Images show construction of SOM skyscraper on infamous Spire site in Chicago
American architecture studio SOM has revealed construction images of a skyscraper at 400 Lake Shore, the site of the cancelled Chicago Spire skyscraper.
The 400 Lake Shore skyscraper by SOM is set to reach 841 feet (256 metres) by its completion in 2027, and photos taken late last year show the skyscraper nearly halfway complete.
With part of its glass facade and terracotta mullions installed, the skyscraper is rectangular in form, with its long side running parallel to the Chicago River. It sits on a small outcropping of the city between the river and a slip.
Construction on this site has faced challenges for almost two decades, after initial plans to construct a 2,000-foot-tall skyscraper called The Spire, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava – first proposed in 2007.
After the 2008 financial crash, the project stalled, leaving a literal and metaphorical sore in the city – the infamous Spire Hole, a 75-foot (22 metres) deep hole meant to be the foundations for the original skyscraper.
SOM's former chairman, David Childs, who died last year, and developer Related proposed a scheme in 2018 that included two nearly identical skyscrapers. The city pushed back on the design, which was eventually redesigned by Childs in 2020.
Millions of gallons of water pumped out
SOM chose to work directly with the preexisting foundations, but, given the different design and reduced height of their 2018 scheme, the foundations had to be changed.
"During design, rather than remove that infrastructure, the team evaluated how to work with it, and re-use the existing foundations to the largest extent possible," SOM told Dezeen.
"A structural mat slab was introduced over the existing deep foundations, allowing flexibility in positioning new shear walls and primary load-bearing elements," the studio continued.
"By strategically aligning as much of the tower's heavy structure as possible with the original support points, the project was able to capitalize that investment and reuse a significant portion of the existing foundation."
Because the foundations sat for so long, crews had to pump roughly three million gallons of water out of the site in preparation.
Construction on the sublevels and the tower portion is happening simultaneously to allow for quicker construction – SOM began work in early 2024.
400 Lake Shore incorporates a central reinforced concrete core with two belt-and-outrigger wall systems.
Well-attuned to its windy home city, SOM utilised its in-house wind tunnel system to deal with the outsized amplification of load due to the wind pressure from Lake Michigan.
"The building's form evolved directly from environmental performance"
According to the studio, these environmental concerns are core to the design.
"As a result, the tower meets performance criteria through its structural system and architectural form alone, without the need for tuned mass dampers," said SOM.
"The testing also informed how the building meets the ground, guiding podium and landscape strategies to moderate wind at the pedestrian level. Rather than being refined after the fact, the building's form evolved directly from environmental performance."
Progress continues on the skyscraper, though the timeline for the proposed second tower is unclear.
SOM shaped the skyline of Chicago in the twentieth century, designing its tallest Willis Tower (originally Sears Tower).
Other architecture studios have contributed work to the famous Chicago Riverfront, including a St Regis skyscraper with a blue-hued facade and tiered design by Studio Gang, another firm that got its start in the birthplace of skyscrapers.
The photography is by Dave Burks for SOM.
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