MEMBERS’ VOICE
Open Plan Invites People, Sunlight, and Riverside Cityscapes into AIA Chicago’s New Offices

by Cynthia Young
Contributing Editor

Summary: Prompted by a desire that chapter resources be more accessible for their members and the public, AIA Chicago recently moved from the 10th floor of the Merchandise Mart, where they operated in traditional offices beside the building’s interior design tenants. Now ensconced on the second floor of the historic Jeweler’s Building in the Loop along the famed Chicago River, AIA Chicago works alongside architecture firms like Murphy/Jahn Architects, SmithGroup, and Bailey Edward Design. The new 4,000-square-foot office features an open floor plan that cultivates flexibility and congeniality while framing views of the legendary skyscrapers beyond.

The winning design, the result of a national competition of young designers planned by the chapter’s Young Architects Forum, created a continuous, flexible space that could be changed to accommodate various meeting types and group sizes, and that formed open, inviting office spaces. Half the L-shaped space is open offices containing workstations, and the other half is meeting space that includes a reception area, conference room, library/lounge, and central café. These front-of-the-house spaces can be opened up to form one large, inviting space for social events. Members are invited to use the office, with its laptop and WiFi connections, between appointments downtown.

Zurich Esposito
Executive vice president, AIA Chicago
“I love it—the space is bright, tons of natural light come in through these wonderful, tall Chicago windows. There is much more open space than we had before. Our other offices served the chapter well for 15 years, yet now we’re on a really easily accessible second floor location. It makes it much easier for people to come in to programs, to meet with clients, to buy documents, and to be able to come and go quickly. It makes our members' lives easier.”

Esposito also found that the open space seems to foster even more collaboration among the staff. “I notice that the staff is interacting much more than they did before, both on a professional level and a social level. It is a friendlier atmosphere.”

Esposito’s new office is completely surrounded by glass partitions, and he’s found he likes being in the midst of things. “I’m able to see who is dropping by. It was easy in our old space for someone to come in for a document and leave without me knowing they were even in the office. This way it is more efficient.”

“And the views are phenomenal,” adds Esposito. “It’s like a class in Chicago Architecture History 101 right outside our windows. Looking over the river, the Wrigley Building and the Tribune Tower are just outside and we can watch the Trump Tower being constructed. That’s the subject of a lot of debate. We are really happy here. I love coming to work every day.”

Keith H. Palmer, AIA
Vice president, Murphy/Jahn
“I think it was very well done,” says Palmer, whose architecture firm is one floor up from the AIA Chicago office. “It is very utilitarian, pleasant, and a very open, greeting space. From my point of view it works very well.”

“It’s a functional space,” he continues. “The designer had a good idea of recognizing that the open space all brings people together. It revolves around the meet-and-greet reception area and conference room area. They can expand out into that space, and can all spread out, and the space becomes very functional. The kitchen is right there as well, and everything revolves around the kitchen, just like you do at your home. You can grab a soft drink and go into the conference area. I was there at a continuing education seminar at lunch yesterday, and I thank them for their convenient location, in our building.”

Peter Schlossman, AIA
Past president, AIA Chicago, and senior associate principal, Loebl Schlossman & Hackl
“With the views and the expansiveness of the space, it is inspirational,” notes Peter Schlossman, former president of AIA Chicago, who was involved with the new design from the start. “Along the river, you can see the whole gamut of buildings that represent the different eras of Chicago architecture. It is a lesson in Chicago architectural design. It is a fabulous space. When you walk into this space, it is very impressive. We picked the right building, we picked the right spot, everything has come together really well.”

“We were trying to create a space that reflects what AIA Chicago wants to be, what architects do, and that reflects our values,” continues Schlossman. ”Our previous office was behind closed doors. We wanted to create an area where members would feel comfortable coming in, and create a space that was an inviting, multipurpose space for all types of functions. Our young designers took up that challenge and created a perfect definition of what our program was trying to achieve. They did a great job designing for the future of our chapter.”

“In fact, a week ago, we were having an impromptu conference, and meanwhile, behind a glass partition, two people were having a one-on-one conversation,” adds Schlossman. “There is enough privacy, but there is still openness. It creates a nice feeling for many other types of events. There are so many uses. It worked out great.”

Marc Teer, AIA, LEED-AP
Chair, AIA Chicago Young Architects Forum, and architect, Gensler
“What I like best about it is the process that resulted in its construction. We held an international competition for young architects, and the nice thing is that a group of young architects got their first opportunity to build something of their own design. That was the goal, the reason why we’ve been a proponent of doing design competitions, is that it’s hard as a young architect to get the opportunity to design something that gets built. We’re really pleased that things worked out so well, and that their design was actually built.”

“One space that I like best is the café area. It’s at the knuckle in the L-shaped space where the office space meets the conference space. It's an informal space that has proven to be the nucleus of our get-togethers, as people generally end up there, mingling. We’ve been trying to introduce people to the new space and have had several happy hours there when the office first opened,” says Teer.

“And not only is it a showcase of young designer’s talent,” adds Teer, “it is a showcase of sustainable construction technology as well.”