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A rendering of the CityCenter DC project. Courtesy of Hines.
These days, few developers are developing. And those that are, are doing so with the help of governments. That’s what’s happening in Washington, DC where Hines and Archstone have broken ground on CityCetner DC. Here’s the press release:
I no longer believe in the technological fairyland that is known as “The Cloud.”
The Cloud is the latest technology buzzword that dot-com companies are banking on to keep the industry afloat for a little longer. You’ve probably seen TV commercials that mention “the cloud.” Or if you read a lot of business magazines, the suit-and-tie version of it is “SaaS” (Software as a Service).
The cloud is a great idea. And I truly believe that some day it will revolutionize information access.
Today is not that day.
Today is the day I bid farewell to Google’s Blogspot service. This cloud blogging app (it would have been called a “virtual publisher” in the 90′s dot-com boom) is what I have run two commercial and one personal blog on for the last four years. Before that I used a homegrown CMS.
But, as you may have read earlier, Google lost the blogs. All of them. Hundreds of articles, photos, and reader comments vaporized into “the cloud.”
I’m not running blogging software on my own server. It’s more time, more money, and more work than just using a cloud app like Big G’s Blogspot/Blogger. But then again, Google’s offering was free. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned in business, it’s that very often you get what you paid for.
I paid nothing to use Google’s blogging service. And now that’s what Google has left me with: Nothing.
Thanks to some help from the people across the street at Microsoft’s Bing headquarters, I’m managing to slowly recover many of the articles that were formerly on this blog. Sadly, all of the comments our loyal readers have left are gone forever.
Still, this is an opportunity to look forward, not back. Time to rejuvenate this blog and increase the level of regular posting.
It’ll take a couple of days for me to get as many of the old articles back as I can. After that, we’ll plow ahead with new content. Set phasers on stun, and your RSS reader to http://feed.chicagoarchitecture.info.
Thanks for being a reader.
Editor
It’s been a busy couple of weeks at Towrs. We’ve added hundreds of buildings from dozens of cities so that you can admire, learn about, and enjoy unique architecture from around the world.
Among the cities we’ve added:
Unrelated to anything else — I have noticed that ever since Google opened its office in mainland China and started working with the Chinese government in the ways that it does that the font size of the English street names in Google Maps for Hong Kong has gotten smaller.
At the same time, the Chinese street names have not changed in size, though this is likely out of necessity since the glyphs are so much more complicated.
Still, it brings to mind a report I saw somewhere not too long ago (RTHK?) about new educational mandates from the mainland government imposed on Hong Kong that appear aimed at marginalizing the use of the English and Cantonese languages, as well as the former colony’s British heritage.
A big skyscraper in Minneapolis has been sold.
Hines REIT picked up 50 South Sixth this week, but isn’t talking about how much it spent. You can read the full press release here:
HINES GLOBAL REIT ACQUIRES
FIFTY SOUTH SIXTH IN MINNEAPOLIS
(MINNEAPOLIS) – The Minneapolis office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that Hines Global REIT has acquired Fifty South Sixth, a 29-story Class A office building located directly on Nicollet Mall, the central spine for the Minneapolis CBD. The seller was KanAm Grund.
Eastdil Secured’s Stephen J. Livaditis represented the seller in the negotiations, while Hines’ John McDermott and Sargent Johnson represented Hines Global REIT.
Fifty South Sixth was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and was developed by Hines in 2001. It contains 698,606 square feet, a two-story rotunda and parking for 646 cars. Amenities include on-site restaurants, on-site childcare and four-way access to the Minneapolis Skyway System.
The building is 94 percent leased to tenants including: Dorsey & Whitney LLP; Deloitte LLP; Dunham Associates, Inc; and M&I Bank, among others.
“We obviously think this is a superior asset since we are the original developers and have managed it continuously,” said Hines Vice President John McDermott. “Minneapolis is a strong real estate market, and we are here for the long-term.”
“Fifty South Sixth has attracted great tenancy since it was developed by Hines in 2001. Tenant demand is driven by the property’s excellent design, proximity to amenities on the Nicollet Mall and commuter access to multiple employee bases throughout the city,” said Charles Hazen, president and CEO of Hines Global REIT. “Hines Global REIT will benefit from the performance of this top-tier Midwest office asset.”
Hines Global REIT, Inc. is a Houston-based, public, non-traded real estate investment trust sponsored by Hines. Hines Global REIT commenced its $3.5 billion initial public offering in August 2009 and has raised over $300 million, which it invests in commercial real estate properties located in the United States and internationally. Fifty South Sixth represents the fifth acquisition for Hines Global REIT. For additional information about Hines Global REIT, visitwww.HinesREI.com.
Hines is a fully integrated real estate investment and management firm that has been investing in real estate and providing acquisition, development, financing, property management, leasing and disposition services for over 50 years. With offices in more than 100 cities in 17 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $23 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Access www.hines.com for more information on Hines.
