A homeland security center, a mausoleum, a public park and a harbor are among the developments that captured top honors in this year's ENR Midwest Best Projects competition, an annual program recognizing outstanding design and construction in a variety of categories.
Sited adjacent to an 1872 courthouse, the Livingston County Law & Justice Center provides Pontiac, Ill., with updated courtroom and judiciary space while meeting an objective to redevelop underutilized parts of its downtown.
Even as Chicago ponders the fate of one medical icon, Northwestern's Prentice Women's Hospital, a 1975 structure slated for the wrecking ball, it welcomes another, The Tower, centerpiece of a 10-year, $1-billion overhaul of Rush University Medical Center on the city's west side. Related Links: ENR Midwest Best Projects 2012 Click here to read about Best Projects 2011 Like the cloverleaf-shaped Prentice, Rush's new acute- and critical-care center is an exercise in form flowing from function, in this case an initiative to decentralize nursing by organizing patient floors in quadrants. Perched atop a rectangular base, the result is a curvilinear
Before replacing its only bridge, the city of Tomahawk, Wis., was tasked with relocating dozens of utility cables and lines secured to the bridge's underside. Photo Courtesy of SEH Relocation of utilities on the underside of North 4th Street Bridge involved dredging a packet of conduits across a river. Photo Courtesy of SEH The packet contains three 12-in. conduits, six 4-in. conduits, and two 6-in. conduits. Related Links: Click here to return to Introduction Click here to read about Best Projects 2011 The city weighed several options before deciding to dredge a packet of conduits across the river, an approach
Given their 24-hour operations and extensive reliance on power and plumbing, casinos are more commonly associated with greenbacks than green building design. Photo Courtesy of John Rouse Construction waste recycling for Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, Ill., exceeded 89%. Nearly 60% of building materials were locally sourced Photo Courtesy of John Rouse Low-flow plumbing fixtures and sensor-controlled faucets reduce water usage throughout. Related Links: Click here to return to Introduction Click here to read about Best Projects 2011 The LEED-Gold-certified Rivers Casino in Des Plains, Ill., is an exception. Construction waste recycling for the 20-acre project exceeded 89%, and nearly
Milwaukee's $6-million Clock Shadow Building is a timely exercise in sustainable design, its cream brickwork arriving by way of a salvage yard, its wood siding by way of old pickle vats.
Cleveland Clinic's 110,000-sq-ft Data Center places as much emphasis on image as infrastructure, an approach intended to bolster the clinic's brand, both as a matter of aesthetics and operational efficiency. Related Links: Click here to return to Introduction Click here to read about Best Projects 2011 The facility's modernist vocabulary incorporates brick, glazing and ornamental metal that recall other facilities on the clinic's campus.Though the decision to construct a two-story facility resulted in higher structural costs, it also accommodated shorter electrical runs since electrical rooms are directly below the data hall.Prior to construction, project team members employed building information management
This 64,000-sq-ft facility, the first of its kind in the Midwest, brings homeland security to the nation's heartland, preparing firefighters, police and other first responders for international and domestic terrorist acts in addition to man-made and natural disasters.
Asymmetrical polygons form the signature shapes of these two buildings, whose angled exterior walls appear to be leaning toward each other. Photo Courtesy of James Steinkamp, Steinkamp Photography Astellas Headquarters for the Americas in Glenview, Ill., a high-performance curtain wall, geothermal field, green landscaping and water retention for site irrigation. Related Links: Click here to return to Introduction Click here to read about Best Projects 2011 The forms reflect the forward-thinking philosophy of the owner, a Japanese pharmaceutical company, while creating arresting imagery for residents of Glenview, Ill. They also reflect function, with trapezoidal projections expressing perimeter conference rooms on
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