A partnership of Riverside Investment & Development and Howard Hughes Corp. has been approved to begin construction on a 54-story office tower on the site of the old GGP building along the Chicago River.
The city granted the developers a construction permit Monday to start work on the foundation and lower levels of the high-rise at 110 North Wacker Drive, according to Curbed.
Bank of America signed a 500,000-square-foot lease with Texas-based Howard Hughes Corp. and Chicago-based Riverside to move into the new building as its anchor tenant. The deal could include naming rights and likely some sort of exterior signage on the 800-foot tower, Curbed reported.
Bank of America is also the lender on a $500 construction loan written in February, according to Real Capital Analytics.
GGP moved out of its former headquarters and across the river into River North Point, formerly known as the Apparel Center in March. That wasn’t long before Brookfield Property Partners announced a $23-per-share deal to buy the remainder of GGP, a deal some experts call a “lowball” offer and a dour sign for the future of the retail sector.
The new tower will join a three-skyscraper project at Wolf Point and two new office buildings at 444 West Lake Street and 150 North Riverside Plaza in dramatically changing the skyline near the confluence of the North, South and Main branches of the river. [Curbed] — John O’Brien