Michigan Plaza South

The Michigan Plaza South is an International Style skyscraper designed by Fujikawa Johnson & Associates, and built in 1985 in Chicago, IL.

Michigan Plaza South is not the only name you might know this building by though. The building is, or has also been known as Boulevard Towers South.

Its precise street address is 205 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL. You can also find it on the map here.

The Michigan Plaza South building, along with the 25-story Michigan Plaza North, is one of the two adjacent high-rise office buildings interconnected with associated commercial spaces and underground parking, constituting the complex known as Michigan Plaza.

The building underwent a major restoration in 2000. The architect commissioned to undertake this restoration was FGM Architects.

Fujikawa Johnson & Associates was the architecture firm in charge of the architectural design.

That being said, architecture is a complex discipline involving many professionals from different fields, without whom this building would have not been possible. We will surely be leaving out a lot of names here, but here is a list of the people we do know also played their part in making the Michigan Plaza South a reality:

• Alfred Benesh and Company in charge of Structural Engineering
• Metropolitan Structures Inc as the Main Contractor
• Metropolitan Structures Inc as the Main Developer
• Cosentini Associates Inc in charge of MEP Engineering

The Michigan Plaza South can be categorized as an International Style building.

The Michigan Plaza South uses a frame structure made of concrete columns and beams.

A frame structure uses a combination of beams and columns to sustain the building's weight. The walls in this case are non-load bearing, which allows for more flexibility when distributing the interior spaces.

The facade uses a non-load bearing curtain wall system. This means the curtain wall modules are anchored to the building's structural frame, typically by being attached to the edge of the floor slabs. The curtain wall system connects to the slabs using brackets, anchors, and mullions, which transfer the loads imposed by wind and temperature changes, to the building's primary structural elements.

This setup allows the curtain wall to accommodate differential movement between the facade and the structural frame, such as thermal expansion, floor deflection, or sway from wind forces. This system's integration with the slab edges also allows for continuous insulation and weatherproofing layers.

From an aesthetic point of view, the facade features a bronze-colored aluminum and glass curtain wall, with metallic mullions stylizing the windows like in the traditional Mies's style.

The main entrance at Michigan Plaza is shared with Michigan Plaza North.