true mixed-use develoments, it included an office building that is now the 367 room House of Blues Hotel. The House of Blues, itself, occupies the complex's theater. Marina City was the starting point of the back to the city movement that has revitalized Chicago's North Loop. The original skating rink is now a Smith and Wollensky steakhouse, but the complex still includes shops, restaurants, a health club a bowling alley, and a marina on the Chicago River. In October, recreating a stunt from Steve McQueen's last film, The Hunter, a car was driven off the 17th floor and crashed into the river below for an upcoming commercial for Allstate Insurance.

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  #254  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2006, 5:18 PM
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Didn't know where else to put this

Sears' flagship store to house Web center

Sears Holdings Corp. plans to turn the fourth floor of its State Street flagship store into a Web development center aimed at invigorating the retailer's online business.

The Loop center is scheduled to open in March and employ up to 100 workers, including software developers, project managers and technical architects. The center will quadruple the number of workers dedicated to Sears' e-commerce site.

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The Hoffman Estates-based retailer hopes that by setting up a Silicon Valley-style office in the heart of downtown Chicago, it will attract a new generation of high-tech, creative, urban talent that would otherwise avoid the long trek to the northwest suburbs.

Sears joins the likes of other old-line companies, including Motorola Inc., Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. and PepsiCo Inc., that have recently established innovation centers in the city in an attempt to keep on the cutting edge of their industries.

"We want to create this high-tech, high-energy, innovative, open-space environment," said Rob Mills, vice president of technology at Sears. "We're trying to create an environment to drive innovation and creativity."


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  #255  
Old Posted Dec 8, 2006, 8:47 PM
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Ironic for a company that moved to Hoffman Estates to shed its urban workforce.
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  #256  
Old Posted Dec 9, 2006, 7:51 PM
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I'm guessing we'll see more and more of this as the baby boomers retire. Companies will need to replace their workforce and many people in their 30s and even late 20s will find themselves filling positions that were previously filled by people in their 50s. There's a huge shortage of experienced workers on the horizon...
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  #257  
Old Posted Dec 9, 2006, 9:04 PM
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From my window it looks like Parkside at Old Town is U/C, I think I see some foundation equipment. Here's hoping the first building is successful and soon Division and surrounding streets are lined with dense multi-story, multi-unit housing.
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  #258  
Old Posted Dec 10, 2006, 6:49 AM
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This is awesome news !!! I saw the headline in the paper the other day and just assumed it was a gimmick for their retail store on State, but upon reading it, it is confirmation that there is a definate trend happening with Suburban companies needing Loop offices to attract young workers.
Which to me just adds to my bewilderment why Sara Lee left the loop for the burbs....just as well I didn't take a job with them DT after I interivewed w/ them a few years ago


there going against the tide -- a lot of creative type are eschewing the isolation, uniformity, banality of the burb for a more intense experience in the city
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  #259  
Old Posted Dec 10, 2006, 8:53 AM
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Goldman to buy Hancock Center

Chicago’s Golub could join firm in $385-million deal
(Crain's) — Shorenstein Properties LLC has agreed to sell the John Hancock Center to Goldman Sachs & Co.’s Whitehall Fund for $385 million, a price that substantially surpasses expectations, according to sources familiar with the transaction.
After three rounds of heated bidding, Whitehall was selected on Friday. The firm, with about $30 billion in real estate, almost immediately made a more than $20-million, non-refundable deposit. An announcement could come next week, with the sale closing next month.

Representatives of New York-based Goldman, San Francisco-based Shorenstein and New York-based Eastdil Secured LLC, which is brokering the sale, decline to comment.

When it appeared in August that Shorenstein might sell, observers believed the Hancock would fetch $350 million at most. But in the final round, several offers were in the $380-million range, sources say.

The 100-story structure is the latest office tower this year to attract a top-dollar price, following such high-profile sales as 131 S. Dearborn St. ($560 million); Prudential Plaza ($470 million), and 1 S. Dearborn St. ($350 million).

But to reach such prices, some buyers are jacking up the risks, either by piling on debt or by relying on rosy predictions that could be their undoing in the event of a downturn, some observers say.
“All this capital is chasing all sorts of real estate in the hopes that cash flows will continue to increase over the next year,” says M. W. “Sam” Davis, senior managing director of real estate for Allstate Corp. in Northbrook. “There are clearly concerns that the economy is slowing.”

The Hancock’s price is extraordinary for a building where the office vacancy rate is 25%. At $385 million, Whitehall can expect an initial return of about 5%, based on a current annual net operating income of $21.1 million, sources say. The firm is negotiating with Chicago developer Golub & Co. to be its local partner, sources say.

Whitehall’s plans to boost the Hancock’s income couldn’t be learned. But other bidders considered several strategies, including dividing the building into separate ownership units — one for the retail space, another for the garage, for example — and selling them piecemeal, sources say. Another option would be turning the vacant offices into a hotel.

And there is a chance that an office tenant could emerge, such as Northwestern Memorial Hospital, which is looking for about 100,000 square feet.
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  #260  
Old Posted Dec 12, 2006, 4:39 AM
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Planned for near 28th and Halsted:

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