150 North Riverside Plaza is a highrise building in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, completed in 2017 and anchored by William Blair and Co. The building is 54 stories tall. The building occupies a two-acre site on the west bank of the Chicago River, whose size and location demanded an unusually small base for the building. The building features of leasable office space. Due to its unique superstructure design, it encompasses just 25 percent of the lot. In 2019, the building was given the Chicago Chapter of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

' highest award for design excellence. Among the building's tenants is the

Hyatt Corporation Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts, and vacat ...

, who moved their headquarters to the building upon its completion.

Background

As required by the city of Chicago for any new riverfront building, the developer was required to set aside part of the lot size for public park space; 75 percent of the project site is reserved for a public park, amphitheater, and riverwalk. The site is built with

air rights Air rights are the property interest in the "space" above the earth's surface. Generally speaking, owning, or renting, land or a building includes the right to use and build in the space above the land without interference by others. This legal ...

over tracks that carry

Metra Metra is the commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 242 stations on 11 rail lines. I ...

and

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

trains into

Chicago Union Station Chicago Union Station is an intercity and commuter rail terminal located in the Near West Side neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. The station is Amtrak's flagship station in the Midwest. While serving long-distance passenger trains, it is also ...

. The building has achieved LEED gold and WiredScore Platinum certification.

Design

The west side of the building features a lobby with a glass wall that is nearly tall at its peak. The architect's intention is to connect the interior and exterior visually. One signature aspect of 150 North Riverside building is the way the office floors cantilever out from the central core. The building is constructed with a smaller base for a height of 8 stories (104 ft), but the building cantilevers out to the full size of the office floor space. This gives it a

slenderness ratio In architecture, the slenderness ratio, or simply slenderness, is an aspect ratio, the quotient between the height and the width of a building. In structural engineering, slenderness is used to calculate the propensity of a column to buckle. It ...

of 1:20 at its base. Structural Engineer of Record: Magnusson Klemencic Associates.

150 Media Stream

Located in the lobby of 150 N Riverside, th
150 Media Stream
is a public media art installation divided into 89 LED blades. It stretches over 150 feet long and reaches 22 feet high, the largest structure of its kind in the city. Launched in 2017, the 150 Media Stream showcases commissioned work by emerging and renowned local and international media artists. The 150 Media Stream Arts Program also includes strategic partnerships with many major cultural institutions and university fine arts programs in the city and provides a forum to exhibit and promote their work in a dynamic environment of arts and business.

Reception

Variously referred to by popular names like "The Tuning Fork", "The Champagne Flute", or "The Guillotine", the building has become a highlight of architectural boat tours. Architecture critic Blair Kamin in his positive review calls it "a persuasive blend of the pragmatic and dramatic." The building is one of the most-awarded towers in Chicago, receiving national and international acclaim: * 2018 3rd place, Emporis Global Skyscraper Awards * 2017 Chicago Innovation Award * 2017 Commercial Development of the Year, Chicago Commercial Real Estate Awards (CCREA) * 2016 Office Development of the Year, NAIOP Chicago Chapter * 2017 Developer of the Year, Chicago Commercial Real Estate Awards (CCREA) * 2017 National Grand Award, American Council of Engineering Companies * 2018 National ‘Award of Excellence’, Best Tall Building Category, Council on Tall Buildings & Urban Habitats * 2018 Vision Award, Bold Design Solution, Urban Land Institute * 2018 Best Office Development & Architecture for Americas, International Property Awards * 2016 Jurors’ Favorite/Most Innovative, Structural Engineers Association of Illinois * 2017 Top Building Team (Platinum Award), Building Design & Construction magazine * 2017 Best Office/Retail/Mixed-Use Project, ENR Midwest * 2017 Best Overall Project, ENR Midwest * 2018 National Award, Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structural Steel (IDEAS2), American Institute of Steel Construction * 2018 Global Finalist, Best Office Building, MIPIM Global Real Estate Awards * 2018 Build Americas Award – National Project of the Year, American Contractors Association * 2017 Top 10 Global Skyscrapers, Dezeen Magazine * 2018 Best New Event Space, Crain's Chicago Business * 2017 Best New Office Tower, Chicago Magazine * 2017 Best Architecture of the Year, Chicago Tribune

External links

Chicago Architecture.info page

Official building websiteOfficial 150 Media Stream website

References