Blair Kamin

Hilda O'Keeffe; her grandson Arlo Wyher, 1, and a friend climb down the Spanish-style stairs at the Chicago Public Library's Independence branch on Aug. 21, 2019.

Column: Chicago shows how public housing and libraries can coexist and be visually stunning. Now we need more of them.

August 23, 2019 at 12:51 p.m.

Let's dispense with the obvious, shall we? Three new Chicago buildings, which combine public libraries and public housing, are head and shoulders above the Robert Taylor Homes, Cabrini-Green and the...

The unfinished area under Block 37 is shown on June 14, 2018.

Column: A consultant disses Lightfoot’s casino sites. Now what?

August 14, 2019 at 3:24 p.m.

So a consultant has branded five casino sites floated by Mayor Lori Lightfoot, all on the South and West Sides, as out-of-the-way losers. Which raises the question: If the casino...

An aerial view taken April 1, 2017, shows the former U.S. Steel parcel, known as South Works. The 440-acre site is the only privately owned site among the five included in the economic feasibility study.

The consultant didn’t like any of 5 proposed Chicago casino sites. Here’s what we know about them.

August 13, 2019 at 10:20 a.m.

Which of five casino sites floated by Mayor Lori Lightfoot offers the best chance to reap a promised economic windfall? A state-hired consultant says the proposed tax structure for a...

Garden of the Phoenix on Jackson Park's Wooded Island, where a new lotus sculpture by Yoko Ono occupies the former site of a Japanese pavilion built for the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.

New Landscape Architecture Prize joins crowded field of design awards

August 12, 2019 at 4:06 p.m.

Seeking to draw attention to the often-overlooked field of landscape architecture, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group on Tuesday will announce its plans to establish an international landscape architecture prize that...

Maurice Cox, Director, Planning and Development, City of Detroit, talks about the 15th International Architecture Biennial in Venice, where four Detroit sites will be featured, on May 5, 2016.

Column: Lightfoot’s Motor City pick for planning chief: His Detroit work shows Chicago’s in for a ‘very interesting ride’

August 12, 2019 at 10:15 a.m.

Score one for Lori Lightfoot. In nominating Detroit's Maurice Cox on Wednesday to be Chicago's next planning commissioner, the mayor has tapped a figure of national reputation whose skill set...

Two children run from the parking lot to the beach house at Gillson Park in Wilmette on Aug. 5, 2019.

Column: Kings of the beach house: The little lakefront buildings of two Chicago architects show the way to design that enhances its environs.

August 7, 2019 at 10:27 a.m.

Skyscrapers, museums, mansions — those are architecture's glamour buildings. Then there are little, work-a-day structures, like those that line the lakefront in and around Chicago. They house bathrooms, food concessions,...

All Stories

Column: Chicago shows how public housing and libraries can coexist and be visually stunning. Now we need more of them.

Column: A consultant disses Lightfoot’s casino sites. Now what?

The consultant didn’t like any of 5 proposed Chicago casino sites. Here’s what we know about them.

New Landscape Architecture Prize joins crowded field of design awards

Column: Lightfoot’s Motor City pick for planning chief: His Detroit work shows Chicago’s in for a ‘very interesting ride’

Column: Kings of the beach house: The little lakefront buildings of two Chicago architects show the way to design that enhances its environs.

The dull blocks west of Navy Pier get an engaging park: Will it be loved to death?

A celebrated New Yorker’s new Chicago tower: The height of urban living, but not the peak of skyscraper style

Escape Venice’s tourist crush with a trip to Vicenza, home of great Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio

Pounded by Lake Michigan, Northerly Island to get rebuild, but popular path will be shortened