| --> YouTube-Generated Transcript <-- |
| 0:00 | · | Love it or hate it, this building is a |
| 0:02 | · | Chicago icon. This is the James R. |
| 0:05 | · | Thompson Center in Chicago's Loop. |
| 0:07 | · | Considered by many to be a masterpiece |
| 0:09 | · | of postmodern architecture, the building |
| 0:11 | · | was put up for sale a decade ago, and |
| 0:14 | · | many thought it was bound for |
| 0:15 | · | demolition. But now, the Thompson Center |
| 0:18 | · | is undergoing a massive $280 million |
| 0:21 | · | renovation in preparation for an |
| 0:23 | · | unlikely new tenant. Let's take a look |
| 0:26 | · | at the rebirth of an icon, Chicago's |
| 0:29 | · | Thompson Center. |
| 0:31 | · | [Music] |
| 0:34 | · | In the 1970s, local leaders were looking |
| 0:36 | · | for ways to inject life into the Loop, |
| 0:39 | · | Chicago's declining downtown |
| 0:40 | · | neighborhood. They put into action a |
| 0:42 | · | redevelopment plan, which called for a |
| 0:44 | · | new building for the Illinois state |
| 0:46 | · | government. At the time, over 50 state |
| 0:49 | · | agencies were housed in various offices |
| 0:51 | · | around the city. The new building would |
| 0:53 | · | consolidate them under one roof. And |
| 0:56 | · | when Governor James R. Thompson was |
| 0:58 | · | elected, he doubled down on the project, |
| 1:00 | · | hiring the upand cominging architect |
| 1:02 | · | Helmet Yan to design the building. Jan |
| 1:05 | · | was German and moved to Chicago to study |
| 1:08 | · | at the Illinois Institute of Technology. |
| 1:10 | · | While still early in his career, Jan had |
| 1:13 | · | already made key contributions to the |
| 1:14 | · | Chicago cityscape with projects like the |
| 1:17 | · | Xerox Center, One South Wacker, and the |
| 1:20 | · | addition to the Chicago Board of Trade. |
| 1:23 | · | But his proposal for the new state of |
| 1:24 | · | Illinois center would be perhaps his |
| 1:26 | · | most daring yet, fully breaking the mold |
| 1:29 | · | of Chicago modernist architecture with a |
| 1:32 | · | dazzling postmodernist design. |
| 1:34 | · | Postmodernism is a style that emerged in |
| 1:37 | · | the 1960s that assued the teachings of |
| 1:39 | · | modernism, the stark and functional |
| 1:41 | · | style that dominated the midentury. |
| 1:44 | · | Postmodernism in contrast embraced more |
| 1:47 | · | playful, colorful, and inviting spaces. |
| 1:50 | · | While one of the fathers of modernism, |
| 1:52 | · | Mis Vandereo said less is more, |
| 1:55 | · | postmodern architect, Robert Venturi, |
| 1:57 | · | said less is a boore. And the Thompson |
| 2:00 | · | Center certainly wasn't a boore. It was |
| 2:02 | · | a grandiose statement of a building, but |
| 2:05 | · | it was also playful and approachable. |
| 2:07 | · | The interior is a cacophony of glass and |
| 2:10 | · | steel, featuring a dazzling 17story open |
| 2:13 | · | atrium. The design also makes nods to |
| 2:16 | · | historic symbols of civic architecture. |
| 2:19 | · | Its central rotunda evokes American |
| 2:21 | · | capital buildings. The interior of red, |
| 2:24 | · | white, and blue evoke the flag, and the |
| 2:27 | · | building's glass facade and open plan |
| 2:29 | · | come to symbolize transparency and |
| 2:31 | · | openness and government. But its |
| 2:34 | · | futuristic aesthetic was unlike anything |
| 2:36 | · | seen before, and it quickly became an |
| 2:39 | · | instantly recognizable landmark. |
| 2:43 | · | [Music] |
| 2:44 | · | The Thompson Center opened in 1985, |
| 2:47 | · | known then as a state of Illinois |
| 2:48 | · | center. Functionally, it housed state |
| 2:51 | · | government offices, but it also served |
| 2:53 | · | many public-f facing functions, |
| 2:55 | · | featuring courts, a DMV, retail outlets, |
| 2:58 | · | a food court, and an entrance to the |
| 3:00 | · | Clark and Lake CTA transit station. And |
| 3:03 | · | the plaza quickly became a popular |
| 3:05 | · | gathering spot and protest location. The |
| 3:08 | · | Thompson Center was truly a palace for |
| 3:10 | · | the people, and its unique design left |
| 3:13 | · | an imprint on a city already full of |
| 3:15 | · | iconic architecture. |
| 3:17 | · | Over the following decades, it would |
| 3:19 | · | serve the Illinois government and the |
| 3:20 | · | people of the state. But the building |
| 3:23 | · | was also far from perfect. |
| 3:26 | · | Complaints arose from the noise and lack |
| 3:28 | · | of privacy caused by the open floor |
| 3:30 | · | plans. But most of all, its glass |
