This condo development at 1943 N California Ave was completed a few months ago, but this is the first mention of it on Yo. It's located just a couple of blocks south of The Element (which has been shelved for now), and is just a short hike to the California Blue Line station.

It could be the bright blue sky in these photos, but of all the condo developments with large brick balconies that I've seen in recent weeks (such as the universally-hated 1845 West Grand), this one looks the brightest, and its balconies look a little less cavernous than the rest.

Brant Booker from Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate says there are four two-bedroom / 2.5-bath duplexes available, each with 1,500 square feet of living space, two three-bedroom / three-bath units with 1,650 square feet, and a two-bedroom / two-bath top-floor unit with 1,700 square of living space and a large roof deck.

The duplexes are priced in the $350s, the three-bedrooms are priced in the $380s, and the top-floor unit is listed in the $390s, Booker says. The place has a rigid parking hierarchy too: The top-floor unit comes with two parking spaces in a garage, the three-bedrooms each come with two covered spaces each, and the duplexes each come with one outdoor parking spot.

- Rate and review 1943 North California at NewHomeNotebook.com.

I had filed this development in the "uncertain" column in a roundup of new construction in Avondale earlier in the week, mostly because I've been unsuccessful in my attempts to contact the sales team. However, judging from these photos I took on Monday, construction is moving along.

According to North River Court's project Web site, the development at 2609 W Belmont Ave in Avondale will have 46 two- and three-bedroom / two-bath condos that will be priced from the $260s to the $470s. The site also says that the building will have a sprinkler system, each unit will come with in-unit washer / dryer, and that each unit will have outdoor space. Garage parking is listed for $19,500.

- Rate and review North River Court at NewHomeNotebook.com.

Glazing at Superior 110 had seemed to come to a stand-still a couple weeks ago, but I looked out the window this morning and noticed a few new panes in its top two stories.

What I hadn't noticed until today were the building's "racing stripes": columns of light-blue windows on the left-hand sides of Superior 110's eastern and western faces. They're subtle - I really didn't notice them until I loaded these pics onto the computer - but they're there, and they certainly add a little vertical thrust to the tower's design.

The 27-story building at 110 W Superior St in River North will comprise 58 units. About 60 percent of those homes were under contract in May, with the remaining stock of one- to three-bedrooms selling from the $530s to $1.46 million.

- Rate and review Superior 110 at NewHomeNotebook.com.

This development at 2668 N Halsted St in Lake View has been on the Yo-dar since April, and it's listed in NewHomeNotebook.com, but I've never been able to reach anyone at RPL Real Estate to comment on the project.

I took the above photo on Monday, while passing through the North Side, and as you can see, the building is topped off, and it appears to be pretty close to completion.

According to the RPL Web site, the elevator building will feature 16 two-bedroom / two-baths that will range in size from 1,050 to 1,100 square feet that are priced from the $480s to the $520s. Outdoor parking is listed at $20,000 on the RPL site.

- Rate and review the 2668 Halsted at NewHomeNotebook.com.

It doesn't look too much like the electric blue and periwinkle rendering yet, but construction is indeed underway on the Ritz-Carlton Residences at the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Erie Street in the Gold Coast.

As some Yo readers might recall, the building in the foreground that's covered in scaffolding is the Farwell Building, an 11-story building at 664 N Michigan Ave that dates back to the 1920s and that topped Preservation Chicago's most threatened historic buildings list in 2007.

Prism Development Group's plans to demolish the building were rejected by the Commission on Chicago Landmarks, and now, the building is being dismantled and restored. The Farwell Building will eventually house retail, office space and condos.

Directly to the north of the Farwell Building, two other parcels are being demolished to make way for the 40-story tower, according to Margo Dahmani of Prism Development. Dahmani says demolition will continue through the end of the year, and then work on a two-level basement will begin in January.

Dahmani doesn't expect vertical construction to begin until the spring of 2009, and she says that construction will wrap up by late 2010 or early 2011. First deliveries are slated for early 2010.

