Pickard Chilton Pen New Chicago Tower
Published on 2007-05-28
www.skyscrapernews.com
Prominently placed on the convergence of the north and south Chicago rivers, 200 North Riverview Plaza will be the second large scale development in Chicago planned by developer, Hines, and designed by architects, Pickard Chilton who have worked regularly for them in the past.
The 1.2 million square foot project will comprise of 100,000 square metres of office and restaurant spaces and also retail facilities but perhaps the most welcome feature is the 1.5 acre public plaza designed to encourage more non - vehicular activity along the waterfront.
With its idiosyncratic sculptural style in the form of meisian boxes and sweeping curves the 50 floor tower complex promises to enhance this important riverside location. Enjoying a vast amount of sun throughout the day the plaza will flow down to the waterfront through a succession of landscaped terraces, beautiful water features, arcing pathways and seating areas placed throughout.
Another somewhat unusual feature of the scheme is the public boat-house which will be run by the Park District of the City of Chicago. Drawing inspiration from competition oar blades this sleek, streamlined attraction will house kayaks, canoes and crew boats and will have facilities for boat storage, locker rooms, staff offices and a covered, elevated observation terrace.
As for the tower itself, its state of the art design will encourage major international companies to make it their main headquarters with flexible office floors. Its spectacular lobby features a sixty five foot high piece of glass sculpture that acts as a proscenium arch giving views of the plaza, river and the city a magnificent frame.
Above the lobby there will be a 5,000 square metre conference centre with a crescent shaped terrace overlooking the river, a good place to relax between high stress negotiations and big money decisions.
600 feet / 183 metres up, the tower a roof terrace will offer breath-taking views of the river, city and Lake Michigan lying on the horizon. It's this that will form the individually shaped crown that defines the look of 200 North Riverview Plaza and breaks from the norm of blocky skyscrapers that Chicago is so used to.
On the environmental front, the towers design has received pre-certification LEED silver level by the US Green Building Council as the design will not only maximize interior day lighting but will also minimize solar heat gain thanks to the sophisticated glass curtain walling employed in the plans and a raft of other measures.
Coming in at an estimated 200 metres in height, the building won't be the tallest in Chicago by a long way, but if it ends up at the standards the architect and developer are aiming for it'll certainly be one of the slickest.
Prev
.¡Saludos!
Linear Mode
