CHICAGO — A partnership between Riverside Investment & Development and Convexity Properties has broken ground on BMO Tower, also known as Union Station Tower. The 50-story office building is part of the Union Station redevelopment project in Chicago.
Global architecture firm Goettsch Partners (GP) designed the property, which will be situated on 2.2 acres directly south of the Union Station headhouse building. The office tower will feature 1.4 million square feet of office space.
The tower and new public space are part of the larger redevelopment of Chicago Union Station, which originally opened in 1925. Riverside and Complexity unveiled plans for the $1 billion project in September 2018, beginning with the demolition of a 404-unit apartment building and the design of a 1.5-acre plaza and park.
“This project will activate a prime site that has been largely underutilized next to Chicago’s busiest commuter station,” says James Goettsch, chairman and co-CEO at GP. “The office tower and park will bring vibrant, complementary additions to the city.”
As the name indicates, Montreal-based BMO Financial Group will be the building’s anchor tenant. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2022. Although development costs were not disclosed, the Chicago Tribune reports that the developers received $476 million in construction financing for the project.
— Taylor Williams