| 3:33 | · | skeleton made it hard to keep heat in |
| 3:35 | · | during brutal Chicago winters. And it |
| 3:37 | · | also acted like a greenhouse during the |
| 3:39 | · | summer. A 1987 lawsuit alleged that |
| 3:42 | · | interior temperatures could reach 110° |
| 3:45 | · | on hot summer days. And as the years |
| 3:47 | · | rolled on, these maintenance and |
| 3:49 | · | operational issues compounded. By the |
| 3:51 | · | mid-2010s, the state was forced to make |
| 3:54 | · | a decision. Put millions of dollars into |
| 3:56 | · | renovations or sell the building |
| 3:58 | · | altogether. And in 2015, Governor Bruce |
| 4:01 | · | Rer announced that the building was |
| 4:03 | · | officially for sale. Many feared that it |
| 4:06 | · | spelled the end for the Thompson Center. |
| 4:08 | · | Sitting on prime real estate in |
| 4:10 | · | Chicago's loop, proposals were already |
| 4:12 | · | circulating from developers hungry to |
| 4:14 | · | demolish the building. including one to |
| 4:17 | · | replace it with a super tall skyscraper. |
| 4:20 | · | Despite this, many fought hard for the |
| 4:22 | · | building to be saved. Jan himself even |
| 4:25 | · | proposed a compromise, a design which |
| 4:27 | · | would retain much of the original |
| 4:29 | · | building while adding a skyscraper |
| 4:31 | · | above. None of these plans stuck, and |
| 4:34 | · | the clock was ticking on the faint |
| 4:35 | · | building. Finally, in 2021, a deal was |
| 4:39 | · | announced. The Thompson Center would be |
| 4:41 | · | sold for $105 million for use as an |
| 4:45 | · | office building. The new tenant, Google. |
| 4:50 | · | Immediately, Google began planning a |
| 4:52 | · | massive overhaul of the building for use |
| 4:55 | · | as its Midwest headquarters. And a few |
| 4:57 | · | years later, demolition crews began to |
| 5:00 | · | strip the building to its skeleton. |
| 5:02 | · | Google's proposed $280 million project |
| 5:05 | · | was designed by Yan's firm, carrying on |
| 5:08 | · | the original architect's legacy after |
| 5:11 | · | his death in 2021. The design will |
| 5:14 | · | preserve the building's signature form |
| 5:16 | · | and atrium while making significant |
| 5:18 | · | upgrades, including replacing the facade |
| 5:21 | · | entirely with sleek new glass, triple |
| 5:24 | · | pained and thermally efficient. |
| 5:27 | · | The design also includes a reworking of |
| 5:29 | · | the interior and updates to the plaza |
| 5:32 | · | and the building's mechanical systems. |
| 5:34 | · | Renderings show the interior atrium |
| 5:36 | · | re-imagined with lots of greenery, wood, |
| 5:39 | · | and white tones. It's a far cry from the |
| 5:42 | · | once boisterous design, but a look |
| 5:44 | · | suitable for its new tenants tech |
| 5:46 | · | aesthetic. But until the project is |
| 5:49 | · | complete, expected in 2027, |
| 5:52 | · | it's still hard to imagine how the |
| 5:54 | · | building will look and feel in its new |
| 5:56 | · | form. Google's bold move in hindsight |
| 5:59 | · | isn't much of a surprise. In the past |
| 6:02 | · | decade, tech companies have been |
| 6:03 | · | building unique and showstoppping office |
| 6:06 | · | spaces like Apple's Certino campus and |
| 6:09 | · | Amazon Spheres. |
| 6:11 | · | Google's repurposing of the Thompson |
| 6:13 | · | Center cementss the company at a |
| 6:15 | · | prominent place in the city's landscape. |
| 6:18 | · | It's undoubtedly a bold statement from |
| 6:20 | · | one of the world's most powerful |
| 6:22 | · | companies. But the move is also |
| 6:24 | · | emblematic of big tech's increasing |
| 6:27 | · | dominance on our world. The Thompson |
| 6:30 | · | Center, once a public amenity and civic |
| 6:32 | · | icon, will now be an expression of |
| 6:35 | · | corporate power. Google does claim that |
| 6:38 | · | the atrium will remain open to the |
| 6:39 | · | public, at least in some capacity, and |
| 6:42 | · | the 2,000 employees that will work in |
| 6:44 | · | the building will certainly bring new |
| 6:46 | · | life to the loop. |
| 6:48 | · | So, when the building reopens as the |
| 6:50 | · | Google Center, it will mark the rebirth |
| 6:53 | · | of an icon, but at the same time, it |
| 6:56 | · | will also signify a death. The Thompson |
| 6:59 | · | Center, as most Chicagoans know it, the |
| 7:02 | · | post-modern people's palace, will be |
| 7:04 | · | long gone. |
| 7:07 | · | [Music] |
Built World is written, edited, and narrated by Carl Allen. I post videos about the Built Environment, with a focus on Chicago.
