Renderings of buildings that might tower over Restaurant Row released

The developer seeking to build the two tallest buildings west of the Kennedy Expressway in the booming West Loop neighborhood released a rendering of one of the towers Tuesday.

The proposed 51-story condominium tower slated for construction at 170 N. Peoria, would rise 570 feet if Related Midwest gets the green light from the city to build. It would contain 300 condos.

The site, which is currently a parking lot, is a few feet from Randolph Street’s Restaurant Row. Its neighbor would be the popular Lena Brava restaurant.

Most buildings in the area average three or four stories.

The tower, designed to fit a set of guidelines created by neighborhood stakeholders, will be slim and set back from the street, Related Midwest President Curt Bailey said.

“We’re excited to be working with the West Loop and be great neighbors,” Bailey said.

Bailey was slated to chat with members of the community about the project at a public meeting Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Morgan Manufacturing, 401 N. Morgan St.

The architect on the project, Morris Adjmi, is known for his work in New York’s meatpacking district.

Construction could begin as early as spring of 2019.

Two blocks east, at 725 W. Randolph, Related Midwest plans to build an even taller residential and hotel tower that would hug the west side of the Kennedy Expressway and reach 670 feet into the sky.

Renderings and further details associated with that project were scheduled to be released at a community meeting Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Soul City Church, 1150 W. Adams St.

Moshe Tamssot, a longtime West Loop resident and founder of the online community forum TrueWestLoop.com, said that building the tower by the expressway is not very controversial among residents because “tall buildings are expected east of Halsted Street.”

“But the project on Peoria presents controversy because it will stick out like a sore thumb in an area that tends to be composed of low to mid-rise buildings,” he said. “Residents fear it will usher in more and more tall buildings.”

The projects are in the ward of Ald. Walter Burnett (27th), who said Tuesday that he’s heard similar concerns.

“The community is concerned about the height. It’s a little bit ambitious,” he said.