New Apple Store Inspired By Frank Lloyd Wright Planned For Michigan Ave

By Kate Shepherd in News on Nov 18, 2015 4:34PM

MacRumors.com

The new Apple store coming to North Michigan Avenue will be like a "high-tech version of Frank Lloyd Wright's quintessentially Midwestern Prairie Style homes" right next to the Chicago River, according to the Tribune's Blair Kamin. And Apple wants to start construction as soon as next year.

A flight of stairs will carry shopper from Michigan Avenue to the walkway along the north bank of the river, where the store will be located in 401 N. Michigan's vacant food court, according to plans unveiled to the Tribune. The glass-sheathed, 20,000-square-foot store will overlook the river and the building's glass walls will rise 32 feet above the riverwalk.

An entry pavilion to the Apple store will be located at the southern end of Pioneer Court and customers will head down via stairs or an elevator to the sales floor. The pavilion's design will "blur the line between interior and exterior space," according to a report from the city's Department of Planning and Development.

A rendering for the pavilion. (MacRumors.com)

The plan for the building was designed up by the London-based architectural firm Foster + Partners, which is headed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Norman Foster. The firm has designed Apple stores in China and Istanbul as well as the company's under-construction headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.

The city's planning department already approved the proposal on Monday.

Apple has been in its current Magnificent Mile location at 679 N. Michigan Ave. since 2003, but this groundbreaking riverfront store will give the company more visibility.