Cook County Administration Building

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Cook County Administration Building Cook County Administration Building (9181641122) (1).jpg
Cook County Administration Building

The George W. Dunne Cook County Administration Building(formerly known as the Brunswick Building) is a skyscraper located at 69 West Washington Street in Chicago, Illinois. [1] [2] The building, constructed between the years 1962 and 1964, is 475 ft (144.8 m) tall, and contains 35 floors. [1] It has a concrete structure. [1] The building, engineered by Fazlur Khan of the firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, is notable for innovating the tube-within-a-tube structural system. [2]

Contents

Originally a corporate office building, the tower was later acquired by the Cook County government and now holds county government offices and courtrooms. [2] Officially the "George W. Dunne Cook County Administration Building", [3] its namesake is George W. Dunne (who served as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners).

Design and construction

Interior Cook County Adm. Building - Interior 1 (8401382424).jpg
Interior

The building, was constructed between the years 1962 and 1964, and utilizes a concrete structure. [1] At the time of its construction, it was Chicago's tallest concrete office building. [2] The building is designed with an exposed structure and adheres to the modernist architecture style. [2] The building utilizes a deep foundation system. [2]

This was the first building to utilize the shear wall frame interaction system conceptualized by its engineer, Fazlur Khan of the firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. [4] Kahn adapted the tube system he had innovated with the design of The Plaza on DeWitt by creating a tube-within-a-tube, with both the building's core and its perimeter being hollow and rigid tubes that support the tower, allowing for column-free interior space. [2]

At its lower portion, the façade of the tower juts back slightly in a curve. [2]

The building is connected to the Chicago Pedway system, with the Pedway featuring retail spaces in the area where it passes beneath the tower. [2] An underground Chicago Pedway passage connects the building to the Richard J. Daley Center across the street. [2]

The building has a small plaza featuring an untitled sculpture by Joan Miró. [2]

Fire

On October 17, 2003, a structural fire occurred on the 12th floor of the building. [5] [6] [7] The fire was started in a supply room [8] by a faulty light fixture and resulted in the deaths of six people. [9] [10] The City of Chicago, in addition to several other defendants, paid $100 million to the families of the six victims after litigation, [11] citing multiple failures.

In media

In the film National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation , the building is shown in establishing shots as Clark Griswold's workplace as a chemical engineer at a food company. [12]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Cook County Administration Building - The Skyscraper Center". www.skyscrapercenter.com. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Cook County Administration Building". Emporis. Archived from the original on May 14, 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ↑ "George W. Dunne Cook County Administration Building | Circuit Court of Cook County". Cook County Court. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  4. ↑ "Major Works - Fazlur Khan - Structural Artist of Urban Building Forms". Khan.princeton.edu. Archived from the original on 22 May 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  5. ↑ "Fire".
  6. ↑ "govinfo". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  7. ↑ "14 Years After 69 West Washington—Fire Reforms Are Still Incomplete". NBC Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  8. ↑ Institute, Fire Service. "LibGuides: Significant Illinois Fires: Cook County Administration Building Fire". guides.library.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  9. ↑ Mickey Ciokajlo; Sabrina L. Miller; Robert Becker; John Chase; Grace Aduroja; Manya Brachear. "6 die in Loop blaze". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  10. ↑ Davey, Monica (2003-10-19). "Smoke and Panic on Stairs In Chicago High-Rise Fire" . The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  11. ↑ Michael Higgins; Dan Mihalopoulos. "Fire lawsuits settled for $100 million". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  12. ↑ Castillo, Gabriel (21 December 2024). "Local landmarks seen in the movie 'Christmas Vacation'". Yahoo Entertainment. Retrieved 22 December 2024.

41°52′59″N87°37′48″W / 41.88306°N 87.63000°W / 41.88306; -87.63000

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