Goals

With Western, Lawrence and Lincoln Avenues all converging at what is currently a parking lot, this site has the potential to become a new center of activity in Lincoln Square. The intersection of Western and Lincoln Avenue hosts the neighborhood’s commercial center, lined with pedestrian friendly shops and restaurants. This area is also home to seasonal events and farmers markets such as Square Roots and the Apple Fest which have reinforced a sense of the “village” commons. With the opening of Lincoln Square’s Ainslie Art’s Plaza in May of 2021, the intersections of Western Avenue, Lincoln Ave, Ainslie Street and Gunnison Street has become a site for respite from Western Avenue’s car traffic with a nascent potential to congregate and cultivate a local arts community.

Results

The new residential building at 2415 – 2417 W. Gunnison Street faces both Gunnison and Western, framing the new Ainslie Plaza and the complimentary plaza south across Gunnison. At the Gunnison and Western plaza, the new building’s facade lifts up to reveal a triangulated entrance space, expanding the existing tree-lined plaza by offering storefronts for gallery space and a small café. The triangle of the building entrance almost doubles the existing plaza. Irregular slanted columns delineate a new building perimeter while inviting neighbors to gather and engage with the artsbased program. West along Gunnison, the building offers four discreet storefront spaces inset at angles into the building façade. Three of these will provide public facing exhibition and studio spaces for artists in the neighborhood to create and share their art.

The upper floors of the building include a variety of affordable one-, two-, and three-bedroom units. Building ammenities include a bike room, fitness and lounge spaces. As the building rises to a total of eight stories, the massing steps back from the alley on Gunnison Street to relate more closely to the heights of the neighboring two and three flats. These steps in the building allow for a green roof on the fifth floor and an accessible roof terrace on the seventh floor. Western & Gunnison apartments is designed to create a focal point for the arts at a heavily trafficked intersection in Lincoln Square motivating movement beyond car traffic while supporting creative expression in the area.