Official name: 122 South Michigan Also known as: People's Gas Company Building Formerly: Peoples Gas Light and Coke Company Building Built: 1910-1911 Designed by: D.H. Burnham & Company Renovated: 1987 by Eckenhoff Saunders Architects at a cost of $55,000,000 Type: Skyscraper Stories: 22 Maximum Height: 265 feet / 81 meters Location: 122 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, United States
Building Rating 80% of readers like the Peoples Gas Company Building.
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Description by Wayne Lorentz O nce the biggest kid on the block, the People's Gas Building retains its stature even though the city of Chicago has grown up around it.
The design is indicative of its time. It employs the standard three-piece skyscraper formation, plus lots of classical embellishments like ornamental lions along the balustrade at the top. Its hundreds of windows reflect the nature of its design -- to serve a huge and growing company with thousands of workers.
At the time of its construction, rows of small windows were traditional because of engineering limitations of the era. But this building was erected at the beginning of a new era. One where steel carried the weight of the building, not the exterior walls. Indeed, this building does have a steel skeleton. But rather than supporting the entire building, steel cantilevers transfer the weight of the majority of the building onto a frame to keep the upper stories from crushing the decorative granite columns and other elements from the third floor down.
Floor space: 512,000 square feet
1910: Construction began on this building.
1911: Construction was completed on this building.
July, 1984: This building is sold to First City Developments Corporation.
1985: This building was sold to Travelers Realty Investment Company.
August, 1994: This building was sold to S.N. Phelps Realty.
1995: Peoples Gas moved out of its namesake building.
1998: A plan is floated to convert the first seven stories of this building into a hotel.
marion dougherty burns
Thursday, September 16th, 2010 @ 5:49pm
in 1910-1911who were the people responsible for building the structure? What part did Joseph E Dougherty in building the structure?
Worked in this building for 2 years now, it can be too hot and too cold in the same day, but all things considered a pretty good place to work.
Thursday, April 9th, 2009 @ 8:40am
Rating: Four stars. Worked in this building for 2 years now, it can be too hot and too cold in the same day, but all things considered a pretty good place to work. Best to keep a sweater in your office/at your desk just in case. Easternly views cannot be beat - well maybe by San Francisco, LA, Seattle, Maui, etc. In the midwest this is the best.
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marion dougherty burns
Four stars.