The hyper-modern single-story blue building at the corner of 16th and Sawyer(link is external) gives off vibes that are one part coffee shop, one part community space—just as envisioned by the Robles siblings, who run the lead firm on the project, the nonprofit Duo Development.

The new building, named Starling—inspired by the ways large groups of the birds can generate figures when they come together—serves as a proof of concept for the firm’s ideas. “We call it our album drop,” Rafael ‘Rafa’ Robles jokes.

Persuading decision-makers of the need for a building like Starling in North Lawndale was a hard sell, according to Robles and his siblings Carlos and Karla. They credit support from the Elevated Works cohort with helping the project break through.

“The hardest part for me was whenever I felt like I had to justify to people that this was good idea,” Carlos Robles-Shanahan says. “Being part of Elevated Works has been invaluable, because talk about not having to convince people! They got it from the start.”

By Gordon Mayer

November 11, 2024