The $800m Trump International Hotel and Tower is a skyscraper condominium complex hotel located at 401 North Wabash Avenue in downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. The building is named after the well-known developer Donald Trump, winner of the 2016 US Presidential election. It is the second-tallest building in Chicago after the Sears Tower, though the Chicago Spire will be taller once it is completed in 2010.
Construction of the Trump Tower began on 17 March 2005. The building is 415m (1,362ft) tall and contains 96 floors for multiple uses. Despite some difficulties, such as water leaking into the foundations from the adjacent Chicago River, construction went well.
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The Trump Tower was constructed on a two-acre site (bought for $74m), formerly occupied by the Chicago Sun-Times, one of the city’s major newspapers. The Chicago Sun-Times relocated to offices at 350 North Orleans in June 2004.
Financing for the project was met mostly by a $640m construction loan from Deutsche Bank AG. The hotel welcomed its first guests on 30 January 2008.
Trump Tower design and layout
The design of the Trump Tower included three setbacks to give it visual continuity with the surrounding skyline. Each setback was designed to reflect the height of a nearby building: the first matches the Wrigley Building, the second setback aligns with the Marina City Towers and the third setback matches the height of 330 North Wabash.
The 90-storey building has 2.7 million ft² of floor space and includes 472 super-luxury residential condominiums (studios to three-bedroom and up to five-bedroom penthouses).
It also features a five-star luxury hotel condominium with 286 guestrooms (floors 14 to 27). Floors three and 12 are lobbies / reception areas, retail (100,000ft²) and parking (1,000 cars). A gymnasium / health club and spa is located on the 14th floor and the mezzanine.
Hotel condominiums and executive lounges are located on floors 17 through to 27. The Trump Tower’s residential condominiums are located from the 29th to 85th floors and penthouses situated on floors 86 to 89. McGinley Design designed the interiors of the hotel and condominiums. The Tower features a three-tiered riverfront park. 572 residences, valued at approximately $700m, were pre-sold.
World’s highest residence
The new building broke the record for the world’s highest residence (held since 1969 by the John Hancock Center, also in Chicago). The building has both hotel condominiums and residential condominiums, so therefore is not higher than the Q1 Tower on Australia’s Gold Coast, which at 80 storeys high is the tallest all-residential building.
The Trump Tower was first planned in 2000 and Donald Trump had a vision of it being the tallest building in the world. However, following the terrorist attacks in New York in 2001, he had the planned height reduced to avoid being a target.
Trump Tower architects
The Trump Tower designers were Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. The first design was released for public view in December 2001 and did not meet well with architects and the residents of Chicago. A revision in July 2002 yielded the current design. In January 2004, a further redesign of floors 17 to 26 changed their use from offices to condominiums and hotel rooms.
Bovis Lend Lease Inc of London is the construction project manager. By June 2007 the hotel levels had been completed and the building had progressed past level 30. Bill Rancic, who won the American reality TV programme The Apprentice in its first year, is manager of the building.
Building construction
The concrete subcontractor James McHugh Construction Co of Chicago implemented a comprehensive formwork provided by PERI Chicago for the construction of the building.
Concrete moulding was used because the traditional ironwork structure would require a building footprint too big for the property size, proportional to the height of the designed building. A liquid concrete pump custom-built in Germany with a 630HP engine allowed each additional floor to be poured by pumping concrete up 1,700ft to the elevated construction site (100 square yards per hour).
The concrete formwork requirements were enormous in order to meet the aggressive one-floor-per-week building schedule. Over 16,900 MULTIPROPs, 2,600 PEP props and 7,500 MRK frames were needed for the shoring alone on the initial levels.
Trump facilities
The Trump International Hotel features unrivalled services and special personal attention provided by the Trump Attachés; attachés prepare the room exactly as required with flowers, groceries or any other reasonable request and also keep note of the preferences of returning guests.
The hotel’s amenities include The Spa at Trump with dedicated spa guestrooms, elegant conference and private event space, a full-service health club, sophisticated lounge and a restaurant.
On arrival, guests are greeted by the hotel’s 24-hour, white-gloved door attendants, or, as elected by the guests, their Trump Attaché. Guest quarters feature 10ft, floor-to-ceiling windows with breathtaking views of Lake Michigan, the Chicago River and the city skyline. The living area and bedroom have modern custom-designed furniture including deluxe Stearns & Foster pillow-top mattresses and 500-threadcount linens from Bellino.
Fully-equipped kitchens will feature Italian wood cabinetry by Snaidero and stainless steel appliances including a microwave and a dishwasher and cook top by Miele. A Sub-Zero refrigerator in the room also serves as the mini-bar, offering snacks, water, juices and half-sized bottles of wine and spirits.
The limestone, five-fixture bathroom will have custom vanity units, separate stall shower, deep soaking tubs, in-mirror television portal and premium fixtures offering luxurious touches. Each room includes a flat-screen HDTV LCD television, DVD player, a state-of-the-art stereo system and iPod adapters.
Conference facilities
The Trump Tower hotel offers five spacious conference rooms and two executive boardrooms. Each room has floor-to-ceiling windows that showcase lake, river and city views. Two larger event spaces include a Grand Ballroom accommodating up to 299 guests.
The Skyline Room accommodates up to 175 people, provides a city skyline view of Chicago’s Gold Coast neighbourhood. Both event spaces offer separate private pre-function areas.
The Spa at Trump
The Spa at Trump is located on the 14th floor. In addition to 11 treatment rooms offering an array of massages, facials and relaxation programmes, amenities include Swiss and Vichy showers, hydrotherapy services, a manicure and pedicure suite and a host of signature local beauty treatments.
Kate Somerville signature treatments also highlight the guest experience.
The hotel’s Spa Butlers can assist with the array of treatment options and provide a personal service. The hotel has 53 spa guestrooms designed to enhance the spa experience. Located on the spa level, each accommodation is assigned a personal nutritionist along with an exclusive, in-room health menu.
The Trump Health Club, also on the 14th floor, has state-of-the-art cardiovascular and weight-training equipment by Technogym, experienced personal trainers, a yoga studio offering group and individual classes, and a 75ft x 24ft heated swimming pool overlooking the Chicago River.
Men’s and women’s locker rooms feature steam rooms, sauna facilities and private changing rooms.
Dining at Trump
The Trump Tower features a world-class, chef-driven signature restaurant designed by Chicago architectural firm Valerio Dewalt Train Associates Inc.
The restaurant is located on the 16th floor and features a 30ft curved window offering spectacular views of Chicago’s historic architectural landmarks, including the Wrigley Building clock tower as well as lake, river and city views. The Bar at Trump is the hotel’s main bar lounge, located on the mezzanine level.
