150 North Riverside

Team

Architect

Goettsch Partners

Contractor

Clark Construction

Stats

PROJECT TYPE

Office

COMPLETION

2017

PROJECT SIZE

1.25 million ft²

MKA ROLE

Structural Engineer

Chicago, IL

150 North Riverside

Built to accommodate unique site challenges such as adjacent Amtrak rail lines and the Chicago River, this 54-story, Class A office tower features an innovative and tapered superstructure design with a narrow footprint equal to 30% of the tower’s floor area.

Unlocking Site Value

Constrained by the Chicago River, two busy viaducts, and seven active railroad lines servicing one of the busiest Amtrak stations in the nation, the 150 North Riverside site—a prime riverfront parcel measuring just over two-thirds of an acre—appeared virtually impossible to develop to its full potential. MKA’s design allows the 750-foot-tall office tower to dramatically taper at its base to accommodate the river and existing infrastructure.

This innovative solution features a cantilevered steel frame extending from a central concrete elevator core, which single-handedly supports all of the building’s gravity and wind loads. At the eighth floor, steel columns slope inwards, funneling tower column loads to the central core and 16 underlying, 10-foot-diameter caissons that extend and socket into solid bedrock 110 feet below.

The result is an eye-catching, angular, blade-thin design that reduces the building’s footprint by 70% so as not to interfere with the river, viaducts, and railroad lines—and even accommodates a public riverwalk.

150 North Riverside viewed from the Chicago River.
150 North Riverside next to the Chicago River.
A low angle view of 150 North Riverside.
Plaza planting at 150 North Riverside.
Looking up and through the glass wall in the lobby of 150 North Riverside.
Glass wall in the lobby of 150 North Riverside.
150 North Riverside at twilight.
150 North Riverside's lobby created by a transparent curtain of glass.
150 North Riverside's lower-level plaza adjacent to the Chicago River

Awards

2016 Jurors' Favorite/Most Innovative Structure, Excellence in Structural Engineering - Structural Engineers Association of Illinois

2016 Office Development of the Year - NAIOP - Chicago Chapter

2017 Best Architecture of the Year - Chicago Tribune

2017 Best New Office Tower - Chicago magazine

2017 Building Team, Platinum Award - Building Design+Construction

2017 Chicago Innovation Award - Chicago Innovation

2017 Commercial Development of the Year - Chicago Commercial Real Estate

2017 ENR Midwest Office/Retail/Mixed-use, Best Project - Engineering News-Record - Midwest

2017 ENR Midwest Project of the Year - Engineering News-Record - Midwest

2017 Emporis Skyscraper Award, Third Place - Emporis

2017 Merit Award for New Construction Over $55 Million, Finalist - Chicago Building Congress

2017 Top 10 Skyscrapers - Dezeen magazine

2018 Best Tall Building, Finalist - Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat

2018 Grand Award - Engineering Excellence Award - American Council of Engineering Companies

2018 Innovative Design in Engineering & Architecture with Structural Steel, National Award (IDEAS2) - American Institute of Steel Construction

2018 Platinum Award, Structural Systems - Engineering Excellence Award - American Council of Engineering Companies - Washington Chapter

2018 Urban Habitat - Single Site Scale, Winner - Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat

2018 Vision Award, Project - Urban Land Institute - Chicago Chapter

2019 Excellence in Concrete Construction in the High-Rise Category - American Concrete Institute - Illinois Chapter

2019 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award - American Society of Civil Engineers

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