Chicago Union Station designed by Todd Swanson & Louie Bofill
The project centers around Chicago’s Union Station, a complex shared between a historic terminal and a mid-high-rise office building overlooking the Chicago River. The abstract addresses the continuing problem of public space in decline due to its subterranean concourse and dark enclosed spaces, and creates a hub for a future high-speed rail intersecting the city. The initial project redefines the space by retrofitting the tower with a hexagonal exoskeleton, allowing for an adjustment of structure and increased traffic flow throughout the floors. Through re-systematizing space, a new program was introduced at intervals along with the tower. Public venues of hybridized indoor-outdoor space intersect with the conventional floor plates, accentuating views of the surrounding context. The new structural system eliminates congestion, allowing the freedom of loading and traffic flow throughout the ground floor and lobby spaces, and introducing openings to the platforms below which provide natural sunlight and ventilation.
photography by © Tom Harris
