The Most Controversial Chicago Real Estate Stories of 2014

There are certain aspects of Chicago real estate that always seem to inspire healthy debate, by which we mean rambling, caps lock-riddled rants in the comments section. And more often than not, many of stories that really grind readers' gears have to do with neighborhood residential proposals, significant architectural projects and public transit. Curbed readers have strong opinions, and they're not afraid to share them, so here now, we present to you the ten most commented-upon Curbed posts of the past year.

10. Is This Wild Supertall the Next Jeanne Gang Tower for Lakeshore East?
When the tower was announced, there were very few details about the building itself, however all indicators surrounding the design pointed to Studio Gang Architects. Eventually, it was later confirmed that Chicago's own Studio Gang is indeed the outfit behind the new supertall's design.

9. How the Lucas Museum Design Will Change Chicago's Lakefront
There was a lot of hype and anticipation regarding George Lucas' museum plan for Chicago, however once the design from MAD Architects was released, a plethora of mixed reactions and feelings towards the design dominated the internet for a few days.

8. Landing The Lucas Museum Represents A Giant Leap Towards Chicago's 2020 Tourism Goals
When Lucas first announced that his museum was coming to Chicago, it was a very exciting moment for the city. Considering that the city has experienced a boom in tourism and hotel construction, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Arts only seemed to be one more major victory in boosting tourism and Chicago's profile on the national scene.

7. CTA Could Consume 259 Properties For Red Line Extension
The CTA has been very busy this year, announcing several major proposals for route extensions and alterations.

6. More Suburban Style Retail Planned For The Near North Side
Want to get people talking? Then propose some suburban style retail projects with surface parking lots in busy corridors.

5. Developer Weighs in on Proposed West Loop Apartment Project
Residents of the West Loop are an active bunch, and they certainly make their presence felt at community meetings and online. And this particular project certainly got people talking.

4. West Loop Residents Decidedly Split on "Monster" Tower
Again, West Loop public meetings are almost always guaranteed to get heated at some point. Some residents felt that this developer's proposal did not fit in with their neighborhood's character and launched many different insults at it.

3. Donald Trump's Big Dumb Sign Is Going Up Right Now
Before the mass hysteria over Donald Trump's sign consumed Chicago's media world, there was simply just a few pieces of the sign at the base of the building waiting to go up. No one knew exactly what it was going to look like once it was installed, but it was pretty clear from the very beginning that the sign was going to be big and dumb.

2. Chicago's Ambitious Supertall Spire May Actually Rise After All
The beginning of this year marked new hope for the Chicago Spire. Developer Garrett Kelleher was hell-bent on getting the job done and picked up a new partner to continue construction on the Spire. However, as the months progressed, that hope dissipated as the Spire was never really able to dig its way out of its massive debt obligations.

1. Is This New Apartment Building In North Center's Future?
There's perhaps nothing that can spin the wheels of Chicago residents than controversial new developments in neighborhoods. And this plan to build a dense apartment project in North Center really got folks chatting.

·Year in Curbed archives [Curbed Chicago]