Irish Immigrant Makes Good, Leaves America, Comes Back, Builds Very Big Building
Irish developer, Garrett Kelleher, moved to the Midwest when he finished college, and after ten years in the construction industry returned to Ireland at the height of that Tiger in 1996. His company, Shelbourne Development, is based in Dublin, and has been reported as acquiring the lakefront site in Chicago of the proposed twisting tower designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava:
The 124-story tower, approved by Chicago’s planning commission in March, is to reach about 1,570 feet to the roof, and to about 2,000 feet to the top of its spire, surpassing the CN Tower in Toronto as the tallest building on the continent
Formerly known as the Fordham Spire, the hotel and condominium tower was first proposed a year ago by the Chicago developer Christopher Carley. Kelleher plans to have the building completed in 2010.
The James Joyce Bridge in Dublin was designed by Calatrava, and I kind of like it, especially because too many bridges over the Liffey are nondescript. Like Gehry, and Gaudi before him, Calatrava is big on curves. In this great article I read some months back, his stunning Palace of Arts and Sciences in Valencia is described as something Darth Vader might wear to a nightclub.
See Also:
• Irish Hares and Graces
• Unique Irish Exhibition
• Celtic Fringe wins KC Parade Grand Prize
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