▲Wolf Point 三座塔楼渲染图 © Steelblue

With the end of the year approaching, Wolf Point in Chicago, a newly commissioned project of PCPA, gradually reveals itself to the world. This new mixed-use development that includes the future home of tech-giant Salesforce’s Chicago office as well as a new waterfront park will continue to rejuvenate the Chicago River and expand a new human scale among the landmark project, making it one of the most excellent cases of combining private architecture and public space.

本项目面积约18.6万平方米，为多功能开发项目，包含一座综合办公塔楼，两座纯住宅公寓塔楼，以及一座公园和滨水通道。除项目总体规划外，PCPA还为其中两座塔楼提供了建筑设计，分别是东塔楼，一座高达205米的住宅塔楼，包含700个出租单元，以及约3千平方米的便利设施和沿街零售；以及Salesforce 塔楼——Salesforce 在芝加哥的混合办公大楼，高达248米，含约11万平方米的办公面积。这是继Salesforce环湾客运中心及Salesforce 旧金山塔楼之后，PCPA 与汉斯地产、Salesforce 公司再次携手合作的新项目。

This two-million-square-foot multi-use project is comprised of three towers, a park, and waterfront access. In addition to the master planning, PCPA is also responsible for the architecture design for two of the three towers: Wolf PointEast, a 665-foot (203-meter) high residential tower with 700 rental units, 35,000-square feet (3251 square meters) of amenities, and retail at street level; and SalesforceTower Chicago, the future home of Salesforce’s Chicago office, an 815-foot (248-meter) high mixed-use tower with 1.2 million square feet (111,484 square meters) of office space.

Wolf Point bears notable significance in the history of Chicago. The four-acre site is a small peninsula at the tip of where the north and south branches of the Chicago River converge and was the first commercial settlement in the early 19thcentury. It was featured prominently in Daniel Burnham’s 1909 ‘Plan of Chicago’ and this “y” shape fork became a lasting symbol in the city and is memorialized in municipal flags and seals. The site remains one of the few that commands such a unique place along the Chicago River.

Based on the firm’s timeless values of design, PCPA seeks to find balance among the city, the natural world, and the people who live and work in large-scale urban developments.

    ▲Wolf Point 总平图 © PCPA

From the site plan of the Wolf Point project, Salesforce Tower Chicago is in the center, with two residential towers respectively on the east (Wolf Point East) and westside (Wolf Point West). All the towers have been sited to maximize views and to allow views from other neighboring properties to penetrate through the project.

All three buildings along the Chicago River are highly visible. The thin layered planes allow a great deal of transparency at the lower levels, offering a sense of invitation to the city into the center of the site.

To create the effect of “touching the ground lightly,” the buildings are supported by two and three-story stone-clad columns, with glass-walled first, second, and third-floor amenity levels. Balconies on the third and fortieth floors offer outdoor spaces for users to gather: the ground-level terrace is a continuation of the public park below and the upper-level balcony provides majestic views of the Chicago River and skyline.

Both Wolf Point East and Salesforce Tower Chicago adopt stepped form, which is classic and iconic against the urban skyline. Balancing solidity and transparency, the curtain walls incorporate glass, metal, and stone.

After a dramatic refurbishing, the Chicago River itself has become a high-quality natural resource. Therefore, by facing the convergence of the Chicago River,  Wolf Point East, and the future SalesforceTower Chicago step down to engage the riverfront and provide public gathering space at the Chicago Riverwalk. This important urban setting is signified with a large water feature.

So far, Wolf Point East (east tower) has been completed, and Salesforce Tower Chicago (south tower) has just emerged from the ground and is now under construction.

From the photo taken recently, Wolf Point East presents a handsomely detailed exterior. The colors of the building facade change during all hours of the day into evening; as the sun goes down, the city starts to reflect in the building, and the atmosphere changes the building, making it more beautiful and elegant.

While approaching Wolf Point East, you will find that the swimming pool, fitness center, clubs, meeting rooms, and other amenities are all concentrated on the lower floors of the tower, connected to the waterfront, providing the public with a wide view of the pleasant landscape and open waterfront space. It not only emphasizes the value of the Chicago River but also creates an intimate relationship between the building and the city.

Once complete, the Ohana Room on the top floor of Salesforce Tower Chicago will be a flexible, open reception space, similar to the award-winning Salesforce Tower in San Francisco.

In a typical office setting, the top floor is often dedicated to executive offices. However, according to the Salesforce EVP of Real Estate Elizabeth Pinkham, the OhanaRoom with its jaw-dropping views is made available for nonprofits and foundations at no cost: "When we approach our real estate, we design our offices as spaces that feel like home, where we can welcome our entire Ohana(“family” in Hawaiian). This includes our employees, customers, partners, and the communities in which we live and work … "

Imagining standing in the Ohana Room on top of the tower, an unprecedented view of the Chicago River and the city skyline is unfolding in front of you, unlike anywhere else in the city.

Salesforce Tower Chicago is expected to be completed in the fall of 2022. While the long-term effects of the current pandemic remain uncertain at this time, it is believed that everything will be back to normal by then. The new tower will soar into the sky, adding a new, bright presence to the city skyline, while embracing the Chicago River with a light gesture and creating a new intimate relationship between the city, the river, the buildings, and the people. This new landmark will mark a new phase of urban renewal in Chicago.