Home to the first modern skyscraper, Chicago has always rivaled New York as THE city for skyscrapers. Oh, sure, New York has the Empire State, the Chrysler Building (THAT relic? I hear you saying), and, by 2011, Freedom Tower, but Chicago - which has one of the tallest skylines in the U.S. - also lays claim to the Aon Center, the John Hancock Center, and the mighty Sears Tower: the one that finally put New York out of first place. However, the year 2010 will see another monumental silhouette added to Chicago's imposing skyline: the 2,000 foot high Chicago Spire. While the Spire will be the tallest building in North America, it will NOT be the tallest in the world; Dubai's Burj Dubai will outstrip it by up to 1,000 feet. However, The Spire claims a distinction that has Chicago Realtors bubbling with excitement: in 2010 Chicago will be home to the tallest all residential building in the world.

Hampered for so long by height restriction laws, it wasn't until 1960 - 3 decades AFTER the construction of the Empire State Building- that Chicago was able to really compete with New York in the building of skyscrapers. The city did make up for lost time with buildings like the Sears Tower and the John Hancock Center, and seems now to be in the midst of another skyscraper building boom. Since the beginning of the millennium, dozens of 50 story (and over) buildings have gone up in Chicago, and construction is underway on a number of "supertalls" (buildings over 1,000 feet). Some of these include the Waterview Tower (1,047 feet) Trump International Hotel and Tower (1,362 feet), and finally, the magnificent Chicago Spire at 2,000 feet.

Without a doubt, the most striking feature of the Chicago Spire - even more so than its immense height - is its spectacular 'twisted metal' or corkscrew-like design. A computer rendering of the Spire depicts it as a massive platinum drill bit twisting up and out of the earth. Renderings also show that although the Spire will dominate the Chicago skyline it will certainly complement it beautifully. For many, the most exciting feature of the Spire will be the chance to own part of it. In fact, you can do more than own part of it, you can LIVE in it - in addition to a magnificent 4 story-high lobby and a residents-only observation deck that affords vistas of four states (you may see Iowa on a clear day, that's five!) the Spire will comprise 1,200 very exclusive condos, in a variety of styles and tastes. They'll be ready in 2010, but don't wait until then if you're interested - they are sure to sell at record speed, the ones on the higher floors going, of course, for TOP dollar.

Joe Pinto is one of the top-producing agents in the Chicago real estate industry. With over 10 years of experience, Joe brings professionalism and hard work to bear in the sale and purchase of Chicago homes, and Chicago condos. For more information on the exciting Chicago real estate market, contact Joe or visit online at www.chicagohomeestates.com