601W Co. plans to begin construction on the long-anticipated Aon Center observation deck in the third quarter of 2020, the Chicago Tribune reports.
It’s been more than a year since city officials approved a new observation deck and a 1,185-foot exterior elevator for Chicago’s Aon Center, and work is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2020 and last two years, according to a recent Chicago Tribune report.
Owner and developer 601W Companies is teaming with Legends—the NY firm behind Manhattan’s One World Observatory—to operate and jointly own the Chicago project. The venture is currently working to secure construction financing, said the Tribune.
The Aon observatory will remove two out of every three of the tower’s vertical columns on its top two floors. The space will include a restaurant, bar, and a “Sky Summit” thrill ride that will dangle visitors over the edge over the tower’s roof in a glass-bottomed gondola.
Chicago currently has two public observation decks – Skydeck at Willis Tower and 360 Chicago at the former Hancock Center.
Construction is also expected to begin soon on the observatory’s ground-level entrance pavilion as well as a 46-story apartment tower slated for the long-vacant site at 222 N. Stetson Avenue, according to the Tribune.
