Chicago’s riverfront soon will be graced by a lithe, LEED Gold, 51-story office tower that upends expectations by tapering inward from the eighth floor down. Goettsch Partners proposed the daring design in the summer of 2013 with a 2016 completion date for the 1.1 million-square-foot 150 North Riverside, which will add another distinctive entry to the skyline.
Much more than a gimmick, the decreased footprint takes up only a third of the parcel’s space, allowing the city’s riverwalk to remain open and the surrounding railroad tracks to run undisturbed. An amphitheater to the east and cultivated space to the west combine with pathways to increase foot traffic and humanize the site.
A series of rippling, six- to sixteen-inch aluminum fins rise with the building, echoing the Chicago River.
Riverfront park space was increased by reducing parking spaces to a mere 76, all of which are sited below the park.
