300 South Riverside Lobby Lounge

In response to an increasingly competitive office leasing market and dated building offerings, Jones Lang LaSalle, Managers of 300 South Riverside Plaza, sought to revitalize the building’s first floor lobby with functional, modern design. Standing 23 stories and measuring 1.1 Million square feet, 300 South Riverside Plaza was built in 1983 on the west bank of the Chicago River.
As corporations reduce real estate costs by decreasing the average footprint per employee, JLL saw an increasing desire for a new amenity space that provides an opportunity to touch down and decompress, take a personal phone call, meet casually with a guest, or tackle some individual work. FitzGerald was tapped in 2013 to design an inviting lobby lounge that would appeal to current and prospective tenants, retailers, and building visitors.
The space is distinguished from the modernist marble and granite lobby that surrounds it with carpeting and soft, curved-edge ceiling treatments that define the space and provide an intimate atmosphere. Large windows provide sightlines to the building’s plaza, and a wood veneer feature wall incorporates a media display for building announcements and the news of the day. Large lounge seating, adjustable-height tables, a work counter with charging stations, and lounge chairs with ottomans pay homage to the building’s modernist style.
Today, the building is 99% leased and occupied by nearly 5,000 employees; is certified as LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council, and was a finalist for the BOMA International TOBY Award in 2012/2013.