311SW S-S 2011 Final2 311 S Wacker Newsletter
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
a fresh new look 311 South Wacker is ready for summer Our building is greeting summer with some park improvements. It starts with new tables, chairs and umbrellas on the patio. They’ve got a contemporary look in sleek aluminum, with frosted tabletops in a fresh celery color. The building has boosted seating, too, by adding more chairs, so there’s more opportunity to relax during al fresco breaks. The building’s landscaping will be a riot of vibrant color for summer. In the park center and at the Wacker Drive entrance, you’ll find bright blue pots sporting “flower towers” of fuchsia, orange and lime petunias, angelonia and begonias. Mustard-colored pots at the Franklin Street entrances burst with these flowers, too. Impatiens in the same colors carpet flowerbeds along Jackson and Franklin, while the sloping planters are a mix of grow-low sumac, red twig dogwood and sea green juniper on the north end, where it’s shady, along with coreopsis, a happy flower providing a big splash of yellow. On the south end, Russian sage and knock-out roses com- plement the same mix with a sweep of silver, purple-blue, dark red and hot pink, especially as summer days deepen. And don’t forget to peer through the garden kaleido- scope, whose bowl will be full of flowers producing truly beautiful patterns of refracted color and light. decadence on wheels There’s another reason to love Wednesdays at 311 in addition to our live music in the park. From approximately 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., More Cupcakes sells their delicious confections from their customized Mercedes truck – a veritable bakery on wheels – parked at our Wacker Drive entrance. The Gold Coast bakery takes cupcakes to an exquisitely high level, and they’ve been a huge hit with tenants! They feature a special cupcake each week and use top-qual- ity ingredients such as Valrhona chocolate, Madagascar vanilla, lemon meringue and even brittles made from bacon, hazelnuts or pepitas. Check out the bakery’s website, www.morecupcakes.com, for more temptations. simple pleasures Enjoy your weekday free time Make the most of your workday breaks with the summertime events and Take in some sunshine and great people watching from our new patio amenities at 311 South Wacker. Be sure to stake out your spot on the lawn furniture or use one of the Adirondack chairs on the lawn. There are folding each Wednesday during our lunchtime Summer Concert Series. We have a chairs, too. Just present a building ID at the security desk to borrow one. And dynamic mix of bands and music this year. Concerts begin June 15 and go that’s where you can get a set of beanbags for a tossing match on the lawn. through August 17. Celebrate our country’s birthday with our special Independence Day concert on June 29 featuring Mr. Blotto, while you enjoy complimentary ice cream, a treat from the building. Sounds of Summer 2011 concert schedule This summer, enjoy great live music in our park on Wednesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Date Group Musical Style June 15 Brother John Band New Orleans Blues June 22 Matthew Skoller Band Blues June 29* Mr. Blotto Rock & Roll July 6 Waterhouse Reggae July 13 Groundspeed Bluegrass Band Bluegrass July 20 Goodfoot Acoustic Funk & Rock July 27 Michael Heaton Band Alternative Country Rock August 3 Magoo Acoustic Rock August 10 Angel d’Cuba Cuban Soul August 17 Joy Missile Alternative Rock *Special Independence Day concert. 311 donates furniture Wintergarden furniture goes to a good cause When 311 replaced its Wintergarden furniture last fall, the building donated spring/summer the old furniture – dozens of metal chairs and tables – to a resale shop run by the Joanne Zelten Foundation in Oak Park. They operate a home in Oak Park 2011 where cancer patients and their families can stay for free while seeking treat- VOLUME 12 ment from Chicago-area hospitals. It was named for Joanne Zelten, a nurse who worked at Rush Presbyterian University Medical Center for 30 years before succumbing to lung cancer at the age of 52. Proceeds from the foundation’s 311southwacker.com volunteer-run store, which is in Stone Park, help finance the home. It’s worth a trip to the 5,000 square-foot shop, which carries an ever-changing mix of cloth- ing, cookware, furniture and unusual things such as 19th century pianos and old wooden doors. Learn more at www.thejoannezeltenfoundation.com. news notes perfect parking many shades of green & Easy garage access during Eco-friendly programs prosper Wacker rebuild You’re My Type Our multi-faceted program of green initiatives identify and save native Illinois plants, and is getting even stronger. In 