Developers Submit Updated Design for 1234 W. Randolph

Chicago-based Golub and Company and New York-based Azur have released their updated plans for 1234 W. Randolph to the community. Located at the intersection of W. Randolph St and N. Willard Ct, the tower will rise on a small lot next to City Winery. The property was previously envisioned for a mixed-use hotel tower in 2019.

With Solomon Cordwell Buenz in charge of the design, the tower was reduced from 42 to 41 stories, bringing the number of units down from 400 to 395. While no retail was originally planned, the developers pivoted and replaced an outdoor space Previous vacancy with 1800 sf of retail space in response to Design Committee comments. Standing 460 feet tall (just 10 feet lower), residents will have access to amenity spaces on the fifth and 33rd floors. The building will provide 113 parking spaces, up from the original 124 spaces with one less parking floor. 390 bicycle parking spaces will be set up on the ground floor.

The design concept has been kept consistent with a podium that references the heights of the surrounding buildings. The building façade is no longer pushed back by the previous open space, now designed as a consistent façade along the street wall. Extending from the podium, the volume was extruded to create the residential mass of the building. Planned as a tall, slender form, the volume acts as a frame for the intersection of a jewel-like volume. Finally, the volumes were staggered to respond to the vocabulary of the area and set back from W. Randolph St.

The building’s podium has been revised, filling in the previous gap where there was an outdoor space. The residential entrance will occupy the west half of the street frontage, and the retail will occupy the eastern half of the frontage. With a simplified design, the podium will be cad in terracotta and metal panels. The residential entrance will be advertised with a glass strip and a trellis on the service terrace.

The main mass of the tower will be clad in a copper colored metal panel frame with secondary inset frames made of black metal. The jewel part will be covered with a system of glass and metal panels that highlights it with a different expression.

With Confluence on board, the vegetation has been simplified to a row of new trees placed in large planters that will be flanked by wooden benches. By creating a linear garden, the trees take up space in a pothole that turns the typical angled parking lot into just parallel parking. Bike racks will be added on the west side, with additional small planters intended to delineate outdoor seating for a potential cafeteria or restaurant user.

The development will provide 20% affordable units on-site, with a total of 79 apartments, all with an AMI of up to 60%. To allow construction of the new tower, the developers are revising the existing Planned Development with a zoning increase to DX-7, with a bonus of 4.5 FAR at a cost of $1.9 million to the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund.

The project will go before the Chicago Plan Commission, the Zoning Committee and the full City Council within the next few months. Once approvals are obtained, SCB will draft construction documents to obtain permits. The inauguration is estimated for the second or third quarter of 2024 at the earliest.