New Plans To Revamp Old Post Office Announced

By Amy Cavanaugh in News on Apr 21, 2013 4:00PM

Investor Bill Davies, who wants to revamp the old Chicago Main Post Office, offered a new proposal last Tuesday that would make the West Loop building predominantly a residential and parking complex. The post office, which spans two city blocks, has been empty since 1996.

Davies, who has had control of the building since 2009 and has already gone through two architects, hired Chicago architect Joseph Antunovich of Antunovich Associates to plan a more streamlined project, which would include a 1,000-foot-tall building to the east of the post office and a tower taller than the Willis Tower. The plan would also add hotel rooms, space for stores and offices, and floors to the post office. Some have floated the idea of making the building a casino.

The Chicago Architecture Blog has renderings of the new design, and reported that the cost of the first phase could be $1.5 million. Developers are hoping for city approval in the next couple of months.