CHICAGO—Architecture firm smdp LLC has announced its intention to team up with Fifield Cos. to build a park over the Kennedy Expressway that would connect better the entire West Loop with the downtown.
The locally based company is founded by Scott Sarver and Dae-Hong Minn, former principals of DeStefano Partners, and RATIO Architects Inc. To date, the smdp team has produced a diverse portfolio of urban high-rise, mixed-use, corporate and civic projects totaling 200 million sq. ft. of space in more than 100 projects around the world. The firm recently won a competition for a 60-story corporate headquarters tower in Beijing and is also involved with mixed-use complexes in Qingdao, Xian and Suzhou, China.
Sarver and Minn are currently working with Steen Fifield, founder and chairman of his firm, on a master plan proposal for the Chicago West Loop that will include a next generation office tower and an 8-acre park built over the Kennedy Expressway. The New West Loop plan calls for new transit connections along the city’s western commercial corridor.
“Chicago is fortunate to gain such a talented firm that will continue to push the design envelope and help this city maintain its architectural legacy,” said Fifield in a statement. “I have worked with the team at smdp on various projects and have always been impressed with the firm’s vision and its ability to successfully balance artistic merit and commercial enterprise.”