Thursday, March 08, 2007

Kelleher to talk about Calatrava Spire on Monday - funding details emerge

In another addition to the March calendar, Garrett Kelleher, Executive Chairman of Shelbourne Development will be speaking at a Chicago Architecture Foundation program at 5:30 P.M. this coming Monday, March 12, about the Chicago Spire, the 2,000-foot-high tower, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava. For some reason, Kelleher shares billing with his lawyer, Tom Murphy, Shelbourne's General Counsel. The cost for the program is $10,00 - free for CAF members, and $5.00 for students with a valid ID. RSVP at 312/922.3432 x224.

Details are also emerging on how Kelleher will be funding the project. A January 28th article in the Irish Independent by Kevin Murphy (free subscription required) reports of the 124-story-high project, whose cost the Independent puts at €949 million, that "Anglo Irish Bank is funding it and Kelleher will own 100 per cent of the equity." While at a January community meeting Kelleher said, “The plan is to order cassions within weeks,” the Independent mentions a summer target for groundbreaking. The story describes the 46-year old Kelleher as a "shy" father of six and a devout Catholic. and tells of how he first visited the U.S. on a tennis scholarship, returning to Chicago in 1984 to make a living painting and renovating apartments as a launching pad into real estate development. Recent local reports say Kelleher has now re-established residence in Chicago.

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