In 2023, Optima, Inc., a family-owned, vertically integrated and design-driven real estate development firm based in Glencoe, Illinois and Scottsdale, Arizona, realized a multi-family, 100-unit apartment building in downtown Wilmette, Illinois, delivering rental residences and an amenity-rich development to the North Shore market. For the privately-held firm, the residential and commercial project is more than its visual composition of glass…
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Visual-tactile design
In 2010, Hansel Bauman, award-winning architect, and pioneer in multi-sensory design methodologies, shared a vision for a building informed by visual-tactile design principles with Jeff Luker, AIA, LEED AP, principal at Quinn Evans in Washington, D.C. It was a vision that challenged standard architectural practices at the time, and arguably to this day, addressing major points of intersection between the…
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The Euclid model
The Great Lakes ecoregion has stood witness to the passage of time as marsh, dune, and forest habitats expanded and contracted, economic engines of industry rose and fell, and the growth of city populations surged and declined in cyclic fashion. While stalwart, its composition of freshwater sand dunes, sandstone cliffs, pebble beaches, limestone bedrock, and wetland basins have felt that…
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The boardwalk connection
“I look at design as a creation of how humans interpret the natural world. I think there is this connection between the natural world and the built environment, and it is up to us—those in the design field—to interpret what that is, and to create our own values on how we intersect the natural world and the built environment,” said…
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Great Lakes By Design: Crafted Lodging
CONTENTS DESIGN CORNER 17 Finn | the solution in outdoor seating offering a durable, low-maintenance option for dining and lounging 18 Geoffrey Nesting Tables | the minimal and colorful companion for any space with a subtle, playful demeanor 19 Lollygagger | the chaise lounge fit for the modern lollygagger designed with sustainability in mind 22 Willa | the versatile and durable storage side tables…
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Momentum in medium
Uplifting, multi-modal, and expressing hope amid challenging times, the exhibition “Illuminate” by Springboard Arts Chicago—one of Wicker Park’s latest arts tenants—brought a timely curation of fresh artworks to the gallery’s opening in November 2020 through February 2021. This spring, the gallery has built off its inaugural exhibition with a new exhibit, “Momentum,” which embraces the challenges that “Illuminate” brought to…
