100-Year-Old Beaux-Arts Landmark in Chicago Reborn, Anchoring a Neighborhood's Resurgence
Completed in 1914, the Cook County Hospital building is a designated Chicago Landmark and once stood as the symbolic heart of the Illinois Medical District healthcare community. Vacant since 2002, the building had fallen into a severe state of disrepair and was threatened with demolition. Instead, SOM led a design-build collaboration for general contractor, Walsh Construction with Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, and interior designers KOO, to carefully preserve, restore, and adapt the former hospital building to meet the changing needs of the neighborhood. With a new hotel, food hall, medical offices, and community spaces, the revitalized historic hospital building is the first phase of a proposed $1 billion redevelopment plan for the area.
“This has been a monumental restoration completed by an outstanding and uniquely experienced team,” said John T. Murphy chairman and CEO, Murphy Real Estate Services. “At the epicenter of the Illinois Medical District, the project will be recognized for the next 100 years as a tribute to so many who served the sick while tirelessly pursuing medical advances.”