In 2016 the City of Chica­go announced a pilot pro­gram that would become a nation­al first; the co-loca­tion of a Pub­lic Library with mixed-income units for the Hous­ing Author­i­ty. Ross Bar­ney Archi­tects was invit­ed to design a solu­tion in Lit­tle Italy on the city’s west side. 

Sit­ed on land that once housed the demol­ished ​“ABLA” homes (Jane Addams Homes, Rebert Brooks Homes, Loomis Courts, and Grace Abbot Homes), the new mod­el offers oppor­tu­ni­ties to learn from the past while shap­ing a more inclu­sive future for Chica­go residents.

At street lev­el two ter­ra­cot­ta build­ings frame a gate­way that pro­vides both relief and addi­tion­al retail frontage to the com­mer­cial cor­ri­dor. The new pub­lic library occu­pies the larg­er build­ing with radi­al shelv­ing that pays homage to the adja­cent Tay­lor Street farm and its radi­al lay­out of grow­ing beds. 

The for­mer alley is trans­formed into a land­scape ameni­ty with out­door learn­ing spaces and read­ing rooms. The res­i­den­tial entry, sup­port spaces, and a small cof­fee shop occu­py the small­er build­ing while fram­ing the street corner. 

The res­i­den­tial vol­ume above is dis­tinct in its mate­ri­al­i­ty and form. On sun­ny or cloudy days, the soft met­al fin­ish blends in with the sky reveal­ing the col­ored bal­conies asso­ci­at­ed with each res­i­den­tial unit. 

A rooftop ​“hood orna­ment” hous­es the com­mu­ni­ty room which con­nects to an exten­sive ameni­ty ter­race with breath­tak­ing views to the city beyond.

Client: Pub­lic Build­ing Com­mis­sion Chica­go
Pro­gram: Mixed-use (48 afford­able rental units, retail, pub­lic library)
Size: 88,400 sqft
Cost: $20,000,000

Col­lab­o­ra­tive Part­ners:
Brook Archi­tec­ture (Asso­ciate Architect)

Pho­tog­ra­phy Cred­it: © Ross Bar­ney Architects