A proposed condominium and hotel tower that would be the tallest building in North America won approval from the Chicago City Council today, clearing the way for construction to start later this year.

The council approved a measure that raises the height limit on structures at the site to accommodate the 2,000-foot tower. The building, named the Fordham Spire, would top Chicago's Sears Tower and the planned Freedom Tower in New York as the tallest in North America....

The $550 million, 124-story building to be developed by the Fordham Co. will have about 300 condominiums, 250,000 square feet of hotel space, retail stores and restaurants. It will overlook the Chicago River where it meets Lake Michigan.

Fordham has said construction will begin around the end of the year, and the building should be completed by 2010.