Best Project Interior/Tenant Improvement Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois Morgan Park Solution Center
In just 33 weeks, an abandoned 130,000-sq-ft big-box retail space was transformed into an office and community center that provides health and wellness services. To bring natural light into the expansive interior, openings were cut into the roof to create two distinctive courtyards. The process began by reinforcing the building’s foundation with additional structural steel, then expediting curtain wall installation to help protect the structure from winter temperatures and precipitation. As roof-cutting work got underway, fans helped keep interior air clear so that other demolition and fit-up activity could proceed safely. The building team also took advantage of the open roof areas to perform parapet work from inside, using more than 50 lifts to help expedite the process.