Newly disclosed plans for the redevelopment of the Tribune Tower call for what would be Chicago’s second-tallest building, a 1,422-foot-tall, mixed-use tower on the lot adjacent to the historic building. Chicago developer Golub & Company and Los Angeles-based CIM Group revealed the details at a public meeting last night, ending speculation on how they planned to address the property that they bought from Tribune Media for $240 million in September 2016.
The new tower would contain a 200-key hotel, 439 apartments and 125 condo units. The base would contain a 430-vehicle garage and 10,700 square feet of retail. The four existing buildings on the site, including the landmarked Tribune Tower, would be redeveloped into 163 residential units and 47,500 square feet of retail space opening out onto the Michigan Avenue-adjacent Pioneer Square.
“We are revitalizing an iconic international landmark, the Tribune Tower,” said Lee Golub, principal and executive vice president at Golub & Company, “and in so doing, with our adaptive re-use, we are preserving essentially 90 percent of the existing (pieces) on the site.”
If the plans are approved, construction could begin as soon as August. The new tower would break ground either late 2019 or early 2020. The developers plan to preserve the “Stones of the World” display, which features rocks, stones, bricks and pieces of architecture from notable sites across the globe embedded in the building’s facade. They also aim to keep the gothic script “Chicago Tribune” sign after the publisher moves out of the building later this year, though the two sides are currently battling out the rights to the sign in court. The new building’s positioning should also preserve views of the Tribune Tower from Ogden Slip, a contention of Chicago’s 42nd Ward alderman, Brendan Reilly.
