Chicago, IL

The major objectives in the renovation of the Hyde Park Bank were to re-establish the building as the Southside’s premier office location, to revitalize Hyde Park’s principal shopping street, and to adapt the historic banking hall as a viable space for contemporary banking services.

On the building’s exterior, we restored the stone facades, bronze screens, and storefronts. We also added new components to the streetscape, including lighting, a new entry canopy and portal, landscaping, street furniture, signage, and paving.

On the interior, we reprogrammed and renovated the lobby, grand stair, and, most notably, the second floor main banking hall. The existing space was vast, impersonal, dark, and divided. The new landscape within the historic hall combines rich, contemporary materials with existing ornate surfaces.

Awards: National AIA, Honor Award, 2005; AIA Chicago, Divine Detail Award, 2006; Chicago Architecture Foundation, Patron of the Year, 2005; G.E. Edison Award for Excellence in Lighting, 2005; VM + SD Magazine, Visual Merchandising Merit Award, 2005.

Photography: Michelle Litvin (exterior view); Barbara Karant (interior views)