Hines will begin construction this fall on a 40-story office tower in Chicago at One Dearborn Street. The 820,000 sq. ft. tower is expected to be finished during the fourth quarter of 2004.

The building will be anchored by law firm Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP, which will occupy 500,000 sq. ft. Sidley now occupies space in Bank One Plaza, across the street from the new office building. "Bank One Plaza has been a wonderful home for our firm for over 30 years and the Bank has been a terrific landlord. We are pleased that the One South Dearborn development will provide us the opportunity to remain and grow in the heart of downtown Chicago," says Thomas Cole, chairman of Sidley’s executive committee.

Richard Keating of DeStefano Keating Partners Ltd. will design the new office tower, and the design will feature architectural metal and glass that culminates in a crowned roof. A 16,000 sq. ft. tree-lined outdoor plaza will front Dearborn Street and serve as an entrance into the building’s 3-story lobby.

The new space is entering the Chicago market at a rocky time — for months, sources have warned of a supply glut in the Chicago office market. The Windy City’s metro office vacancy is hovering at 18.2%, reports Insignia/ESG, compared with the national average of 16%.

Hines also is nearing completion of another office tower in the West Loop — ABN Amro’s headquarters, which will include 1.2 million sq. ft. of office space. Hines also recently completed a 37-story office tower at 191 North Wacker.