150 North Riverside Wins 2017 Chicago Innovation Award

The 16th annual Chicago Innovation Awards, honoring the most innovative products and services in the Chicago region, were held October 30 at the Harris Theater. Out of a total of 530 nominees across a wide range of industries, 150 North Riverside was one of only 10 winners presented with the 2017 Chicago Innovation Award. The event marks the second time a GP building has been honored, with 111 South Wacker receiving the same award in 2006. 

The design of 150 North Riverside includes several innovative measures to overcome the physical limitations of one of Chicago's most technically challenging sites. The core-supported structure defines a building with a 20:1 height-to-base ratio—an extremely slender proportion for a high-rise—and allows the building to "thread the needle" between active train tracks and the Chicago River. The building's footprint also occupies less than 25% of its two-acre site, which opens the majority of the property as a landscaped public park, plaza and riverwalk.

In addition, the building’s lobby features 150 Media Stream, a one-of-a-kind cultural landmark in the form of a 3,000-square-foot digital art installation. With content directed by a full-time curator, the installation involves strategic partnerships with virtually every major cultural institution and university fine arts program in the city, and provides a forum for students, faculty and others to exhibit and promote their art in a dynamic environment.

Many of the building's materials and technologies accomplished a number of firsts, including:

• First-ever application of a 12-tank tuned mass damper to manage building drift and acceleration
  
• First use of 70ksi structural steel in the U.S.
  
• First building in Chicago to utilize 300-ton micropiles
• First building in Chicago to use STC-43 facade system to mitigate ambient noise and enhance the exterior environment
• First Class A office building in Chicago to be certified both Wired Platinum and LEED Gold 

Key team members include: developer Riverside Investment & Development, 150 Media Stream design-build firm McCann Systems, structural engineer Magnusson Klemencic Associates, and contractor Clark Construction Group.

Watch the video interview or see the Chicago Innovation Awards website for more information.

For additional press coverage on the awards program and all of the winners, see the links below:
NBC Chicago
Crain's Chicago Business
Chicago Tribune