Chicago’s financial and construction markets were devastated in the Great Recession, so the completion of work on one of its prominent victims is reason enough to celebrate. The luxury apartment building now standing in Chicago’s downtown Loop at 111 W. Wacker Dr., dubbed OneEleven by its developer, can claim even greater distinction: OneEleven has now earned ENR Midwest’s award for the region’s Best Project of the Year.
Originally designed as a 90-story hotel and condominium tower, the property was abandoned mid-construction in 2007, leaving only the 28-story concrete structure and miscellaneous MEP elements in the building. The abandoned structure stood as an unwelcome reminder of the condition of the local economy and symbolized, for many, the slowdown in construction that resulted from the financial market collapse in 2007. Now, the completed OneEleven symbolizes the re-emergence of Chicago’s financial and construction markets.