2010, giveaways for the raffle and at their tables, Roll up a sleeve and help someone in need dur- As Wacker Drive continues to receive a major ing our summer blood drive. To be held June 16 facelift this summer, 311 South Wacker makes Commonwealth Edison chose 311 South including gift cards to Pret a Manger and Wacker as one of just two buildings in Uncommon Grounds, wildflower seeds, a bas- in the 10th floor Conference Center, this parking convenient and easy with two-way access Lifesource-sponsored event provides valuable Chicago to be part of a ComEd pilot pro- ket of organic foods and eco totes full of off Franklin Street. We’ll update tenants via e-mail blood products to help a variety of people gram to monitor and conserve energy usage goodies. including cancer patients, critically ill newborns, and by posting maps in the garage as we receive at high levels. So far, we’ve identified ways to For Earth Hour on March 26, our build- burn survivors, accident victims and transplant updates on the construction schedule and modi- conserve 840,827 of the 1 million kilowatt ing turned off its iconic crown lights at 8:30 patients. fy entrance and egress patterns as a result. hours that comprise our goal, mostly through p.m., the appointed hour when hundreds of And thank you to everyone who donated blood modifications to the heating, cooling and ven- millions of people in more than 5,000 cities in during our 2010 drives. Donors provided tilation systems. 135 countries and territories around the world enough blood to help 67 patients in June and Another capital improvement will save did the same to support conservation. 71 patients in November. energy and money at 311 South Wacker. In dressed to impress March, we installed variable speed drives on Lovely Daffodils two of the building’s five main chillers. They regulate the rate at which the equipment The American Cancer Society works, slowing it down or speeding it up raised welcomed funds for its based on demand while they ensure our cool- research and support on ing system works more efficiently. Daffodil Day in March, when volunteers sold daffodils cut, Our Earth Day Fair took place April 22, in a vase, or with a Teddy with nearly a dozen vendors participating, bear and mini potted plants in including Eurest, Allied Waste, McFarlane the lobby. Douglass and Zip Car. They offered presenta- tions and tips for being green, such as how to Take Your Kids To Work Day The average age of building occupants dropped markedly April 28 when tenants hosted their children for Take Your Kids to Work Day. The security department offered a tour, special badges and goody bags with coloring books, team players crayons, stickers and lollipops for the occasion. Hearty welcomes and a heartfelt goodbye Evacuation Drills Outstanding staff make also is a licensed private investigator and a top-flight service and a seasoned law enforcement officer, SWAT The latest drills in April went very well, accord- beautiful building possible commander, hostage negotiator and firearms ing to director of security, Lou Caravelli. One here at 311 South Wacker. instructor. He comes to 311 from extensive thing he reminds all tenants: our building’s stair- wells are pressurized. When an alarm sounds, Fine art meets the fine art of rooting for home- So when fine people join experience in commercial real estate security fans turn on to pressurize the stairwells to keep town teams as our fountain sculpture sports the our staff – or leave after an as well and is chairman of the Commercial them smoke-free and all automatic door locks latest in athletic haute couture! Proudly wear- exceptional tenure – we Real Estate Council of ASIS International, the unlock to allow access. Good things to know! ing a Blackhawks jersey and then a Bulls jersey make sure to applaud. top organization for security professionals. “I this spring, we salute our winning teams during After a distin- enjoy the challenge of getting things in order V is for Valentine the playoffs. guished 19 years working in a wide – and we mean and making sure the tenants are safe,” he diverse – range of positions in the building, we said. “They can call me any time there is a offer a fond farewell to Tom Hales, assistant real security issue.” estate manager. Tom has helped tenants with When Kelly Davies, many requests and projects over the years, often who became our new drawing on his long-term experience with the real estate services assis- holiday donations building. He got his start at 16 when he worked at tant in April, first saw 311 a McDonald’s restaurant that used to occupy South Wacker, she said, Our tenants are so generous during the win- ground-floor retail space. Then the building itself “I want to work in that ter holidays.