The John C. Kluczynski Federal Building is a

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...

in the downtown

Chicago Loop The Loop is Chicago's central business district and one of the city's 77 municipally recognized Community areas in Chicago, community areas. Located at the center of downtown Chicago on the shores of Lake Michigan, it is the second-largest busi ...

located at 230 South Dearborn Street. The 45-story structure was designed by

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...

and completed in 1974 as the last portion of the new Federal Center. It is tall and with the Mies designed post office and plaza stands on the site previously occupied by the Chicago Federal Building by the architect Henry Ives Cobb. It was named in honor of U.S. Congressman John C. Kluczynski, who represented Illinois's 5th congressional district from 1951 to 1975 after his death that year. This is one of three buildings by van der Rohe in the Federal Center Plaza complex: the others are the Loop Station Post Office and the

Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse The Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, commonly referred to as the Dirksen Federal Building, is a skyscraper in the Chicago Loop at 219 South Dearborn Street. It was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1964. T ...

Design

The John C. Kluczynski Building is constructed of a steel frame and contains of space. The exterior is sheathed in bronze-tinted glass set into bright aluminum frames. Beneath the windows are steel spandrel panels painted flat black and windows are separated horizontally by steel mullions of projecting steel I-beams also painted black. The two-story lobby is recessed allowing for a colonnade or ''pilotis'' to encircle the building at street level. The interior walls and floors of the lobby are covered in granite which extends to the plaza. The lobby contains several commemorative tablets which were removed from the previous building. The entire complex is based on a grid pattern so that seams of the granite pavers in the plaza extend into the building lobbies and up the sides to create unity among the three structures. The Center is similar to Mies' earlier

Toronto-Dominion Centre The Toronto-Dominion Centre, or TD Centre, is an office complex of six skyscrapers in the Financial District, Toronto, Financial District of downtown Toronto owned by Cadillac Fairview. It serves as the global headquarters for its anchor tenant, ...

and was expanded in 1991 with the addition of the 28-story Metcalfe Federal Building to the south across Jackson Boulevard.

History

On August 28, 1996, eleven people were arrested while demonstrating at the building. Following his election as president on November 4, 2008,

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

established his administration's transitional offices in the federal building, prompting heightened security measures in the surrounding area. In 2009, GSA undertook a major project to improve energy efficiency which included solar film on windows, LED lighting, upgraded HVAC and other mechanical systems. After the work, the building received a

LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a Green building certification systems, green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating ...

Silver certification.

Features

Alexander Calder Alexander "Sandy" Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobile (sculpture), mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, hi ...

's sculpture ''

Flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes () are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbe ...

'', a red steel sculpture, was unveiled on the plaza October 24, 1974. The sculpture was conserved and restored in 1998. The plaza is also the site of a weekly farmers' market during the spring and summer seasons, open to the community.

Tenants

Federal agencies in the building include the Air Force Recruiting Service, the Department of State Passport Agency, Department of Labor, Internal Revenue Service, Office of Personnel Management, Consumer Product Safety Commission, General Services Administration and offices for both the U.S. senators from Illinois, Richard "Dick" Durbin and

Tammy Duckworth Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard Lieutenant colonel (United States), lieutenant colonel serving since 2017 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States ...

Position in Chicago's skyline

References

External links

John C. Kluczynski—General Services Administration
{{Authority control Skyscraper office buildings in Chicago Central Chicago Ludwig Mies van der Rohe buildings Federal buildings in the United States Government buildings completed in 1974 Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Chicago International style architecture in Illinois Modernist architecture in Illinois 1974 establishments in Illinois