A 1920s neo-classical high-rise on Clark Street will be bought by developer John Murphy, Crain's reports. Murphy has been on a buying spree, scooping up historic downtown office buildings and converting them to hotels and apartments, but in this case he's happy to keep the building as office spaces. Once known as the Bankers Building, the Clark-Adams building at 105 West Adams is an imposing, 41 story neo-classical building designed by the Burnham Brothers and featuring an art-deco style throne shape similar to the Lyric Opera building and the Board of Trade building. Sadly, the building has fallen into disrepair as the all-brick exterior has apparently proven too costly for its owners to maintain, and at present is a bit of an eyesore. If Murphy can restore the building to its original beauty and upgrade the offices to modern tastes, the building could become an attractive destination given its huge floor plates and prime views of Mies van der Rohe's Federal Plaza.
Just across the street, the Chicago Public Schools building was also just purchased by a different developer with similar plans for restoration and upgrades. With some street-level retail options and a good power-washing, these two projects could do a lot to brighten up a visually depressed area of the Loop.
·Serial converter has no such plans for latest Loop office tower buy [Crain's Chicago Business]
·Previous Loop coverage [Curbed Chicago]
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