Chicago skyscraper jokingly referred to by locals as the ‘Vagina Building’ sells for just half the $121M it fetched in 2017
- Chicago’s ‘Vagina Building’ sold for just half its previous price
- The diamond-shaped office building is known by locals for its resemblance to female genitalia
- It was sold to real estate company R2 for $60 million, after last costing $121 million in 2017
A Chicago office tower known to locals as the “Vagina Building” has sold for just half of the $121 million it fetched when it last sold in 2017.
The 41-story building was purchased by R2, a private equity real estate firm, for $60 million — $10 million less than the expected price.
The Smurfit-Stone Building, located at 150 N. Michigan Avenue in Chicago’s Millennium Park, is jokingly called the “Vagina Building” because of its unique architectural design.
The diamond-shaped building is split down the middle and has a crack at the top.
Locals affectionately called it the vagina building, because it’s one of the few buildings in the skyscraper-studded Windy City that doesn’t look phallic.
A Chicago office tower known to locals as the ‘Vagina Building’ has sold for just half its previous price of $121 million
The 41-story building was purchased by R2, a private equity real estate firm, for $60 million – $10 million less than the expected price, as well as half the previous cost.
Sheldon Schlegman of A. Epstein and Sons designed the 600-foot skyscraper and has not spoken out about rumors that the building was built as a feminist icon
Sheldon Schlegman of A. Epstein and Sons designed the 178-meter-high skyscraper and has not spoken out about rumors that the building was built as a feminist icon.
Despite reports that the building was designed as a feminine counterbalance to the masculine power of most skyscrapers, this myth is not confirmed.
It was reported that R2 closed a deal to purchase the 61,477-square-foot tower last June.
In 2017, the building was sold for $121 million in a deal with CBRE Investment Management.
The sale is reportedly the first major office tower sale of more than $50 million in Chicago since July 2022.
Since the start of the pandemic, demand for office space has fallen dramatically as companies have continued to extend work-from-home policies to their employees.
As employers require their employees to return to the office to work, it is expected that corporate workplaces will be in demand again.
But Chicago has also developed a bad reputation for crime in recent years, with the city’s downtown losing several flagship stores after repeated robberies.
The Smurfit-Stone Building, located at 150 N. Michigan Avenue in Chicago’s Millennium Park, is jokingly called the “Vagina Building” because of its unique architectural design
The diamond-shaped building is split down the middle and has a crack at the top. When illuminated at night, the outline resembles female genitalia
It is an urban myth among Chicago residents that the city’s skyline is phallic shaped, with the Diamond Building being the only skyscraper that is not.
R2 CEO Matt Garrison described the skyscraper in an email as “an instantly recognizable Chicago icon” with “bold architecture” CoStar News.
Garrison said the tower, built in 1984, is in excellent condition, but the company wants to modernize some amenities to meet tenant demands.
The CEO predicts that by offering cheaper purchase prices, the company can secure tenants and add new ones as other landlords struggle to improve their properties.
“Sentiment in the office capital markets is at an all-time low,” Garrison said. “But people forget the size and depth of Chicago’s 200 million square foot office market. In Chicago alone, leases are larger than in most urban markets in the country.”