Tall Tower Tossed
According to an article in today’s Chicago Tribune, ne’er-do-well developer J. Paul Beitler’s plan to plant a 2,000-foot TV antenna in the middle of Streeterville is no more. In the face of stiff opposition by local residents and limp interest from area broadcasters, the plan was shelved in favor of a more-prosaic (though likey no sexier) 58-story condo plan.
Though judging by Beitler’s track record as reported in the February 6 Crain’s Chicago Business, I wouldn’t bet the mortgage on that tower, either. With only two major developments to his credit since 1990–and just one in this millennium–future residents of Santiaga Calatrava’s hotly anticipated Fordham Spire probably needn’t worry about having a Beitler tower next door any time soon.
Perhaps Beitler’s dictionary is missing the page with the definition of superfluous on it, or it could be he’s spent a little too much time north of the 49th parallel. At least Calgary Tower and Toronto’s CN Tower had a reason–when they went up, no other super-tall buildings yet existed in their cities to slap an antenna onto. This is a problem in Chicago?
Besides, doesn’t the idea of a signature over-the-air broadcast tower strike you, too, as more than a little…20th Century? Does Beitler find VCRs and answering machines cutting edge, too?
Other posts you might like from Chicago Carless:
The Project for Public Spaces assesses Chicago's universally loved Millennium Park and labels it a failure. Judging by the heavy use the park gets from Windy City locals, you have to wonder whether the organization actually visited it in the first place.
You didn't think we at Marina City could let the month of May pass without having our regular, monthly apartment fire, did you? Last night East Tower unit 4527 burned, attracting yet another contingent of festively dressed firemen and their dozen jauntily illuminated emergency vehicles to the plaza below. Sooty footprints...
This week, it was tongue-in-cheek that I wrote about Marina City covering over its emergency evacuation posters with laundry room memos. The same night I wrote that, a fire broke out on the 29th floor of a neighboring residential high-rise on Wabash Avenue. Then last night, a major fire in a condo tower in Streeterville kil...
Keep up the great work on your blog. Best wishes.
WaltDe