New Rooftop Deck

June 1, 2017

These are some old new photos, that I never got to posting around. I work downtown, but split my time between two different offices (both are located wtihin a block of one another).

Recently, one of the buildings where we have an office opened up their new rooftop deck. It’s meant to be used by anyone in the building with a keycard, and they had a bit of a shindig with the unveiling (lots of free food, giveaways, etc).

The first half of these photos are from that event. I ended up coming back here a week later with Lindsey and Gary, when there were a lot fewer people around.

Opening day. Tons of folks around (and tons of free food).

A foosball table which, is nice… but sems like a kind of novelty decor. There’s also a shuffleboard table against a wall nearby.

Most of the folks I’ve spoken with were talking about coming up here during work hours, to do some work in a different space. I can’t imagine these things would get much use, given how much racket they produce.

A view of the deck.

A lot of folks, milling about. Two things worth noting:

First, the center counter spot looks a lot like an actual bar. But on the other side, there are no sinks, no sources of water, and no refrigeration. There are storage cabinets, but that’s about it.

Second – whoever designed this space was smart enough to anticipate the needs of office workers coming to use the space. Under nearly every table, there are dedicated outlets where people can plug in laptops and chargers. Pretty smart.

Looking across the deck, with a Boston Store mural in the background.

Looking back towards the entrance.

The skyline in th edistance.

There was a walkway that wrapped around the roof, but my acrophobia kept me from venturing further than this spot. There’s a great deal of space between the walkway and the actual edge of the roof, but still…

Placard, near the Boston Store mural.

The mural is a tribute to the original ghost sign still located on the East end of the Rooftop. When 1 North Dearborn was built in 1929, it was originally home to the Boston Company Department Store, a major rival to Marshall Field & Company, Sears, and Carson Pirie Scott.

A few shots of the interior. These were taken on my return to the space, about a week later.

Pretty good spot to host a party.

The WiFi isn’t great, but it’s nice to have another optional place to go work for a while.

Another view of the skyline, with some better sunlight.

Not sure what the story is with the clover.

What looks like a small little house, attached to the roof. I really wanted to walk over and see if I could open up that door.

In acuality, I think this houses the top of the freight elevator for the building. But that’s a boring explanation. It tickled me to think that someone lives here, full-time.

Something I missed on my first visit: a small gas-powered fire pit.