Contractors have been chosen for two major hotel renovation projects in Chicago, the latest in a series of upgrades to city hospitality properties that is being fueled by strong demand for rooms.
Morse Diesel International Inc. has been awarded the contract to extensively renovate the lobby and exterior of the Chicago Marriott on Michigan Avenue. The project includes a renovation of the hotel’s facade along Ohio Street as well as Michigan Avenue, the relocation of the property’s meeting rooms and a redesign and expansion of the hotel’s retail space.
The Marriott work is the first project in John Buck Co.’s recently announced plans to redevelop the southern end of the Magnificent Mile, with the planned construction of a new Nordstrom’s department store as the anchor.
Morse Diesel was the construction manager on the original Marriott project in the mid-1970s.
And in the Loop, James McHugh Construction Co. has won the job of rehabbing the former Bismarck Hotel on West Randolph Street. The $16 million project will include refurbishment of all 487 rooms, hallways, public spaces and lobby. Meeting rooms are being rebuilt, a new restaurant is being constructed in adjacent space and all mechanical systems are being replaced.
The 72-year-old hotel, purchased last year by PalMet Ventures LLC from the Wirtz family, will be closed while work proceeds. The project is expected to be completed in February.
Smart park
On Monday, Nov. 24, General Parking Corp. of Chicago will open its state-of-the-art Traders Self Park, which the company says is the first garage in the Midwest to be built specifically to incorporate all the latest technology available in the industry.
With 800-plus stalls, the self-park at 326 S. Wells St. includes a hands-free automatic vehicle identification access system for monthly parkers. Non-monthly parkers will be able to take advantage of credit card in and credit card out options at the gates, or use automated payment machines in the lobby.
A high-tech security system will also be in place, including closed circuit cameras and hand-held communication devices for garage management.
The Traders Self Park also incorporates a traffic monitor in the elevator lobby linked to the Illinois Department of Transportation roadway information.
There is some low-tech fun in the new project as well. Each of the garage floors is identified with a specific commodity; floor two is beige for wheat and floor six is green for soybeans, for instance. Call buttons for the elevators are either Bulls or Bears, Bulls presumably being what you push when you want to go up.
Senior style
Lucien Lagrange and Associates Ltd., a Chicago-based architectural firm, has been selected to design Brookdale Living Communities, high-end residential centers for independent seniors now under development across the United States.
The prototype community calls for low-rise buildings of four to six stories totaling about 200,000 square feet. Residences range from studios to one- and two-bedroom apartments, and include some limited assisted-living facilities.
Amenities in the Brookdale Communities include large common areas, smaller parlors, billiards rooms, libraries, crafts areas, beauty salons and barber shops, banks, snack shops and dining halls. Fitness facilities include pools, spas and exercise rooms.
The first Brookdale residences are being developed in west suburban Glen Ellyn, Austin, Tex., and Southfield, Mich., with completions expected between late 1998 and mid-1999.
Brookdale Living Communities was formed early this year with an initial public offering of stock. Previously, as part of the Prime Group’s Senior Living division, the company owned and operated senior residential facilities in Illinois and Texas.
Silver bargains
An auction of 12 home sites in the Silver Glen Estate subdivision in St. Charles will be held Saturday, Nov. 22, at Pheasant Run Resort on North Avenue in St. Charles. Sheldon Good & Co. will conduct the auction.
Originally sold at prices up to $165,000, six of the lots will be sold absolute, subject to minimum bids from $70,000 to $80,000. The home sites are part of a 273-acre development by Marc Construction & Development overlooking the Fox River, and are being offered at auction in order to meet the builder’s year-end sales goals, Good said.
More than 80 home sites have already been sold in the project, and 65 homes, priced from $400,000 to $1.2 million, are occupied or under construction. Lots are a minimum 1.25 acres.
Financing is availabe to qualified purchasers. A certified or cashier’s check is required to bid. For a brochure and terms of sale or more information call 312-630-0915.
Deal of the week
AutoNation USA has purchased 22 acres at Interstate Highway 90 and Illinois Highway 31 in Elgin and plans to build an automobile dealership on the site, according to Staubach Retail Services, which handled the transaction. The seller was the Fox River Business Center, owned by Hamilton Partners.
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Chicago Tribune real estate editor Steve Kerch reviews realty news and answers your questions on housing and other topics on The Real Estate Show every Friday from 9:40 to 10 a.m. on Channel 26-WCIU.
