Champaign Urbana Construction Projects

[Dan]

Photos taken 6/9/2008


309 E Green - leasing for Fall 08 - 25 floors, will be taller than Tower at Third in background










Burnham 310 - leasing for Fall 08 - 18 floors, recently topped-off

[illini4everjp]

Today is June 12th. There is no way people will be living in there before October (ok, maybe MAYBE Burnham but certainly not Green St).

[OrangeFever]

Wow. Burnham is a ghastly building.

[BananaShampoo]

They'll both look better once there is actually an exterior on them.

I recently went to the opening of the new Gregory Place East building, a 5 story building with retail space on the first floor, offices on the second, and 140 apartment units above it just south of Krannert and the new Spurlock Museum. Very nice building. Far nicer than anything I lived in as a student. The apartments also run about $200 per month higher than what I pay for the monthly mortgage on my 4 bedroom house.

Gregory Place East:


Another building going up soon at the corner of Lincoln and University:

[oskeeorange]

Originally Posted by BananaShampoo

They'll both look better once there is actually an exterior on them.

I recently went to the opening of the new Gregory Place East building, a 5 story building with retail space on the first floor, offices on the second, and 140 apartment units above it just south of Krannert and the new Spurlock Museum. Very nice building. Far nicer than anything I lived in as a student. The apartments also run about $200 per month higher than what I pay for the monthly mortgage on my 4 bedroom house.

Gregory Place East:


Another building going up soon at the corner of Lincoln and University:

Banana, what is taking the building on University and Lincoln so long to be built? It was expected to open in the spring of 2008. Last time I drove by, it was still an empty lot.

[OlivetNaz]

Originally Posted by oskeeorange

Banana, what is taking the building on University and Lincoln so long to be built? It was expected to open in the spring of 2008. Last time I drove by, it was still an empty lot.

I drove by it today. It still IS an empty lot...

[OrangeFever]

Originally Posted by oskeeorange

Banana, what is taking the building on University and Lincoln so long to be built? It was expected to open in the spring of 2008. Last time I drove by, it was still an empty lot.

My guess would be the financing either didn't come together or fell through. They may have lost funding and are trying to put it back together. Could be permitting issues, too.

[OrangeFever]

Originally Posted by BananaShampoo

They'll both look better once there is actually an exterior on them.

Nothing could improve the Burnham building. It's a truly deplorable structure.

[BananaShampoo]

Originally Posted by OrangeFever

My guess would be the financing either didn't come together or fell through. They may have lost funding and are trying to put it back together. Could be permitting issues, too.

These things take time. The developers redesigned the building and then had to request a zoning variance, which was approved recently. It was also held up due to environmental issues in the form of a previously unknown old underground fuel tank that had to be removed from the site and then cleared by the EPA. They should begin constructing the building very very soon.

[BananaShampoo]

Originally Posted by OrangeFever

Nothing could improve the Burnham building. It's a truly deplorable structure.

Sure beats the old abandoned hospital that had been sitting there for 15+ years.

[Champaignillini]

Here's a rendering


Source: http://www.burnham310.com/

[oskeeorange]

Originally Posted by BananaShampoo

These things take time. The developers redesigned the building and then had to request a zoning variance, which was approved recently. It was also held up due to environmental issues in the form of a previously unknown old underground fuel tank that had to be removed from the site and then cleared by the EPA. They should begin constructing the building very very soon.

I'm not going to lie. I liked the earlier design much much better. A lot of the detail was taken out of the building in the newer renderings and with that being such a busy intersection I think a building really needs to really stand out visually.

[OrangeFever]

Originally Posted by BananaShampoo

Sure beats the old abandoned hospital that had been sitting there for 15+ years.

It's a shame to have an opportunity squandered. The off-campus residential architecture in C-U is generally abysmal. This building is institutional to the max. Perhaps they were trying to recall the former use. That's what it looks like.

[OlivetNaz]

Originally Posted by OrangeFever

It's a shame to have an opportunity squandered. The off-campus residential architecture in C-U is generally abysmal. This building is institutional to the max. Perhaps they were trying to recall the former use. That's what it looks like.

