The Grossinger City Autoplex at 1500 N. Dayton is, first and foremost, an example of large-scale, urban adaptive reuse. The project is the reimage a building that once played host to a jukebox manufacturer and most recently a Home Depot EXPO Design Center. The new Grossinger City Autoplex, currently under construction, will house a multi-line automotive retail sales and service center for three manufacturers, including Toyota, Cadillac and Chevrolet. Thanks in part to TIF requirements, the facility has been designed to meet LEED-NC Version 2.2 LEED Silver certification, and has successfully participated the City of Chicago Green Permit process.

The thick concrete panels of the old warehouse were ripped away and replaced with windows, creating an open, very light-driven, contemporary structure like sitting in a terminal at O’Hare Airport. The building was also equipped with an overhang protecting the glass walls from emitting too much light in the wrong areas. The orientation of the building takes advantage of morning sunlight. “I don’t really consider it a loss. We feel that considering this is the first Gold Certified Police building in the country, and that there were no renewable technology added to the building, we did very well.”

The warm and caring people of the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation (JRC) in Evanston follow a line of thinking spoken in depth in the book of Genesis, which states that the children of Abraham must follow the code of Tikkun Olam, or repairing the world. They believe that it is their duty to improve the condition of the world which they have inherited. JRC’s commitment to Tikkun Olam is readily apparent in their LEED® Platinum certified congregation center on Dodge Avenue.

Location
4000 W. Lake, Chicago, IL 60624 Map
Owner
Bethel New Life
Architect
Farr Associates
Image ©Farr Associates | Architecture | Planning | Preservation, Chicago, IL
Bethel Center is 23,000 sf, 2-story commercial center comprised of storefront retail spaces, a daycare center, an employment center, and a community computer lab. The building has a direct connection to the adjacent Lake & Pulaski [...]