Goodbye Vista Tower, hello St. Regis. Chicago’s newest skyscraper has a new name, new hotel and a restaurant deal with Alinea Group.
Vista Tower is getting a new name, just weeks before the first residents move into Chicago’s third-tallest skyscraper.
The project’s new moniker, The St. Regis Chicago, comes as the project’s developer brings aboard a new luxury hotel brand and one of Chicago’s best-known restaurant operators to the 1,191-foot-tall building designed by Jeanne Gang.
The 101-story tower at 363 W. Wacker Drive is changing its name after signing St. Regis Hotels & Resorts, which is part of Marriott International, to manage the 191-room hotel on the bottom 12 floors, Chicago-based Magellan Development Group said. St. Regis also will manage the residential amenities.
Chicago’s Alinea Group will operate restaurants and bar-lounge spaces on the second and 11th floors.
“St. Regis and Alinea are a dream team to make this a top destination in Chicago,” Magellan principal J.R. Berger said. “We have one of the top hotel brands and one of the top restaurant groups coming into the tower.”
It’s the third name for Magellan’s $1 billion development, initially known as the Wanda Vista Tower, which broke ground in 2016.
Magellan confirmed the details late Tuesday, after completing its buyout of Chinese development partner Dalian Wanda Group’s 90% stake in the condominium and hotel tower. It already owned the other 10% of the project, which is part of the Chicago developer’s 28-acre Lakeshore East development along the Chicago River, Millennium Park and Lake Shore Drive.
Magellan CEO David Carlins and Berger declined to disclose the sale price. Wanda Hotel Development — a unit of Chinese billionaire Wang Jianlin’s Wanda Group — in July disclosed in a public filing that it planned to sell its stake to Magellan for $270 million.
The purchase was backed by loans of undisclosed sums from a Goldman Sachs fund and JPMorgan Chase, according to Magellan.
The first residents are expected to move in by December, and the hotel is scheduled to open in the third quarter of next year, according to Magellan. A designer will be chosen for hotel’s common areas, Carlins said.
The Chinese investor had planned to bring an ultraluxury hotel, which would have been its first in the U.S. Wanda’s exit from the project created uncertainty around the 393-unit condo development, with about half of the units yet to be sold.
There have been at least two lawsuits filed by condo buyers under contract, including one for a $10 million unit, who cited the Wanda hotel concept — including features such as a pool, spa, restaurant and bar — as a key selling point. The lawsuits sought to nullify the contracts.
“We’re hopeful everyone, once they hear the news, will be excited to be in the building,” Carlins said of the new hotel and restaurant operators. “I’m excited that this puts an end to the talk about uncertainty around the project. There was speculation that created nervousness with our buyers and the market in general, and all of that should be behind us.”
Major changes to Magellan’s project come at a pivotal time in the commercial real estate industry, which is struggling to overcome the coronavirus pandemic. Hotels have been hit particularly hard by COVID-19.
“With all the positive news about vaccines, we’re optimistic that the timing is going to work out well for this project,” Berger said.
Construction of the undulating skyscraper topped out in April 2019, and work has continued during the pandemic.
The hotel will include a pool, spa, outdoor terrace, fitness room, ballroom and meeting rooms.
St. Regis has 45 hotels and resorts throughout the world, including the more-than-century-old original hotel in New York.
The residential portion of the tower, now called The Residences at The St. Regis Chicago, includes a 47th-floor amenities space with an outdoor pool and terrace, lounge, dining room, demonstration kitchen, fitness center, conference center, private viewing room, golf lounge and children’s activity room.
Condo prices range from $1 million to $18.5 million.
Magellan declined to provide details of Alinea’s plans, saying they’re still under development. The restaurant group is known for Alinea, Next, The Aviary and Roister.
“This is truly a ‘born-in-Chicago’ project, and we are excited to be a part of this amazing architectural wonder,” Nick Kokonas, co-owner and co-founder of The Alinea Group, said in a statement from the developer. “We’ve been in discussions with Magellan for several years to determine how we can best partner on this project, and we look forward to bringing our vision to life.”
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