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Through an abundance of photos taken by Forum contributor harryc, we've been following the construction of the Goettsch Partners-designed 150 North Riverside in Chicago for months, its prominent location permitting many unobstructed angles of the glass office tower. Since the new year, much of the attention has been on completing the exterior landscaping surrounding the tower's unique base, where a public park acts as a spiritual extension of the famed Riverwalk. Now officially complete and ready for tenants, the 54-storey skyscraper is perhaps the most significant Chicago office tower to come online in the last decade.
Shaped like a USB stick, the building's narrow footprint allows for most of the two-acre site to be used as a landscaped public park, which includes an amphitheatre and pedestrian walkways overlooking the Chicago River. Bounded by Randolph and Lake streets, the building negotiates a challenging site between seven active Amtrak lines to the west and the river to the east. By utilizing a core-supported structure, column-free floor plates expand above the base to form a more typical rectilinear rhythm, which is then consolidated at the top with a series of strategic setbacks that yield lucrative corner offices. Subtle vertical mullions installed on the east and west facades reflect the undulations of the river.
Besides multiple restaurants, fitness centre, and conference room, the building includes a digital art installation in the glass-walled lobby. Designed to showcase curated media artworks by a number of artists, 150 Media Stream activates the space with a 3,000-square-foot LED screen. The 105-foot-long, 22-foot-high structure is comprised of 89 LED blades and was commissioned by the project's developer, Riverside Investment & Development Company.
150 North Riverside is one of a trio of new skyscrapers planted where the river splits into a Y. River Point and the first tower of the Wolf Point complex have already dramatically changed the cityscape around this junction, where tour boats regularly take visitors on a narrated journey through Chicago's diverse architectural history.
Additional images and information can be found in the Database file linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion or share your photos? Check out the associated Forum thread or leave a comment at the bottom of this page.
