…And They’re Off!
CNU Chicago’s single-stair design competition officially kicked off last week, and we couldn’t be more excited to see what you come up with.
On Tuesday, June 23, CNU Chicago held a sold-out mixer to officially kick off its single-stair design competition. Participants discussed how recently proposed — and sadly currently stagnant — legislation at the local and state level might impact Chicago’s housing crisis.
The time is now
Sean Hemenway, architectural designer at GFT and primary organizer of the design competition, noted that the “prompt is loosely based on the legislation introduced in city council,” but that the true inspiration is to solve “for the missing middle that we see so often when we walk our streets.”
For competition sponsor Steven Vance, founder and CEO of Chicago Cityscape, the contest’s timing is perfect. He noted that while Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s BUILD proposal would legalize single stair, “that’s napping for the summer.”
At the local level, there’s a city hall ordinance that would legalize single stair. “We’re probably not going to see movement on that here until after the election in February,” Vance noted, adding that “this competition is a useful way to spend our time [and] develop some excitement” in the meantime.
Seeking diverse perspectives
The decision to encourage teams of four to enter is a deliberate one. As organizers pointed out at the launch event, they’re hoping to see entrants think outside the box.
“As an architect, I love to see people pushing the rules… maybe breaking the rules if they can explain why,” Hemenway told kickoff attendees, encouraging them to include quality of life information and neighborhood narratives alongside their specs. “Any extra information that can give them a leg up.”
For Emily Conner, an interior architect at Corgan Architecture, getting outside the typical “mindset of architects” and working alongside a diverse group of professionals was an exciting prospect. “General architects often think they can do it all themselves. But then you don’t get the diversity of design you’re looking for,” she said.
Nowhere but Chicago
None of this would be possible without our sponsors and a foundational grant from The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation. But we’re also lucky to have in-kind support from organizations and companies sharing their spaces with CNU Chicago.
For a design competition so centered on the built environment, it only makes sense to meet in iconic spaces that celebrate Chicago’s unique architectural heritage. From the kickoff at GFT’s headquarters on the 37th floor of the Prudential Building to jury deliberations at the Chicago Architecture Center to the awards ceremony at University of Chicago’s Urbanism Lab, we’re incredibly thankful for these donated spaces.
More to come
Stay tuned for more about the process of reimagining Chicago’s residential building typologies in the coming weeks. And if you have any questions about the competition, please get in touch with us at illinois@cnu.org.