News

04.26.2012
Renovation Project Wins Downtown Award

The Monroe Building, built in 1912 by Holabird & Root, recently won the 2011 "Best Historic Renovation" Award from the Friends of Downtown, Chicago, Illinois. You can find out more information about the historic renovation and restoration on the Monroe Building project page.

02.15.2012
Lassin Speaks at CAF

Project Architect Tom Lassin recently spoke at the Chicago Architecture Foundation. The topic, "Monroe Building Past/Present/Future" is something he's very passionate about. Tom, working with a team of architects, engineers, and preservation experts, has spent several years researching, renovating, and carefully restoring the Monroe Building, located along Chicago's prominent Michigan Avenue. His presentation focused on the history of the building, its construction, and the work that has been done to return the landmark building to its original grandeur.

11.27.2011
Brush Speaks to SIUC Architects

Preservation specialist, Mary Brush, recently spoke at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC), Carbondale, Illinois, to the SIUC School of Architecture and the American Institute of Architects Illinois on the topic, "Carbondale, Holabird, & AIA". Brush spoke on her family's influence, architecturally and otherwise, in Carbondale and the surrounding area.

"Over time [my grandfather] sold off the land for houses, became partners with the bank, opened a general store, became a lawyer, ran the town," Brush said. "(He) did everything from start to finish, including founding the teachers's college, which became SIU's..."

An article written by The Daily Egyptian, the college's newspaper, can be found here.

10.20.2011
James Baird Speaks at SCUP

Design Principal James Baird, FAIA, LEED AP recently presented at the Society of College and University Planning's (SCUP) North Central Regional Conference in Ames, Iowa. His session, "Inclusive Spaces: Designing Science Facilities that Support a Diverse Student Population," analyzed the award-winning Grinnell Science Project, developed to address barriers to success in science for students of color, women, and first-generation college students. Also presenting was Grinnell College's Dr. James Swartz, who discussed the program that the College developed to respond to these barriers. James then explained how these changes were translated into the design of Grinnell's science complex, which has become a national model for science facilities.

10.3.2011
Kenmore Apartments Receives ASID Award

Holabird & Root received a 2011 American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Design Excellence Award in Residential Green Design with the Chicago Housing Authority's Kenmore Senior Housing Apartments project.

Located in the City's Uptown community, the once vacant and graffiti-covered Kenmore Senior Apartments was modernized by Holabird & Root. The 90,000-s.f., 8-story building underwent a complete gut rehab to improve circulation paths and accessibility and create 100 new single bedroom apartments. It features such green elements as energy efficient mechanical and lighting systems, landscaping that helps manage storm water in an inviting, scenic courtyard, large windows to increase natural lighting and air circulation and a green roof.

10.1.2011
Kenmore Apartments Certified LEED Platinum

The Chicago Housing Authority's (CHA) Kenmore Senior Housing Apartments received a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Certification rating, the highest possible rating in LEED certification. Kenmore's Platinum status is a first in Chicago's public housing history.

Located in the City's Uptown community, the once vacant and graffiti-covered Kenmore Senior Apartments was modernized by Holabird & Root. The 90,000-s.f., 8-story building underwent a complete gut rehab to improve circulation paths and accessibility and create 100 new single bedroom apartments. It features such green elements as energy efficient mechanical and lighting systems, landscaping that helps manage storm water in an inviting, scenic courtyard, large windows to increase natural lighting and air circulation and a green roof.

09.10.2011
James Baird Speaks at Tradelines

Design Principal James Baird, FAIA, LEED AP recently presented at the Tradelines 23rd Annual College & University Science Facilities Conference. In the presentation, "Fostering Interdisciplinary Science in Undergraduate Education," James, along with Beloit College's Kohnstamm Professor of Chemistry and Project Director, Dr. Brock Spencer, discussed how the formal disciplines of science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics) should no longer be viewed as separate trees of knowledge that grow independently of one another. The real breakthroughs in science are taking place at the intersections of these disciplines. These intersections not only occur in the branches, but also at the very roots of inquiry and students engaged in scientific investigation should be exposed to these roots at an early stage in their education. Beloit College's new Center for the Sciences illustrates how such a facility can be planned and designed to support this kind of interdisciplinary, inquiry-based learning at the undergraduate level.

08.22.2011
James Baird Presents at SCUP

Design Principal James Baird, FAIA, LEED AP recently presented at the Society of College and University Planning's (SCUP) Poster Forum in National Harbor, Maryland. The new forum provided additional opportunities for learning at the SCUP Conference. On his poster, James compared the renovation and addition of Grinnell College's Noyce Science Center to the new Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences at St. Olaf College. This information is especially helpful to college and university planners that face the tough decision of deciding whether to renovate an existing facility or build a new building when their current space no longer meets their needs.

06.28.2011
Dremmer Elected to Housing Board

Director of Interior Design Michele Dremmer, LEED AP was recently elected to the National Public Housing Museum Board of Directors. The National Public Housing Museum is dedicated to illustrating the history of public housing in America as well as the poor and working class families of every race and culture who resided within their walls.

For more information on the National Public Housing Museum, please visit their website.

06.5.2011
Holabird & Root Projects Featured on 190 North

Several Holabird & Root projects were recently featured in a segment of 190 North's June 5th episode. The Chicago Cultural Center and the Marquette Building were depicted for their landmark Luis Comfort Tiffany artistic, glass domes and mosaics. Holabird & Root was responsible for the recent restoration of the Chicago Cultural Center's Tiffany Dome. It is the largest dome by Tiffany in the world covering more than 1,000 square feet. The Marquette Building is one of Holabird & Root's earliest buildings, and is known as one of the first, modern skyscrapers of the world. The lobby displays the legacy of Pere Marquette through a vibrant series of pictures that are highly unique for a glass mosaic.

