The Pittsfield Building, is a 38-story
skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...
located at 55 E. Washington Street in the
Loop
Loop or LOOP may refer to:
Brands and enterprises
* Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live
* Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets
* Loop Mobile, an ...
community area of
Chicago,
Illinois, United States, that was the city's tallest building at the time of its completion.
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation by the Mayor and the City Council of Chicago for historic sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, archite ...
on November 6, 2002.[
]
History
The property was developed by heirs of Marshall Field, and is named after Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where Marshall Field obtained his first job.Field Museum of Natural History
The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...
in honor of the museum's 50th anniversary in 1944. The museum held the property until September 1960 when the museum sold it.[
]
Architecture
Designed by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White
Graham, Anderson, Probst & White (GAP&W) was a Chicago architectural firm that was founded in 1912 as Graham, Burnham & Co. This firm was the successor to D. H. Burnham & Co. through Daniel Burnham's surviving partner, Ernest R. Graham, and Burn ...
, the structure combines both art deco and Gothic detailing, while complying with a 1923 zoning ordinance which mandated skyscrapers setbacks.[ The interior of the building features a five-story atrium, lined by balconies and shops, that is detailed with glowing marbles, gleaming brass and Spanish Gothic style carvings.][
]
Today
Alter Group, a Skokie, Illinois-based real estate developer has acquired the thirteenth through twenty-first floors of the building with plans for dormitory conversion at a cost of $23 million (about $173 per square foot). It will finance the $45-million renovation costs with a $36-million loan from First bank and has entered lease agreements with Roosevelt University and Robert Morris University for 350 of the planned 450 beds. Morgan Reed Group who acquired the entire building for $15 million in 2000 continues to own the remaining portions of the building. The building is used mostly by doctors, dentists and jewelers and students will have a separate entry under the plans.
The building now has two separate short term rental operations, one known as Chicago Downtown Suites or Pangea Suites, the other as Pittsfield Suites. Both are offered on travel websites such as Expedia["https://www.expedia.ca/Chicago-Hotels-Downtown-Suites.h19698510.Hotel-Information] and Travelocity. The student dormitory (Fornelli Hall) that formerly occupied the 13th to 21st floors no longer operates at this address.
Position in Chicago's skyline
See also
* Chicago architecture
*Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation by the Mayor and the City Council of Chicago for historic sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, archite ...
* List of tallest buildings in Chicago
Notes
{{Chicago Landmark skyscrapers
Office buildings completed in 1927
Art Deco skyscrapers
Gothic Revival skyscrapers
Skyscraper office buildings in Chicago
Art Deco architecture in Illinois
Chicago school architecture in Illinois
Chicago Landmarks
1927 establishments in Illinois