Apple’s planned new flagship store in Chicago will be located along the Chicago River, and the design will “echo” legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie Style homes, says the Chicago Tribune.
The store will be located near the historic Michigan Bridge and include a “grand flight of stairs” that will go from street-level to a walkway alongside the Chicago River’s north bank. On the street-level side, the store will have an entry pavilion that’s 14-feet high. Pedestrians entering from N. Michigan Avenue will have to proceed downward onto the sales floor via stairs or an elevator.
The new store will feature glass walls with a high-strength carbon fiber roof. Construction will begin next year on the 20,000 square-foot store, which will replace a vacant food court. The store will likely help to boost the neighborhood, shifting retail focus on Michigan Avenue further south, thereby encouraging other development projects in the area.
Apple’s current Chicago flagship store is the four-story North Michigan Avenue store, which the company has occupied since 2003.
The store development is being headed by Norman Foster of Foster + Partners, a popular choice of the company for projects such as this. The firm is in charge of the construction of Apple’s still under construction new Cupertino headquarters.
Apple is scheduled to present the plans for the new store to the Chicago Planning Commission on Thursday, but the Tribune’s report noted that is merely a formality, as the planning department has already approved the proposal.
