TweetEcho - April 12 - April 18, 2009

For those of you who don't subscribe to our Twitter feed , here are the things we tweeted in the last week:

1. Chicago luxury boutique bingo: Hermes is now involved in the Barney's New York shuffle on Oak Street:http://bit.ly/WdNsh9:31 PM Apr 18th from bit.ly
       
2. Architectural review of the new Holocaust Museum in Skokie:http://bit.ly/105p2e5:28 PM Apr 18th from bit.ly
3. A look at the home automation features inside the 50 East Chestnut tower: http://tinyurl.com/dnzc92 (via Yo Chicago)3:44 PM Apr 17th from web
4. Pic of the crowd inside Kate Spade on Oak Street in Chicago yesterday waiting to meet Tim Gunn:http://twitpic.com/3fdht (via @whuddadumbsn)3:28 PM Apr 17th from web
5. @GossipChicago - Tim Gunn was at Kate Spade, not Barney's yesterday. No wonder you missed him.3:22 PM Apr 17th from web
6. The tall ships have started sailing from Chicago's Navy Pier again for the season.3:14 PM Apr 17th from web
7. The Illinois Holocaust Museum (Skokie) opens on Sunday.http://budurl.com/ILHM Keynote Speaker: President Bill Clinton (via @VisitChicago)12:51 PM Apr 17th from Tweetie
8. Giveaway season continues: Starbucks is giving away free samples of VIA coffee in front of Saks Fifth Avenue on Michigan Avenue.12:49 PM Apr 17th from Tweetie
9. WFMT sounds really good in HD. Need WGN to figure out that it's licensed to Chicago and not a downstate bean field and turn its HD on again.7:47 PM Apr 16th from web
10. OK, Twitterers- Tell us what neighborhood (and its buildings) YOU want added to Chicago Architecture Info (http://ChicagoArchitecture.... )3:22 PM Apr 16th from web
11. Overheard: Lots of tourists from Saint Louis in town today. The ones roaming River North all seem to think Chicago is, "awesome."11:13 AM Apr 16th from Tweetie
12. No crowd control needed at the grand opening of the new Barney's New York in Chicago. Only nine people in line in spite of free champagne.9:08 AM Apr 16th from Tweetie
13. Chicago Transit Authority has added status signs to the Addison stop, rapidly caching up to third world subway systems: http://bit.ly/2dBlH6:57 AM Apr 16th from bit.ly
14. Governor Quinn will fix Blagojevich's blunder and reopen Frank Lloyd Wright's Dana-Thomas House:http://bit.ly/pTExU2:08 AM Apr 16th from bit.ly
15. Off topic, I know -- WFMT(FM) is FINALLY broadcasting in HD. Hopefully we'll get some good subchannels since Chicago Public Radio blows.2:03 AM Apr 16th from web
16. Company that owns Water Tower Place, Oakbrook Center, Lincolnshire Commons, Northbrook Court, and more goes bankrupt: http://bit.ly/qds1:26 AM Apr 16th from bit.ly
17. Laid off workers in a small Illinois town are causing a big international trade brouhaha: http://bit.ly/IdBcc1:11 AM Apr 16th from bit.ly
18. A cab plowed into Petterino's (Randolph & Dearborn). No one seriously hurt. No one seriously surprised. http://bit.ly/ccVfa2:19 PM Apr 15th from bit.ly
19. Southwest Airlines is going to fly between Chicago Midway and Boston Logan (or in airplane nerd-speak: WN:MDW-BOS)http://bit.ly/BR4X2:16 PM Apr 15th from bit.ly
20. Chicago's Soldier Field ( http://bit.ly/DIW0 ) could host the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup soccer matches:http://bit.ly/YiTZn2:12 PM Apr 15th from bit.ly
21. Chicagoans like to complain about the CTA, but don't realize how good they have it. Here's a feel-good CTA story:http://bit.ly/G3fe2:04 PM Apr 15th from bit.ly
22. With mass transit ridership in Chicago up 5.8 million rides in three months, the CTA is using the word "surplus":http://bit.ly/KeODn1:44 PM Apr 15th from bit.ly
23. Peter Hanig on the success of his new Michigan Avenue store and being an independent in Chicago's tough retail market:http://bit.ly/Oaei18:25 AM Apr 15th from bit.ly
24. WLS-TV reports that Streetwise may shut down within 45 days due to donation cuts. Streetwise helps the homeless rebuild their lives.5:17 PM Apr 14th from web
25. Frank Lloyd Wright's grandson will speak at the Unity Temple in Oak Park, Illinois on Thursday, April 16, 2009:http://bit.ly/1Yr2CJ9:31 AM Apr 14th from bit.ly
26. WBEZ (Chicago Public Radio) and WTTW (PBS) programs about Burnham past, present, future: http://bit.ly/2BIDuV6:41 AM Apr 14th from bit.ly
27. Nothing makes me appreciate Chicago more than a trip to the suburbs.4:10 PM Apr 13th from Tweetie
28. Wall Street Journal: Chicago's Magnificent Mile Hits a Rough Stretch - http://bit.ly/yUq547:04 AM Apr 13th from bit.ly
29. Here's the Crain's article on Apple's new North & Clybourn store: http://bit.ly/IHc38:34 PM Apr 12th from bit.ly
30. ifoAppleStore cites Crain's as reporting that Apple is moving forward with a huge new store on North and Halsted:http://bit.ly/NcnMv8:18 PM Apr 12th from bit.ly

