An aging and unsightly parking garage located in a prominent section of Chicago’s Loop financial district is given a “face-lift” through the appliqué of a new screen comprised of white rubber traffic cones suspended from a stainless steel cable structure. The rubber traffic cones, in various sizes, skin the garage continuously on three sides, creating a textured surface that offers the structure a new visual identity that is low maintenance and environmentally-friendly. Colored lighting inside the garage assists drivers in locating their cars, and offers the garage a soft, glowing street presence at night. Signage is spelled out in black traffic cones strategically inserted into the array.
On the west side of the structure, fronting an open public space, a green wall of climbing vines is superimposed over and through the traffic cone-skin of the garage to enhance the atmosphere of the adjacent space and acknowledge the this façade’s civic role.