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Chicago Spire

Chicago Spire

 Chicago Spire - 2000 ft. LEED Gold

The Chicago Spire, a spectacular 2,000-foot twisting tower will dramatically change the Second City’s skyline. The proposed LEED Gold structure is sure to become an immediate icon.

By comparison the Sears Tower is 1,451 feet to the top of the structure and 1,730 feet to the top of the antenna. If the Chicago Spire decides to add a finial or antenna, it may be the tallest building in the world for quite some time.

Designed by Spanish architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava, The Chicago Spire will be the world’s tallest exclusively residential building and the tallest building in the western world when complete in 2012.

Rising 150 stories, the slender, twisting tower will house 1,194 residences. Each level in the seven-sided structure will rotate an average 2.44 degrees between floor plates, giving the structure its distinctive fluid appearance; the building will turn a total of 360 degrees.

Some call this a biomimetic design because it picks up on sea shells and naturally occurring spirals, but in my vocabulary biomimetic designs are more than cosmetics layered over a traditional structure.

The Chicago Spire will be designed to the LEED Gold certification level.

 

Via:  Inhabitat

Cool Video at:  The Chicago Spire 

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 at 3:12 pm and is filed under Architecture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

5 Responses to “Chicago Spire”

  1. Kim Metcalfe Says:
    June 30th, 2008 at 12:08 am

    The picture you have associated with the above story of The Chicago Spire is an incorrect rendering. The Chicago Spire is a 7-sided building, the above is the 3-sided Fordham Spire which doesn’t and will not exist. As a representative of the developer, Shelbourne Development, I’m happy to provide you with accurate renderings and would appreciate you updating the picture.

  2. san francisco modern Says:
    July 25th, 2008 at 6:18 am

    I was actually just in Chicago and took the architectural boat tour through the city which was hosted by a local student of architecture who was well versed in this structure. The design seems rather ambitious however I can’t imagine a better host city for such a progressive structure.

    I can attest to the fact that both the tour guide and the 30+ architectural fiends on the trip were really impressed with the design and vision of the Chicago Spire and I look forward to seeing the finished product!

  3. Alyra Violesea Says:
    December 7th, 2008 at 11:19 pm

    I hate the spire.

  4. meagan Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:32 pm

    What the hell are these architects thinking? It is completely throwing off the balance of the skyline and ruins the classical look of our city. I think its grotesque. Plus, what crazy person will want to live on the 115th floor? It looks like a great target for the terrorists!

  5. dtester Says:
    July 12th, 2009 at 12:09 am

    I THINK THE SPIRE WILL BE A GREAT ADDITION TO THE SKYLINE,BUT I DON’T THINK IT WILL EVER GET STARTED, DOES ANYBODY ELSE THINK IT WILL? OR HAS ANY GOT ANY NEW INFO ABOUT THAT?

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