October 2, 2014 – Nik Wallenda has walked a high wire over Niagara Falls and the Grand Canyon but may face his biggest challenge in Chicago next month.

The professional daredevil will walk from the top of Marina City’s west tower to the top of Leo Burnett Building. He will do this in early November, at night, walking uphill.

The event will be broadcast live on Discovery Channel to 220 countries.

(Above) The Chicago River at about the time of year and time of day at which the November 2 stunt will be performed. Starting at about 7 p.m., Wallenda will walk from the top of Marina City at right (the tower closest to the river) to the top of Leo Burnett Building at far left. (Click on image to view larger version.)

The two buildings, directly across the Chicago River from each other, were on Wallenda’s short list within a month or two after he first approached the city in November 2013. He met directly with Michelle Boone, commissioner of the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, at the Chicago Cultural Center in the Loop.

Marina City, he remembered from visits to Chicago when his sister lived here.

“The architecture of the buildings speak for themselves,” he said on Wednesday. “When you think of that skyline, you think of those towers.”

More than an hour after sunset on November 2, the 35-year-old Wallenda will walk from the 61st floor observation deck of Marina City’s west tower directly south to the top of the 46-story Leo Burnett Building.

Marina City’s residential floors are shorter than Leo Burnett’s commercial floors. Wallenda will start at 543 feet above ground and finish 635 feet above ground at a distance of about 341 feet and an angle of 15 degrees.

He will then take an elevator back down to the street, cross Wacker Drive, return to the observation deck, and walk another wire to Marina City’s east tower. The entire stunt will take 30 to 45 minutes. (Right) Marina City’s east tower observation deck as seen from the west tower.

Said Wallenda about the towers, “I remember the first time I saw them many years ago, passing by and going, man, those buildings are made for a wire to be stretched between them. Just the way my mind works.”

His team has kept in touch with the city for nearly a year, speaking by telephone or email at least twice a month. As Wallenda was sent to other city departments, an early stop was the office of 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly, who asked for and received on March 31 a letter from the condominium board at Marina City, confirming their support.

Wallenda contacted and later visited Marina City, meeting first with its property manager and then its condo board. A non-disclosure agreement kept the project discrete.

“My job is to go in there, and say, look, this is why I want to do it, this is why I feel it’s good for Marina City. It’s going to be incredible exposure for those buildings. It will only help, in my opinion, the value of the property. It just ties those buildings to that skyline even more so.”

Ten months spent securing permits quietly

Wallenda has a $20 million liability insurance policy but says he has never had a claim.

“That’s one thing we take pride in, is coming in and not leaving a mess, actually restoring the building to the condition that it was if not better. Often, if we were anchoring to the roof, which we’re not going to need to do there, we’d repair the whole roof, not just the spot we use…so it actually improves the property.”

Wallenda insisted on not disclosing the stunt until he had permits and blessings. He says some people in his industry will promote an event first, trying to “strong-arm” a city into issuing permits.

“I always do all the stuff behind the scenes, low-key. Let’s get permission, let’s get both buildings, let’s get everything in place and then we can announce. It’s just how I prefer to work and do business.”

Wallenda will need from the city a film permit and a special event permit. They have not actually been issued, pending details about exactly how various city agencies will work together to handle the event, but city officials have said publicly that the event will happen.

Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events says it will soon finalize plans with both buildings involved in the stunt, as well as reach out to tenants of nearby buildings.

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