05.26.2011
Brush honored in i4design’s Suite Sixteen

Mary Brush was included in i4design Magazine's 5th Annual Suite Sixteen. The "Suite 16" honors the Midwest's most innovative design experts in the architecture and interior design community.

Named as the "Preservationist" in the Class of 2011, Mary Brush was recognized for her ability to restore and preserve historic architecture. "Preservation is the management of change," said Mary Brush. "We don't want to just look backward and turn a building into a museum piece."

03.28.2011
Plano Classroom Featured on Archdaily.com

The Waubonsee Community College Plano Classroom was recently featured on the blog, Archdaily.com. The article can be found here:

Click here to read the article.

The building is designed as a stand-alone satellite campus, augmenting Waubonsee Community College's main campus located in Sugar Grove, Illinois. The facility consists of approximately 33,000 g.s.f. of space spread over two stories.

The building contains classrooms, laboratories, student study areas, and support space. Full-service admissions, testing, and assessment spaces are also provided. The building is strategically placed to take advantage of access and views to Lake Plano while maximizing the remainder of the site for student parking.

03.28.2011
Government Childcare Center Awarded LEED

The General Services Administration's (GSA) new Childcare Center at an existing Department of State training campus was recently awarded Silver Level certification, as quantified by the United States Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. The project, which also included a new Training Center addition, was awarded to Holabird & Root, for architectural services, and Wiley & Wilson, for engineering and general contractor services, through the GSA's Design Excellence Program.

The childcare center project enlarged an existing "temporary" two-classroom facility to twice the square footage, allowing the program to support the growing number of parents at the facility. The LEED Silver building takes advantage of the surrounding natural environment and provides a strong connection between the interior and exterior spaces. It provides light-filled classrooms with access to the outdoors while respecting the requirements of Diplomatic Security and controlled access. A variety of play spaces are provided to support year-round gross motor opportunities. Within the building a central multipurpose room can be used for group gatherings and play in inclement water. Covered porches on both sides of the building provide shaded space during sunny days and protection from the rain.

Following the GSA's Childcare Center Design Guide and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) standards, Holabird & Root designed a model center that is intended to exhibit the GSA's commitment to best practices in childcare for all its facilities.

03.27.2011
Center for the Sciences Awarded

Klobucar Construction and J.H. Findorff and Sons were recently awarded the Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin's Environmental Excellence Award for their work at Beloit College's Center for the Sciences. Both served as contractors for the LEED-Platinum Certified building. A press release on Beloit's website can be found here:

Click here to read the article.

This is not the first time the Holabird & Root-designed Center for Sciences has received accolades. In 2009, the building and Holabird & Root received the Design Excellence Honor Award in Interior Architecture from the American Institute of Architects (Chicago chapter). Last spring, Wisconsin Builder magazine also named the Center for the Sciences one of the state of Wisconsin's top 2009 projects.

02.21.2011
Principal Presents at Tradeline Conference

Holabird & Root Principal James Baird was invited to develop a presentation for Tradeline, a leader in providing information to corporate, institutional, and government professionals for the planning, design, construction, and management of facility assets. Baird, along with Dr. James Swartz, Dack Professor of Chemistry at Grinnell College, and Dr. David Van Wylen, Professor of Biology at St. Olaf College, created a webinar entitled "Renovate or build new: decision-making rationales behind two strategies to grow science programs." The webcast creates comparisons between Grinnell College's phased renovation and addition of their Noyce Science Center and St. Olaf College's new Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences and the impact each institutions choice has had on funding, costs, recruitment, and retention.

Click here to watch the webinar.

01.27.2011
Grinnell Awarded White House Honor

The Grinnell Science Project (GSP) has been honored with the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring, administered by the National Science Foundation. The award recognizes GSP's efforts to increase the number of students from underrepresented groups who earn degrees in the sciences.

Click here to read the article.

One of the science buildings participating in the Grinnell Science Project is the Robert N. Noyce '49 Science Center - an academic building recently transformed by Holabird & Root. The two-phased renovation and addition to the Noyce Science Center also received LEED Silver certification, The American Library Association Excellence in Academic Libraries Award for 2011, and an Association of Licensed Architects Design Award of Excellence.

01.17.2011
Grinnell College honored by ALA

The American Library Association (ALA) has recently recognized the Grinnell College Libraries with the Excellence in Academic Libraries Award for 2011. A press release on Grinnell's website can be found here:

Click here to read the article.

One of the libraries being honored, Kistle Science Library, is located in the Robert N. Noyce '49 Science Center - an academic building recently transformed by Holabird & Root. The two-phased renovation and addition to the Noyce Science Center also received LEED Silver certification and an Association of Licensed Architects Design Award of Excellence.

01.6.2011
Domes Featured in Huffington Post

The Chicago Cultural Center domes were recently mentioned in a photo article entitled, "18 Beautiful Ceilings Around the World" on the Huffington Post website.

Click here to read the article.

Holabird & Root is currently restoring two of these domes to the highest conservation standards. The first dome, which was completed in July 2008, is a Louis Comfort Tiffany art glass dome in Preston Bradley Hall and is the largest dome by Tiffany in the world. The Cultural Center's other stained glass dome, the Healy and Millet dome, in the G.A.R. Rotunda, is tentatively scheduled for restoration next year.