Spire pay dispute spurs doubt
Calatrava among consultants filing millions in liens against developer
By Mary Ellen Podmolik and Blair Kamin | Chicago Tribune reporters
October 18, 2008
The Chicago Spire's penthouse may be sold but there is growing doubt whether the project will rise out of the hole that's been created at 400 N. Lake Shore Drive.
Consultants on the project are starting to line up seeking payment for their work on the development, designed to become the tallest skyscraper in the United States and one of the tallest in the world. The most well-known of the consultants, architect Santiago Calatrava, filed a lien on Oct. 8 through his Lente Festina Ltd., seeking more than $11.3 million in payment from Spire developer Shelbourne Development Group Inc.
Separately, Chicago-based architectural design firm Perkins+Will Inc. filed a lien against Shelbourne for almost $4.85 million in payment. The two liens were filed with the Cook County recorder of deeds.
The liens suggest the project's financing, as well as its feasibility, is shaky.
Who wuda thunk it??