For those of you who don’t subscribe to our Twitter feed, here are the tweets we posted over the last week or so:
A television live truck crashes through the wall of a building in downtown Toronto. The truck is a work of art placed there by CITY Television back when this was the CHUM-CITY Building. Later, as stations were bought and sold in the market, the truck was repainted with the CityPulse24 logo. The media companies have since vacated this building. Last we heard, it was undecided if the truck would stay. Some consider it a great piece of folk art and a landmark of the neighborhood.
A statue of Christ the Redeemer looks out over the harbor of Ischia Porto on the island of Ischia in Italy. Over the decades it has welcomes countless sailors, tourists, and others to the sheltering waters of the calm harbor.
A plaque on a wall in Prague honors the great composer, Frederic Chopin.
The yellow and blue trams of the Brussels Metro sail into Brussels Midi station.
The dazzling lights of Harrod’s department store illuminate this twilight scene of Brompton Road in London.
For those of you who don’t subscribe to our Twitter feed, here are the tweets we posted over the last week or so:
The BP Pedestrian Bridge snakes across Columbus Drive in Chicago. The sun glints off its stainless steel scales as the serpentine structure carries pedestrians between Millennium Park and Grant Park.
For those of you who don’t subscribe to our Twitter feed, here are the tweets we posted over the last week or so:
This article is from our sister blog, The Chicago Architecture Blog. For more information about Chicago and more than 1,000 of its buildings, visit our sister site, Chicago Architecture Info.
So I got an interesting piece of spam the other day. It’s from one of those online diploma places. Of course, it was tailored to catch my eye, and it did, with the headline “100 Awesome Twitter Feeds for Architecture Students.”
Could it actually be worth something? The answer turns out to be yes. The list is pretty solid, listing feeds from such places as the Chicago Architecture Foundation, the AIA, and McGraw-Hill’s Construction magazine.
Here’s the link to the list: http://www.onlinedegree.net/100-awesome-twitter-feeds-for-architecture-students/
I’m in no way endorsing the online degree web site that’s hosting the list, and the link above has been “nofollowed” to eliminate the effectiveness of the spam.
Prime Group Realty Trust Completes $24 Million Base Building Redevelopment of Mies van der Rohe’s 330 North Wabash
Upgrades provide modern amenities while preserving renowned landmark’s architectural integrity
CHICAGO, April 29 /PRNewswire/ — Prime Group Realty Trust (PGRT) announced today the completion of the base building redevelopment of landmark building 330 North Wabash, a 52-story mixed-use tower designed by renowned architect Mies van der Rohe. Located on the banks of the Chicago River in the bustling River North neighborhood, 330 North Wabash is Mies’ last and largest American building. With PGRT’s $24 million base building redevelopment complete, 330 North Wabash is well positioned to meet the most modern and technological needs of today’s office space users, while adding to the highest standards of presentation at one of Chicago‘s most architecturally significant buildings.
PGRT’s redevelopment of 330 North Wabash focused on enhancing Mies’ original structure by modernizing the base building, operational systems and select common areas. This included the restoration of the building’s intricate and expansive granite and Italian travertine lobby, one of the largest in Chicago. Now completed, the 330 North Wabash lobby has been fully restored to the original state that Mies envisioned and provides a dramatic entrance for the building’s many tenants, visitors and guests.
“Our main focus throughout the renovation was to preserve the architectural integrity of Mies’ work while modernizing the building with state-of-the-art systems and infrastructure,” said Jeff Patterson, president and CEO of Prime Group Realty Trust. ”330 North Wabash‘s tenants now enjoy all the modern amenities and surroundings of a new building, yet have the opportunity to office in an iconic, visionary landmark high-rise in a thriving area of downtown.”
The building’s solid existing infrastructure provided a strong foundation for updating various components of 330 North Wabash‘s operational systems, including the installation of new building automation technology and deployment of a modernized master security, fire and life safety command center. In addition, PGRT refurbished much of the building’s common areas. This included updating restrooms with new fixtures and elaborate tiling, renovating the elevator cabs with modern finishes and installing a state-of-the-art HVAC system on redeveloped floors.
With the base building redevelopment complete, PGRT will continue to renovate and modernize individual tenant spaces and common areas as new leases are signed in the building’s tower rise floors 37-47. The company has a $50 million loan commitment from GE Capital to redevelop the building’s tower rise floors, which will become available for occupancy in 2011, for future tenants. In addition to enjoying modernized common areas and building amenities, including a conference center, spa, health club and restaurant through the five-star hotel slated to open in 2013, a major tenant will also have the opportunity to display its corporate brand on the newly installed exterior building pylons.
“The completion of 330 North Wabash‘s base building redevelopment reinforces our commitment to continually investing in the asset to ensure it maintains its position as a classic, architectural icon, in addition to being a desirable, technologically-advanced place to office,” added Patterson.