Update: Piazza Sempione, Oak Street

Someone wrote in a few weeks ago asking for an update on the Piazza Sempione boutique on Oak Street.  It's taking the place of Sugar Magnolia a couple of doors down from the Prada Store.

Outwardly, there's nothing to see other than the huge "opening soon" sign obscuring what's going on behind.  But word from people who know is that construction continues, the project is not stalled in any way, and should be open soonish.  Unfortunately, I couldn't nail down what "soonish" means.

Status Update: Elysian Chicago

It's with great anticipation that we've watched the Elysian Chicago rising over the last couple of years.  And now that it's topped off, it really does have a remarkable impact on the city's skyline.

Even though it's only 60 stories (and 700 feet) tall, it has a dominating presence from many vantage points to the north.  And from the west and south it competes quite easily with both the John Hancock Center , and the Trump International Hotel and Tower .

Although a lot of people dislike the style of the building, it has grown on me and I think is a good compliment to 900 North Michigan and The Fordham .  Call it faux deco; call it 90's revival; call it neo chateau; call it what you will -- Chicago should be proud that it can call it "almost done" at a time when so many smaller projects are being canceled in other cities.

Suburban Renewal: A Marshall Field's Finds New Life

I don't go the suburbs very much.  When I moved to Chicago I sold both of my cars and became one of the few people happy with the service provided by the Chicago Transit Authority.  And although I travel a lot, most of my trips begin with a cab ride to O'Hare airport.

But every once in a while I'll hope a Metra train to see where it goes, and one of the places I sometimes land is Lake Forest.  I go there about every three or four months because of a particular appetizer served at a particular restaurant a few minutes walk from the train station.

If you haven't been up there, there's a nice little town square on the west side of the Metra station, complete with a couple of restaurants, some women's clothing boutiques, a book store, a toy shop, and a city hall that is for some reason inside a (presumably) fake lighthouse.

At the heart of the retail square is a building that used to be a Marshall Field's.  In my travels, it was the smallest department store I'd ever seen.  Two floors above, and one below grade, it carried mostly women's fashions and accessories.  The people on Lake Forest should be applauded for keeping the local retail trade alive for so long, and not giving in to the lure of nearby malls.

But when Macy's swooped in and bought the chain from Target, this store was one of the first on the chopping block.  It's a real shame, too.

But it's a tribute to the people of Lake Forest, it's town leaders, and the shortsightedness of a certain New York-based mega department store chain that almost immediately, renovations began to transform the building and make it ready for new stores.

Now, the first of those new stores has opened.  "J. Crew On-The-Square" has opened on the north side of the building, complete with signs emulating the Marshall Field and Company signs that are still in place.  It's small, but still carries a fairly good variety of basic J. Crew merchandise.

There's more good news at the south end of the building, where building permits and coming soon signs herald the arrival of bluemercury, the DC-area cosmetics spa chain.  It's a new brand to me, but my friends in the know in the Gold Coast are surprised and jealous that a location is opening in Lake Forest. Apparently it's ultra high end, and they believe it would be better placed in 60611.  That seems to be true, based on what I overheard in J. Crew where one woman was explaining to another one what "bluemercury" is and neither really got it right.

