Does anyone realize that Willis Tower is the tallest building in the US?... (Chicago: apartment, condos)

[quigboto]

Originally Posted by ForYourLungsOnly

I'm pretty sure it would be cheaper to build a 100+ floor skyscraper than four 25 floor buildings.

Plus, the whole point of skyscrapers is to maximize vertical square footage since the square footage on the ground (esp in downtown) is finite, and at a premium.

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by Kamms

The reason why Chicago was not mentioned this weekend is due to the fact that New York and Washington, DC are the two power cities both here and abroad-they get the attention.
The whole tone of this thread is just plain wrong. It brings up bad Chicago memories for me and increased my ''this place is not for me" thinking. First the summer 2001 when Boeing announced it was moving it headquarters to Chicago, bringing 500 jobs. The reaction of state (pre-jail George Ryan) and local (pre-jail Blagojevich) pols was embarrassing; the champagne corks were popping etc. I was thinking "I thought Chicago was this big city why are they acting this way?"
Then 9/11 came. By Thursday, the 13th, the Tribune was running articles about how some New York firms might want to move to Chicago now; totally trying to see what benefits Chicago may get out of this tragedy while the search and rescue teams were still digging for survivors. I sensed disappointment that Chicago wasn't attacked and kept hearing ''we're next'' as if being attacked would prove Chicago's world importance. Cannot state how many times I heard this and how there was a plane in St. Louis that was going to hit Chicago and the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania was supposed to hit the Sears Tower (you know the one hijacked over Cleveland and turned southeast towards DC-no logic how it was coming to Chicago).
Now today, I see this again..."why haven't we been in the news as a target...we have the tallest building so it should be hit"...this is disgusting. I can't believe the moderator is letting this one go on...

Relief that my brother and friends in downtown Chicago weren't affected, sadness, disbelief and anger about what happened in NYC.
NO ONE I know was disappointed that the Sears Tower WASN'T attacked?! All relieved yet numb, like the rest of the country.
Angry speculation can lead one to say foolish things.

[wrcousert]

Originally Posted by ForYourLungsOnly

I'm pretty sure it would be cheaper to build a 100+ floor skyscraper than four 25 floor buildings.

If it is, why haven't more of them been built since the early '70's when the Sears Tower and the World Trade Center buildings were completed?

[i_am_hydrogen]

Would the Sears Tower have survived 9/11? | Bleader

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by wrcousert

If it is, why haven't more of them been built since the early '70's when the Sears Tower and the World Trade Center buildings were completed?

Excess commercial space and some relocation to suburban centers.

[Kamms]

Originally Posted by 666northstate

Man,this post is delusional, self centered, uninformed, overgeneralized and quite offensive.

Go read the Tribune articles if I'm misinformed. What you call self-centeredness is what I call my reaction this thread...and you claim I'm overgeneralizing when my experiences from 10 years ago confirm the thread's theme-why is Chicago being left out of the recent threat to the U.S. and actually stating that the Willis Tower should be an al-queda target...poster is not saying ''I'm disappointed'' but he or she is.

[cubssoxfan]

By Thursday, the 13th, the Tribune was running articles about how some New York firms might want to move to Chicago now; totally trying to see what benefits Chicago may get out of this tragedy while the search and rescue teams were still digging for survivors. I sensed disappointment that Chicago wasn't attacked and kept hearing ''we're next'' as if being attacked would prove Chicago's world importance. Cannot state how many times I heard this

Go read the Tribune articles if I'm misinformed. What you call self-centeredness is what I call my reaction this thread...and you claim I'm overgeneralizing when my experiences from 10 years ago confirm the thread's theme-why is Chicago being left out of the recent threat to the U.S. and actually stating that the Willis Tower should be an al-queda target...poster is not saying ''I'm disappointed'' but he or she is.

Which is it? Did the Tribune sense a disappointment from Chicagoans that we weren't attacked, or did YOU sense a disappointment from Chicagoans that we weren't attacked?

[Kamms]

Originally Posted by jman07

I agree with the OP. I have not heard the media make one comment about the Willis tower in years regarding it being a terrorist target. It seems like the next logical attack. Especially since there have been other attempts in NYC like the time square bomber. I don't think anyone else expects another plane to bring down a building though, and Chicago is not NYC. I'm guessing intelligence has not shown that Chicago is that big of a target compared to NYC.

See here ya go...''it seems like the next logical attack'' and I'm delusional self-centered angry and offensive; this b.s. just confirms my experience in the Windy City...

[Attrill]

Originally Posted by wrcousert

If it is, why haven't more of them been built since the early '70's when the Sears Tower and the World Trade Center buildings were completed?

A lot of things are considered when a skyscraper is planned. For a 100+ story building to make sense land prices need to very high, a few large tenants need to be lined up, and public transit needs to be nearby (providing parking for everyone who works in a 100+ story building isn't going to happen). A 100 story building will cost nearly $1 billion to construct, you can't do that with an attitude of "if you build it they will come".

Because of this it's hard to get the capital together to build a 100+ story building in the US. Chicago and NYC are probably the only two cities that have the elements in place to support buildings of that size.

That said, the sweet spot for the Loop and most of Manhattan seems to be 40-80 story buildings. Over 50 buildings in that range have been built in Chicago since the Sears tower was completed.

[Kamms]

Originally Posted by dosequis man

The Willis looks wimpy or outdated. It just doesn't look that tall, probably because of the dark bronz tones and its boxiness.
Its mostly black, like the rest of Chicago. Hey look...another Chicago family, and they are all wearing black. Black northface. Black underarmour. Geez..no wonder the Chi is listed as one of the worst dressed cities. Hiding fat is priority #1 after the first commandment. Thou shall not talk badly of Chicago or make light. That midwest friendliness stuff is
for our brochures

Don't forget the Midwest Values hype...still don't know how this is played up considering the corruption and jail sentences handed down to the pols there on a regular basis...but then again, Chicago brags about how corrupt it is...