Completed in 1973, 330 North Wabash embodies architect Mies van der Rohe‘s less-is-more design aesthetic and communicates the engineering of the building through its structural design. To ensure that all renovation efforts aligned with Mies’ original vision, Prime Group Realty Trust consulted with architect James DeStefano throughout the process. DeStefano, of DeStefano Partners, studied directly under Mies and is steeped in the famed architect’s vision for the building.
The renovation of 330 North Wabash accompanies the building’s recent addition to the National Register of Historic Places and commendation from the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency for its innovative use of modern materials, environmental awareness and straightforward structural expression. The building has also received numerous accolades for its operational and sustainability efforts including a BOMA 360 designation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s prestigious ENERGY STAR certification, as well as the 2007/2008 “The Office Building of the Year” (TOBY) Award in the over one million square feet category. Most recently, 330 North Wabash applied for its U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership for Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) certification and expects to attain Silver designation this spring.
About Prime Group Realty Trust
Prime Group Realty Trust is a fully-integrated, self-administered, and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) which owns, manages, leases, develops, and redevelops office and industrial real estate, primarily in metropolitan Chicago. The Company currently owns 7 office properties containing an aggregate of 3.2 million net rentable square feet and a joint venture interest in one office property comprised of approximately 101,000 net rentable square feet. The Company leases and manages approximately 3.2 million square feet comprising all of its wholly-owned properties.
About 330 North Wabash
330 North Wabash is a 52-story mixed-use tower, landmarked by the City of Chicago, and is the last and largest office structure designed by renowned architect Mies van der Rohe. The building won The 2007/2008 Office Building of the Year (TOBY) award for the North Central Region in the category of over 1 million square feet, competing against buildings in more than five other states for the prestigious award, sponsored by the Building Owners and Managers Association. A luxury, five-star hotel, with approximately 335 guest rooms has acquired twelve floors of the building. The hotel will feature 17,000 square feet of state-of-the-art facilities for meetings and social events, a ballroom with spectacular river views, a chef-driven restaurant, fitness center, indoor pool, and a destination spa.
If you’re looking for a better way to spend your summer vacation than going up to the cabin/lake/grandparents’ yet again, and you have $13 grand burning a hole in your pocket, CScout Japan might have what you’re looking for.
The company sent over a press release today about its architecture tours of the Land of the Rising Sun.
Speaking from first-hand experience, Japan is an architecture fan’s wildest dream, and worst nightmare come to life. There are so many fantastic and fascinating designs and buildings. But a lot of them are hard to find, or exist in the most unlikely (to Western eyes) places. Most of my greatest discoveries in Japan have come when I’ve been lost and wandering down alleys.
If you want to be more productive than that, CScout offers guided tours that are a cut above the usual tour bus fare — they go to actual architects’ places of work and you get a chance to talk with the creative professionals.
I can’t vouch for the quality of the tour because I haven’t been on one. But the flyer makes it seem like a great experience.
You can read the entire press release below, and don’t forget to visit our Japanese architecture web page, Tokyo Architecture Info.
Hines has sold the retail condos at 40 Mercer Street to GLL. A press release follows:
HINES SELLS 40 MERCER RETAIL CONDMINIUMS TO GLL
(NEW YORK) – Hines, the international real estate firm, and property investor GLL, announced today that GLL purchased the 14,000 square feet of retail condominiums at 465 Broadway, also known as 40 Mercer Street. The retail spaces are located on the ground floor of Jean Nouvel’s iconic residential development, 40 Mercer, on a full block fronted by Broadway, Grand Street and Mercer Street in SoHo.
“Having fully leased the project’s retail component to a mix of high-quality tenants, we are delighted to have sold this exceptional property to GLL, one of Europe’s rapidly growing institutional real estate investment firms,” said Hines Senior Vice President Tommy Craig.
The property is fully leased to retail tenants including Wachovia, Bose, Dermalogica, and Vivienne Tam.
GLL’s CIO Barry McGowan said, “Both New York and London have surprised everyone with the speed and momentum of the recovery of the commercial real estate markets. 40 Mercer represents GLL’s entry into the New York market. We feel extremely fortunate to be able to invest in such a superb, high-quality asset. With seven acquisitions over the last 10 months, GLL has been one of the most active foreign property investors in the United States. Our intention is to continue to make new investments throughout the country.”
Headquartered in Munich, Germany, GLL Real Estate Partners is a fast-growing institutional real estate investment manager with operations in Eastern and Western Europe and in North and South America. Since 2001 approximately $5 billion have been invested in 70 core assets for commingled funds and separate account clients.
Hines has been active in the New York real estate market since 1984, and is actively marketing another successful luxury residential development, the 30-unit, One Jackson Square, in the West Village, which was designed by Bill Pedersen of KPF. The privately owned real estate firm is involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The firm’s historical and current portfolio of projects that are underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes 1,111 properties representing more than 451 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments. With offices in more than 100 cities in 17 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $22.2 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world.