(Drum roll…) Well here ’tis, the inaugural Yo Yos, a sort of People’s Choice Awards for Chicago Real Estate, where we ask you, dear readers, to vote for the good, the bad and the oh-so-ugly in categories ranging from Hottest Architect to Most Overpriced Neighborhood.
We’ll propose a category, then it’s up to you to click on “Comments” and share your considered opinions on who or what is most worthy of the gong. At the end of the month we’ll provide a wrap-up of the most popular picks in the various categories and declare any clear winners, in a non-televised but, (trust us) glittering and star-studded ceremony direct from Yo’s glamorous Lake View offices.
For starters: How about Chicago’s Best High-rise and Chicago’s Ugliest, Most God-forsaken High-rise. These can be high-rises announced in 2006, or projects that have been aroound for years and stood the test of time. Note: We have a separate Most Luxurious Development category coming up, but feel free to nominate a project twice. Think architecture, think location, think amenities, think price – whatever. Persuade the rest of the Yo-niverse with your pithy and perceptive posts.
Other categories to consider today:
Best Loft development and Worst Loft Development.
For Best High-rise: the old Fordham Spire. The new design and new name don’t grab me anywhere near as much as the sleek, sexy, physically impossible original. Even though it’ll never be built this way, I’ll keep this image in my head for a long time to come.
I don’t know about this Calatrava guy, he seems to be franchising out similar waterfront designs to other cities.
http://www.80southstreet.net/
http://www.turningtorso.com/
ugliest recent highrise: Chestnut Tower at 121 W. Chestnut
Most appropriate musician to headline a Yo Yos Award Ceremony: Yolanda “Yo-Yo” Whitaker.
pk – the Chestnut Apartments site doesn’t seem to be working – do you have another link to a picture? This is the best I could find.
John – would she do a duet with Yo-Yo Ma, do you think?
1130 South Michigan Avenue for Chicago’s ugliest high-rise.
I truly detest this building.
There should be a separate category for all Lowenberg buildings. They are so consistently hideous that you almost have to admire his special approach.
But P.K. don’t forget Aqua, (a.k.a. Lowenberg’s Legacy at Lakeshore East) which may atone for some of Lowenberg’s past sins, if not all.
Loewenberg does workable floor plans, which is more than you can say for many of his competitors. Livability has to factor into the equation – it’s not all about the exterior aesthetics.
Chicago has so many truly awful residential high-rises in high-profile locations that it’s very difficult to single one out as the ugliest.
Here’s a category suggestion – Chicago’s sappiest, most pretentious real estate ad.
Call me a sentimentalist or whatever, but in my mind the BEST hi-rise in the City of Chicago is “The Pink Building” a/k/a Edgewater Beach. An oldie-but-goodie with great features, including such retro qualities as “charm,” “atmosphere,” and “classiness.” Too bad the management is stubbornly clinging to the co-op method of ownership instead of working towards condo conversion. The new generation of home buyers neither likes nor relates to the co-op concept, and it would be a shame to see this civic treasure die along with its residents.
The worst? Oh, gee, too numerous to mention and I have to do my shopping – er, work…
“Yo-Yo” is a slang term sometimes used to describe a “nerd,” “jerk,” or “unprintable.” So this word should be reserved for the bad stuff. The good stuff should be “Yay-Yay.”
Nina, I dare you to say that to Yolanda Yo-Yo Whittaker and Yo-Yo Ma. We’re reclaiming the term from its negative connotations although some people might argue that we embody those qualities.
There’s a difference between “Yo-Yo” the proper noun, and “A Yo-Yo”, the adjective.
Erm, we’ve never seen articles in front of adjectives until now… Not sure where Yo-Yo going with this…
Best/hottest of the moment architect would have to go to Lucien Lagrange for sure. He is pretty hot right now between the Ritz Residences…Elysian Hotel…2520 Lakeview…10 E Delaware…what am I missing?
Best Highrise: Chicago Title Tower @ 161 N Clark. Love that it looks so different from any other building in Chicago and that the crown is so unique.
Ugliest Highrise: Grand Plaza… ugly exterior, beautiful interiors.
God-forsaken: The remaining Cabrini-Green towers.
The building at 2625 N Clark has to be the most atrocious design or should I say non-design. Drive north on Clark toward this building and it is a massive, windowless, view-blocking wall of cement. It should get double ugly points because of its unmissable prominence in the neighborhood.
Mary,
The building is being punished daily by its architect’s stupidity: think of all the income it could have gleaned if it had south-facing windows with skyline views!