Like the land-dwelling reptile it was named after, Tortoise Club was taking its time in 2012 transforming a completely empty, blank canvas of a retail space at Marina City into “a classic Chicago city club.”

The space had been a Crunch fitness facility from 1999 to 2008 and then sat empty for more than three years.

Keene Addington, former CEO of Flat Top Grill, had been working on plans for his new restaurant for more than a year. An early floor plan had been drawn on August 5, 2011.

The décor would be rich with Chicago paintings, sketches, and artifacts displayed throughout the space, including vintage mahogany from the original Pump Room, a restaurant formerly located in the nearby Gold Coast neighborhood.

The menu was described as a “contemporary take on American classic cuisine” with “artisan cocktails” and “fine American west coast and French wines.” Menu items would include Dover sole and roasted pheasant pie.

Addington (left) signed a lease at Marina City and applied for a liquor license in November 2011. The restaurant would consume little more than half of the street-level space on the east side of the building in which Hotel Sax was located, leaving the north end of the space still available for leasing.

In February 2012, an executive chef was hired. Edward Gray McNally – his friends called him “Gray” – was from Chicago and had worked at three tony, local restaurants, including Spiaggia on Michigan Avenue and the old Elysian Hotel, now a Waldorf Astoria.

His menus would include a variety of high-end, “fresh American fare,” such as Lobster Thermidor. The lunch menu would offer a cheeseburger and a club sandwich. The house specialty cocktail would be the “Tipsy Tortoise.”

“We’re not looking to reinvent the wheel,” said McNally (right), “but by using classic, impeccable cooking techniques on the freshest ingredients from local producers and farmers, we’re striving to ensure everything on the menu is executed at the highest standard.”

Work started on Tortoise Club in June 2012. According to two building permits issued by the City of Chicago for the space, construction and interior alterations would cost $575,000. The designer of the restaurant was a Chicago firm, Northworks Architects.

(Left) Work on June 22, 2012, just off State Street in preparation for a new restaurant at Marina City. Workers for the commercial property manager are seen here waterproofing an area in front of what will be the main entrance to Tortoise Club. The holes in the concrete at right had always been there, according to Tortoise Club owner Keene Addington, most likely to provide air to a service road below. (Click on image to view larger version.)

Finishing touches would include an antique ballot box and 300 leather-bound books from Newberry Library, a privately-owned library on the Near North Side. Ten large oil caricatures of famous, colorful Chicagoans from 1910 to 1940, such as Streeterville icon George Wellington “Cap” Streeter, were painted for the main dining room by Chicago artist Chuck Senties.

One of the first chores was to divide the old Crunch space in half. That left 5,562 square feet for a piano bar, main dining room, private dining area, and a kitchen in the northwest corner.

(Left) The space at right enclosed by glass is where Marina City’s swimming pool was once located. It would later be part of Tortoise Club, in an area used by restaurant employees.

(Right) Looking west toward a hallway at Tortoise Club that leads to the kitchen and restrooms.

The interior was completed on November 6, 2012, and Tortoise Club would officially open on November 19, 2012. But first, on November 12, 2012, Tortoise Club hosted a private event for the condominium association at Marina City. Marina Towers Condominium Association was celebrating the 50th anniversary of the complex as a residence.

More than 900 people lived at Marina City but only about 200 people who responded promptly to an invitation from MTCA attended the event. Renters at Marina City were not invited, though Marina City had been a 100 percent rental property for its first 15 years. The 200 who did attend were treated to hors d’oeuvres, desserts, champagne, and live music.

(Left) A five-foot-tall ice sculpture carved by Armand “Hawk” Ramirez, of Nadeau’s Ice Sculptures in Forest Park, in the shape of Marina City’s towers. Ramirez used a photograph of Marina City as a guide. Each tower was 20 inches in diameter and weighed 600 pounds.

Tortoise Club: Before & After (Above) At left, only the purple canopy remained on November 28, 2011, of a Crunch fitness center that was at Marina City from 1999 to 2008. When former Flat Top Grill CEO Keene Addington signed a lease that month, the space on the east side of Hotel Sax had been vacant for more than three years. At right, the same area on May 21, 2013. Main entrance in 2011 (above) and 2013 (below). The metal-and-glass entry is gone, replaced with a vestibule lined with vintage mahogany from the Pump Room restaurant in the nearby Gold Coast neighborhood. Not even the original windows remain. They were knocked out and the restaurant extended nine feet toward State Street. This created new space for the vestibule and a bar/lounge. The bar at the front of the restaurant is seen in the lower image from an area that would be just in front of the double doors in the upper image.

(Above) Looking from the southeast corner to the northwest corner in 2011 (upper) and 2013 (lower). (Below) Looking east from near the west edge of the property. With its red lacquered walls, the private dining area called “the parlor” seats 20-40 people and includes a working gas fireplace and real books from Newberry Library.