Inside SoNo: Kim's perfect view of Chicago

Occasionally I see commenters here and elsewhere complain about SoNo‘s location. It’s isolated, they say, stuck in a no-man’s land on the Near North Side. I usually assume that these comments are based on little more than a cursory review of a 2-D Google Map, or on outdated memories of Cabrini-Green. Even Kim Hamilton avoided the building at first, thinking the high-rise looked out-of-place from afar.

Here’s the thing — SoNo’s position puts it just far enough away from the dense core of downtown to provide a full, unobstructed view of the city, sweeping from Lincoln Park all the way around to the United Center. It’s exactly the kind of view Kim has from the living room and balcony of her southeast corner unit, and it helps explain why she quickly changed her mind about the building.

I met Kim at her home a couple weeks ago to hear about the building from an active owner’s perspective. (She heads SoNo’s homeowners association, which took control of the tower from Smithfield Properties last month.) First, however, I wanted to find out what drew her to the building during her home search — that’s what we discuss in the segment above.

For those of you who only want the view, check back later for a video panorama shot from Kim’s east-facing balcony.


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