Overlooking North Michigan Avenue, 550 St. Clair is a multi-residential development with a level of design detail typical of custom single family homes. The forms, systems, and materials were selected to provide openness or privacy, flexibility of use, and functionality.
At the street level, a translucent lit arcade leads to a wood entry vestibule. This vestibule ushers people into a luminous lobby where glass, stone, and wood enclose a small garden and seating area.
The residential tower rises as an eighteen-story volume enclosed by planes of glass on the north, east, and south elevations. Those planes are emphasized at the corners by inset balconies delineated with translucent glazing. The floor to floor windows incorporate zero sight-line operable units set above the viewer’s eye. Bi-parting sliding doors open onto six-foot wide continuous terraces on the west side. A perimeter soffit contains a four-pipe horizontal system to optimize thermal comfort while providing a source of ambient lighting and space for integrated window treatments.