If you do take the Metra up to Lake Forest to take a look around, try to go when your hair is a little long. There's an old fashioned barber shop operating inside the Metra station.  Wear a trench coat and a fedora and go when the Cubs game is on TV.  The close your eyes while being shaved and imagine you're living in Chicagoland in the 1940's.

Slice of Life: The Shedd at the End of the Street

In the South Loop, ooking east on Roosevelt Road, past the Hotel Roosevelt , The Columbian , 1212 South Michigan , and One Museum Park West toward the Shedd Aquarium way off in at the end of the street.

Chicago Props in Pusan

This is a huge poster on a wall surrounding the construction site for the Busan Lotte Tower in Busan (Pusan), South Korea .  The building is designed to be 107 stories tall, and if completed could be even taller (including its spire and such) than the Burj Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, or its sister tower the Lotte Super Tower in Seoul, which is also pictured on this poster.

The poster shows how the building rising behind the wall will compare to the world's tallest buildings.  Starting with Taipei 101, and then right next to it -- Chicago's Sears (Willis) Tower which is rightfully depicted as taller.  Unfortunately, when we were there last month, construction had stopped.  Estimated completion date is 2015, so there's still plenty of time to get things moving again.

Another Chicago link -- both the Busan Lotte Tower and the Lotte Super Tower were designed by Chicago's own Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill .

The Big Gap in Madison Street

I don't get down to the corner of Madison and Dearborn as much as I used to.  With the Washington Mutual on the corner closing and Wendy's no longer factoring so prominently in my diet, I'm bound to miss a few things as the months pass.

One of the things I missed was the disappearance of the Gap clothing store that used to be at 70 West Madison, in the Three First National Plaza building.  As you can see from the picture above -- it's gone.  If anyone knows when it vanished, post a comment below.

The Gap store was one of a group of interesting retail holdouts in the Loop -- stores that you normally find in a suburban mall or along Michigan Avenue that manage to eke out an existence from the office workers filtering out of the business district's skyscrapers.

I've always tried to patronize these shops to reward them for the effort they put into keeping the heart of the city alive.  Some of them are a little above my pay grade, and many cater to a gender other than my own, but I still appreciate what they contribute to Chicago's downtown districts at a time when most American cities have little to no business district retail.

Shuffling the Acorns on Oak Street

Another move is being made in the ongoing retail chess match that is the Oak Street corridor.

With Barneys New York now across Rush Street in its new building, the old Barneys New York building is going to....

Hermes.

The French luxury retail is going to move from its nice but narrow location at 110 East Oak Street

and into a portion of the former Barneys New York building on Oak and Rush (25 East Oak Street, to be precise).

Hermes will be able to spread its wares across parts of the first two floors of the store, giving it a huge presence akin to the Prada store across Oak Street.  One corner of Chicago will have French, Italian, and Arab flagship stores.

Hopefully Hermes will do a better job with its window displays than Prada does.  For the last couple of years, Prada has only had one or two real showcase windows, while the rest are taken up by colors, patterns, or lame video screens.

This is great news for Oak Street, which has some serious vacancy problems.  25 East Oak is a big space to fill.  Bringing in something to fill the Hermes space should be a little easier, even though it leaves vacant spaces at 58, 68, 72, 102, 110, and 112 -- all on the north side of the street, and only significantly interrupted by the intrepid Sarah's Pasteries (some of which I was given for Easter, thankyouverymuch).

But there is still the question of the Barneys New York's Chelsea Passage space.  That building is not part of the Hermes deal, and we haven't heard of anyone nibbling at it just yet.  But hopefully having Hermes as a neighbor will make it more attractive and easier to fill.

A couple of other minor notes -- There will have to be some sidewalk construction in front of 110 East Oak when Hermes moves.  The store has its logo in brass in the concrete.  Similarly, when it moves into 25 East Oak, Hermes will have to fill in the "Barneys New York" that is carved above the third floor corner window.

--Update: April 19, 2009--

According to Crain's Chicago Business , the amount of space that Hermes will take up in the old Barneys building will actually be less than the space it has now.  The 110 East Oak Street location has 5,600 square feet, while Hermes is taking only 4,600 square feet of 25 East Oak.

Slice of Life: A Nice Day in the South Loop

Save this blue sky picture for a rainy day. One is on the way.