Mayor Richard M. Daley today introduced a redevelopment agreement into the Chicago City Council that would restore the now vacant Blackstone Hotel at 636 S. Michigan Ave. to its past glory.

Under the plan, the historical features of the 22-story Blackstone Hotel would be preserved and enhanced. The hotel entrance would replicate the historic entrance of the property with the retail entrance retaining the marble-lined corridor between Michigan Ave. and the main lobby.

The famed Crystal Ballroom would remain as the hotel's premier ballroom. An additional 12,000 square feet of meeting space would be created. The hotel's popular barbershop at the Art Hall also would be restored. The 327 luxury guestrooms would be completely rebuilt to include updated amenities.

The restoration also would include several environmentally friendly elements to achieve LEED certification, which would make the Blackstone the first LEED certified hotel in Chicago.

Built in 1908 by the Drake Brothers, the Blackstone was, for decades, considered Chicago's premier luxury hotel. The Blackstone Hotel has the distinction of being the only hotel to have received a top rating in the Chicago Historic Resources Survey. 

Left vacant since 1999, the hotel began to deteriorate with much of the terra cotta on its unique Beaux-Arts Classicism facade being temporally removed for much needed repairs. 

The developer, Sage Hospitality Resources LLC, based in Denver, Colorado, expects the project to cost a total of $112.2 million. The City of Chicago would provide a maximum of $18 million in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) assistance.