List of Tallest Buildings in Chicago

List Of Tallest Buildings In Chicago

Chicago, the third-largest city in the United States, is home to 1,209 completed high-rises, 73 of which stand taller than 550 feet (168 m). The tallest building in the city is the 108–story Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), which rises 1,451 feet (442 m) in the Chicago Loop and was completed in 1974. The Willis Tower was the tallest building in the world from its completion until 1998, when it was overtaken by the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; it remains the tallest building in the United States. The second-, third- and fourth-tallest buildings in Chicago are the Trump International Hotel & Tower, the Aon Center and the John Hancock Center, respectively. Of the ten tallest buildings in the United States, four are located in Chicago. As of July 2012, the entire city has 108 buildings that rise at least 500 feet (152 m) in height, second in the United States only to New York. Based on the average height of the ten tallest completed buildings, however, Chicago has the tallest skyline in the nation and the third-tallest in the world.

Chicago is generally considered to be the birthplace of the skyscraper; the Home Insurance Building, completed in the city in 1885, is often regarded as the first steel-framed skyscraper in the world. The building was originally constructed with a height of 138 feet (42 m) and 10 stories, and was later expanded to a height of 180 feet (55 m) and 12 stories before being demolished in 1931. Historically, Chicago has played a prominent role in the development of the skyscraper. The Masonic Temple Building was the tallest building in the world using the unconventional definition that excludes the New York World Building's ornamental lantern. Additionally, three past buildings have been considered the tallest building in the United States, including the Chicago Board of Trade Building, which in both of its incarnations held the title of Chicago's tallest building. Chicago went through a very early high-rise construction boom that lasted from the early 1920s to the mid-1930s, during which time 11 of the city's 91 tallest buildings were constructed. The city then went through an even larger building boom that has lasted from the early 1960s to the present. The high-rises that have been constructed are mostly concentrated in the Loop and along the Magnificent Mile in Chicago's Near North Side community area.

As of July 2012, there is only one building under construction in Chicago that expected to rise at least 500 feet (152 m) in height. Although throughout the 2000s, several new skyscrapers were constructed in the city, including the Trump International Hotel & Tower. The 2,000-foot (610 m) Chicago Spire, would have become the new tallest building in the city and the nation if completed. Overall, as of July 2012, there were 101 high-rise buildings under construction or proposed for construction in Chicago.