Richard J. Daley Center & Plaza

This powerful, 31-story tower was designed by Jacques Brownson (b. 1923) of C. F. Murphy Associates. Composed of three massive structural bays, each an unprecedented 87-feet wide and nearly 48-feet deep, and supported by warren trusses at every floor, the building achieves incredible structural integrity and interior flexibility. The exterior wall plane consists of 12-foot-high windows with amber-tinted glass and 6-foot-high panels of self-weathering Cor-Ten steel, which has aged to a rich brown color. The large public plaza features a 50-foot-tall Cor-Ten sculpture of 1967 by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), gifted by him to the city of Chicago. The Daley Center plaza is one in a line of three important public plazas in the heart of the Loop (see also the Federal Center and Chase Bank Plaza). Photo courtesy of AIA Chicago, Wes Urschel. Copy and descriptions courtesy of AIA Illinois and the 150 Great Places in Illinois www.illinoisgreatplaces.com