- Rate and review the Ritz-Carlton Residences at NewHomeNotebook.com.

When I last posted on 600 North Lake Shore Drive back in April, there were only about 10 homes available in the north tower, so I expected it to be approaching sellout. Paul Smith from Belgravia Group says there are still a handful of one-bedrooms left in the north tower, but he assures me that sales have been cruising recently.

Smith says that four contracts were written over the weekend at the Streeterville development, and another one was drafted yesterday. As evidenced in the above photo, most of the exterior construction has been completed on both towers. Belgravia waits until units are sold before finishing them so that all buyers are able to select finishes and customize units, so there is still plenty of work to be done.

Units are available in one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans in the south tower, with one-bedrooms priced from the $410s to the $520s, two-bedrooms priced from the $580s to the $630s, and three-bedrooms priced from $1.32 million to $1.77 million. Smith says assessments run from about $340 to $822 per month, and parking in that nine-story parking structure is offered from $53,000 to $73,000, depending on the floor in the garage.

Another photo of 600 North Lake Shore Drive looking west from Jane Addams Memorial Park is above, at right.

- Rate and review 600 North Lake Shore Drive at NewHomeNotebook.com.

O, ye of little faith!

Will Utopian Properties' 155 North Aberdeen be ready by this fall? Maybe not, but my visit to the intersection of Randolph and Aberdeen streets proves that work is indeed underway.

Utopian is building 12 Studio Dwell-designed condominiums across from the Harpo studios (and Batman's favorite hangout) in the West Loop. The homes have two to three bedrooms and two to three baths, and are priced from the $470s to the $950s. When finished, 155 North Aberdeen should look similar to the rendering below.

- Rate and review 155 North Aberdeen at NewHomeNotebook.com.

Our readers occasionally bring this up, and I have to agree: Wayman Street between Jefferson Street and Union Avenue feels like a glorified alleyway. It strikes me as a dark and narrow stretch of road, and while I'm sure it'll get better once Trio is finished and the construction crews have left, I can't imagine it becoming the sort of street that I'd want my balcony overlooking.

On the other hand, the more I look at Trio's tower, the more I think that its residents will have some decent city views. Given its location (670 W Wayman St in the Fulton River District) and its height (22 stories), it's not the sort of place to buy for sight-lines to the lake or parks. The building isn't completely surrounded by other tall towers, though, so anyone who wants to see the Loop skyline from the west or the South Loop from the north could certainly do worse than this.

Fewer than a quarter of the tower's 100 homes had sold as of six weeks ago, and the project was about half sold overall. Its remaining homes range from one-bedrooms starting in the $240s to two-bedroom penthouses priced at $1.4 million. Deliveries will begin in the spring.

- Rate and review Trio at NewHomeNotebook.com.

Nine of 1555 Wabash's 14 stories were up when I passed the construction site last Wednesday. New West Realty's project at 1555 S Wabash Ave in the South Loop is 70 percent sold, and buyers will begin moving into the building in November or December.

The range in price from the mid $200s for a 767 square-foot one-bedroom to the $610s for a 1,503 square-foot, three-bedroom penthouse. Parking is available for $35,000.

When finished, 1555 Wabash should look something like the rendering below:

- Rate and review 1555 Wabash at NewHomeNotebook.com.

This construction update comes courtesy of New Homes photographer Michael Kardas, who made his way onto the construction site at 1215 S Prairie Ave a week or two ago.

The MLS surfaces more than 50 One Museum Park condos listed by Ralph Oliva or other Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage agents, at prices ranging from the $820s for a 1,465 square-foot, two-bedroom / two-bath home to $2.65 million for a 2,924 square-foot, three-bedroom / three-bath home, but I can't say whether those are the only units in The Enterprise Companies' remaining inventory.

- Rate and review One Museum Park at NewHomeNotebook.com.