I could have sworn that Burnham 310 is actually ON campus...but you are right to a degree, and it reminds me of basically a newer version of the FAR...minus one high-rise.

That being said...it doesn't look that different from other campus geared high rises that you find in city-based universities. Of course...the difference is that C-U doesn't really qualify as a "city."

[Dan]

Burnham 310 is technically off-campus, but essentially right there adjacent to campus. The development is being hyped as a conduit of a new district connecting Campustown and downtown Champaign.

I'm holding out hope that the final exterior product of the Burnham will be half-way decent.

[OlivetNaz]

Originally Posted by Dan

Burnham 310 is technically off-campus, but essentially right there adjacent to campus. The development is being hyped as a conduit of a new district connecting Campustown and downtown Champaign.

I'm holding out hope that the final exterior product of the Burnham will be half-way decent.

I see. I try not to venture into campus territory any more than I have to, so other than Neil St., Windsor Rd., and the entrance on Lincoln and University, I don't know exactly where the campus ends and Champaign begins (or is it the other way around).

With a building that skinny, though - it makes me wonder where they plan on putting the "grocery store" that the building's supposed to have (floors 2 - 10?).

[Champaignillini]

Originally Posted by OlivetNaz

With a building that skinny, though - it makes me wonder where they plan on putting the "grocery store" that the building's supposed to have (floors 2 - 10?).

The grocery store (County Market) is supposed to be adjacent to the apartment building. It will be in a 28,000-square-foot area.

Here's the plan:



Here's another image from www.brettdaniel.com

[Dan]

They are just starting to construct the grocery store.

[Champaignillini]

I guess Dan had already posted this one..the rendering for the 310E Green Street tower

[BananaShampoo]

Originally Posted by oskeeorange

I'm not going to lie. I liked the earlier design much much better. A lot of the detail was taken out of the building in the newer renderings and with that being such a busy intersection I think a building really needs to really stand out visually.

I agree. I liked the original design better, too.

[BananaShampoo]

Originally Posted by illinigrad

I guess Dan had already posted this one..the rendering for the 310E Green Street tower

It looks like they plopped a big city high rise from Chicago into Champaign. I'm not so sure I like that look nor think it fits into the context of C-U. I think they could have integrated it much better architecturally into its surroundings (more brick, less steel and glass).

[OrangeFever]

Originally Posted by BananaShampoo

It looks like they plopped a big city high rise from Chicago into Champaign. I'm not so sure I like that look nor think it fits into the context of C-U. I think they could have integrated it much better architecturally into its surroundings (more brick, less steel and glass).

Indeed. Sleek, yes (except for the base, which seems incongruous with the upper stories), contextual, no. But, oh well. As Champaign's skyline increasingly goes vertical, there will be some changes, not all of them aesthetically pleasing, at least not at first.

[OrangeFever]

Originally Posted by OlivetNaz

Of course...the difference is that C-U doesn't really qualify as a "city."

Them's fightin' words to someone born and rasied in Champaign, a Townie to the bone. Oops, did I say, "Townie"? Does that mean C's a town, not a city? Whatever it is, I love the place.

[oskeeorange]

Don't know if you guys heard about this, but a 20 story building is going to be added next to 'the whopper' on Green Street (replacing the brick commercial building which housed cafe luna, a barber shop, etc.). I believe the 2 buildings will be connected.

I attached a rendering of the building from the architect's website http://www.hparchitecture.com/

[OlivetNaz]

Originally Posted by OrangeFever

Them's fightin' words to someone born and rasied in Champaign, a Townie to the bone. Oops, did I say, "Townie"? Does that mean C's a town, not a city? Whatever it is, I love the place.

OF, you know me well enough to know that I generally don't try to offend people. I meant LARGE city - you know, the scale of Chicago, NYC, LA, D/FW, Indy, Atlanta, Seattle...the BIG cities.

It is an excellent place to be...with the notable exception of having to make new friends every two years or so...