2011 burnham prize competition - brief
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McCormick Place REDUXTRANSCRIPT
McCormick P lace REDUX
McCormick P lace REDUX BRIEF_2
2011 Burnham Prize Competition“McCormick Place REDUX”The Chicago Architectural Club is pleased to announce the 2011 Burnham Prize Competition: “McCormick Place REDUX”. This year’s competition is co-sponsored by the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects and Landmarks Illinois and is intended to examine the controversial origins and questionable future of the Mc-Cormick Place East Building, the 1971 modernist convention hall designed by Gene Summers of C.F. Murphy As-sociates and sited along the lakefront in Burnham Park.
Built on parkland meant to be “forever open, clear, and free”, considered an eyesore by open space advocates, and suffering from benign neglect its owners, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, Gene Summer’s de-sign for McCormick Place East is nevertheless a powerfully elegant exploration of some of modernism’s deepest concerns. The current building’s predecessor generated withering criticism from civic groups so when it burned in 1967 its critics mobilized. The raw economic power of the convention business served to hasten rebuilding atop the ruins. But while Shaw’s previous building lacked any architectural merit, Gene Summers brought to the new project his years of experience at Mies van der Rohe’s side. The resulting building is a tour de force that succinctly caps the modernist dream of vast heroic column-free interior spaces.
The competition charge
The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority claims the building needs $150 million in improvements and that the building is functionally obsolete, too small to remain viable as an exhibition hall. While the facility appears frayed, the building is in fundamentally sound condition. Connected to the larger McCormick Place exhibition com-plex by a covered bridge over Lake Shore Drive, the stronger connections are to the lakefront the museum cam-pus and nearby Soldier Field. Surrounded by an over-abundance of parking, served by CTA buses, and bordering the immensely popular lakefront walking/running/biking path the possibilities for the building and the site would seem boundless. But so far, the only visions for its future to be expressed publicly been total erasure or reuse as a casino.
The “McCormick Place REDUX” competition seeks to launch a debate about the future of this significant piece of architecture, this lakefront site that was effectively removed from the public realm, and the powerful pull of a col-lective and public claim on the lakefront. This iconic building is caught in the crossfire of a strong, principled, and stirring debate. So the question posed by the competition is quite simple: what would you do with this massive facility? What alternate role might the building play in Chicago should it be decommissioned as a convention hall? And if the building were to go away, how might the site be utilized? What might you do with a million square feet of space on Chicago’s lakefront (along with 4,200 seat Arie Crown theatre)? Clearly outmoded for its original use, sited on a spectacular stretch of lake-front, and undoubtedly of very signifi-cant architectural quality - what visions are there for a resolution?
The competition
“McCormick Place REDUX” is an international single-stage ideas competition meant to explore possible scenarios for the third iteration of a significant 20th century building on a site that raises a string of questions about public space, parkland, access, and righting historical wrongs. The competition is open to anyone with a vision of what McCormick Place East might become: students, designers, artists, architects, planners, and landscape architects.
Awards
First prize: $3,000.00Second prize: $1,500.00Third prize: $750.00
Registration
Registration for the 2011 Burnham Prize Competition: “McCormick Place REDUX” will open on 1 February 2011. Registration for the competition will close on 15 March 2011. The regular registration fee is $90.00. Reduced registration fees for students (with a current ID) is $50.00, and the fee for 2011 CAC members is $30.00. One registration is required per project submitted. Participants may submit multiple entries or be part of multiple teams, but each submission must have an individual registration number.Confirmation of the registration along with the registration number will be emailed to the registrant (individual or the team leader) for identification of the final submission.
Questions
Questions regarding the competition will be accepted from 15 February until 1 March. Questions should be emailed to [email protected]. Answers to questions will be posted to the competition website on 2 March 2011.
Submission
Competition submissions are due at 12 noon CST on 4 April 2011. Submissions are electronic and submitted via email only. The final competition submission is limited to four 11x17 boards oriented in landscape format. Each presentation board must include the registration number in the lower right hand corner.Projects must be submitted in PDF format. The 11x17 presentation boards must be combined into a single four page document file, named with the 5-digit registration number - “00000.pdf”Each submission should also include an 8.5x11 PDF document which includes the submission’s 5-digit registration number, the project title, names of team members, and contact information for the entrant or team leader. The file name of this ID document should be “ID_00000.pdf” Both PDF files must then be saved in a single ZIP file named with the 5-digit registration number -“00000.zip”.
The single ZIP file should be emailed to [email protected]. The email subject line should say “reg-istration number 00000” and the body of the email should include the contact info of the entrant or team leader.
Schedule
1 February 2011 Burnham Prize registration opens15 February question period opens1 March question period closes 2 March answers posted on competition website15 March 2011 Burnham Prize registration closes4 April competition submissions due at noon CST16 April jury, symposium, and winners announced
Competition rules and disclaimers
1. Participation in the competition assumes acceptance of the regulations.2. Registration fees are non-refundable.3. This competition is to be conducted solely via this website – no additional printed material is available. 4. McCormick Place REDUX is a juried anonymous competition. Anonymity will be maintained throughout the competition. No names of team members shall appear on graphic material or in file names. The unique 5-digit registration number is the only means of identification.5. All material received by the competition organizers becomes their property, including reproduction rights.6. The intellectual property rights for each submission remain with the author(s) of the submission.7. Members of the Board of Directors of the Chicago Architectural Club, staff and Board members from AIA Chi-cago, and Landmarks Illinois, members of the jury or their families, or those involved with the preparation or funding of this competition may not participate. 8. The decisions of the jury will be final and unalterable, and they thereby reserve the right to leave any prize vacant, or partially award prizes.9. The official language of the competition is English.
Parking North1 level1500 parking lots
McCormick P lace REDUX SITE PLAN_3
Parking South2 levels1947 parking lots
Site Boundaries
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McCormick P lace REDUX BASEMENT_4
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McCormick P lace REDUX GROUND LEVEL_5
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McCormick P lace REDUX FIRST LEVEL_6
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EL + 92.0'
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EL + 107.0'
EL + 92.0'
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McCormick P lace REDUX SECTIONS_7
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