900 North Michigan in Chicago, in the U.S. state of Illinois, is a skyscraper completed in 1989. At 871 feet (265 m) tall, it is the eleventh tallest building in Chicago as of 2023 and the 59th-tallest in the United States. It was developed by Urban Retail Properties in 1988 as an upscale sister to Water Tower Place, one block southeast, and was the second vertical mall built along the Magnificent Mile.

900 North Michigan Avenue
900 North Michigan is located in Chicago metropolitan area
900 North Michigan
Location within Chicago metropolitan area
900 North Michigan is located in Illinois
900 North Michigan
900 North Michigan (Illinois)
900 North Michigan is located in the United States
900 North Michigan
900 North Michigan (the United States)
General information
TypeMixed
Location900 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Coordinates41°53′59″N 87°37′30″W / 41.89972°N 87.62500°W / 41.89972; -87.62500
Completed1988
Height
Roof871 ft (265 m)
Technical details
Floor count66
Design and construction
Architect(s)Kohn Pedersen Fox
HKS, Inc.
DeveloperUrban Retail Properties
Main contractorJ.A. Jones Construction
Other information
Public transit accessBus interchange CTA
Metro interchange  Red  at Chicago

The building features a large, upscale shopping mall called 900 North Michigan Shops. Bloomingdale's occupies the rear of its wide, six-story atrium, with other luxury shops and restaurants filling the remaining spaces. For this reason, it is commonly referred to as the "Bloomingdale's Building".[1] The mall opened with Henri Bendel as a "junior anchor," since closed. The layout of the retail area reflects lessons learned from Water Tower Place; the anchor's placement at the rear draws shoppers through the space and creates leasable space with valuable Michigan Avenue frontage, while the arrangement of escalators in parallel, rather than in zig-zags, directs foot traffic past more shops.

Offices originally occupied floors 8–28, but floors 21–28 were converted to condo units in 2007, leaving offices on floors 8–20. The luxurious Four Seasons Hotel occupies the middle floors (30–46) of the tower. Floors 48–66 are part of the 132 East Delaware Residences, these 106 condominiums were part of the original building plan. A large 12-story parking garage, with retail on the ground level and a medical clinic atop, occupies the rear half of the block, facing Rush Street.

The exterior of the tower is clad in limestone and green glass which reflects the light. The building has a steel skeleton on which a concrete frame was erected for the upper floors. Because the building materials changed, cranes used to work on the lower floors could not be used for the concrete portion and new cranes had to be erected to complete the building. Four lit "lanterns" atop the structure give it a distinctive skyline presence. They change colors for the Christmas season.[1]

Office tenants

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Hotel and retail tenants

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View from John Hancock Center

Retailers at the 900 Shops include:[2]

Position in Chicago's skyline

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 311 South WackerWillis TowerChicago Board of Trade Building111 South WackerAT&T Corporate CenterKluczynski Federal Building333 South WabashChase TowerThree First National PlazaMid-Continental PlazaRichard J. Daley CenterChicago Title and Trust Center77 West WackerPittsfield BuildingLeo Burnett BuildingThe Heritage at Millennium ParkCrain Communications BuildingIBM PlazaOne Prudential PlazaTwo Prudential PlazaAon CenterBlue Cross and Blue Shield Tower340 on the ParkPark TowerOlympia Centre900 North Michigan875 North Michigan AvenueWater Tower PlaceHarbor PointThe ParkshoreNorth Pier ApartmentsLake Point TowerJay Pritzker PavilionBuckingham FountainLake MichiganLake MichiganLake Michigan

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "900 North Michigan, Chicago". Archived from the original on 1 January 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ 900 Shops directory Archived 2015-01-25 at the Wayback Machine
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