Roosevelt University Wabash Building

Exterior daylight view looking up at the angular facade of the Roosevelt University Wabash Building wedged between a historical building to the right, a modern skyscraper to the left, and an ornate streetlamp below

Team

Architect

VOA Associates Incorporated

Contractor

Power Construction Company

Stats

PROJECT TYPE

Mixed-Use

COMPLETION

2012

PROJECT SIZE

38,854 ft²

MKA ROLE

Structural Engineer

Chicago, IL

Roosevelt University Wabash Building

A mixed-use “vertical university” located in the city’s historic Lakefront Protection District, this 32-story tower includes classrooms, laboratories, offices, dormitories, and various student amenities and services. MKA’s structural design included a pair of two-story-deep steel outriggers between Levels 13 and 15 to stiffen the slender concrete core and minimize building accelerations.  The design also preserved and incorporated the historic façade of a demolished building on-site and minimized the impact on the adjacent Auditorium Theatre, a Chicago Landmark circa 1880, by structurally “hanging” the southernmost tower bay and eliminating the need for foundations adjacent to the theater.
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building
Roosevelt University Wabash Building

Awards

2013 American Architecture Award - Chicago Athenaeum and the European Centre for Architecture Art Design

2013 Vision Award - Urban Land Institute, Chicago Chapter

Finalist, 2013 Global Awards for Excellence - Urban Land Institute

Gold Award, 2013 Building Team - Building Design+Construction

Winner, Best Project - $50 to $150 million, 2013 Excellence in Structural Engineering - Structural Engineers Association of Illinois

Back to top