January 6, 2015

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Our first 'Would Have Been' visit through the Epstein archives for 2015 takes us back to Chicago 2009 for a proposed Hotel & Residential high-rise at 150 East Ontario. For this project Epstein provided conceptual design services, including architectural, civil and MEP/FP engineering, for a projected $200M, 40-story Hotel and Condominium building along Chicago's 'Magnificent Mile.'

The project was to include a new boutique Marriott 'Edition' hotel of 324 keys, with a Sky-lobby, full-floor Spa and Club-Restaurant. The 'Edition' hotel was to be one of nine initial properties that Marriott was developing with hotelier Ian Schrager, a developer who pioneered the boutique hotel concept.

The building would have also included high-end condominiums, from 1-bedroom units to 4-bedroom duplex penthouses. There were also fine-dining restaurants planned on the first two floors and level 38, a nightclub on the 39th floor, a spa on the 8th and 9th floors and four levels of valet-parking for 60 cars.

The tower would have featured a unique faceted glass curtain wall form that stepped back as it rose to a crown of Wind Turbines. There was also a planned granite and glass base, with seasonal outdoor eating terrace at the Second Floor overlooking an active pedestrian street.

The building would have featured multiple additional sustainable design elements including a 40-foot-tall "wind farm" of helical wind-turbines. Other sustainable design elements included plans for the recycling of rain water and a 50% percent green roof which would have helped reduce the "Heat Island Effect" (which can increase energy demand and air conditioning costs on residents), as well as help reduce air pollution levels.

150 East Ontario was designed to pursue certification by LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for New Construction) Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.

As with most high-rise residential projects planned in '08/'09 150 East Ontario became the victim of implosion of the real estate bubble and our schemes were shelved. If you are curious Marriott has so far completed three 'Edition' Hotels (London, Istanbul and Miami Beach). In addition, a NYC Edition is scheduled to open in 2015, but so far plans for a Chicago 'Edition' have not been revived.