Located in the heart of Chicago’s diverse Lincoln Park neighborhood, the Lincoln Common site was previously home to Children’s Memorial Hospital. Seeking to create a lively new neighborhood crossroads, co-developers McCaffery and Hines partnered with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and Antunovich Associates to design the 1.1 million-square-foot mixed-use development. It is a model for sensitive, community-informed master planning, architectural, and program strategies. Today, Lincoln Common is a destination that 1,000+ people of all income levels and age groups call home and a place for the greater community to gather. The LEED-Silver certified master-planned development spans more than 6 acres and comprises 100,000 SF of national and local brand retail, two 20-story apartment towers offering 538 units (10% affordable), a five-story office building, a 32-unit condominium building, and a 150-room senior living facility. Lincoln Common's architecture is a unique combination of new construction and adaptive reuse, incorporating new high-rise density into the otherwise low-rise neighborhood. This approach celebrates Chicago’s historic as well as contemporary architecture and presents an organic, authentic, and approachable community development. The development masterfully blends an array of uses into a pedestrian-friendly environment that is properly scaled and integrated into its urban setting. Previously impermeable due to use and design, Lincoln Common’s master plan brought pedestrian access onto and through the site, knitting it into the fabric of the neighborhood. The project provides more than one acre of connected open spaces that cater to a wide range of uses year-round, including a grand central plaza, contemplative memorial garden, and children’s playground. Since opening, the plaza at Lincoln Common has become the neighborhood crossroads and “town square” for local events and festivals, integrating the apartment residents with the larger Lincoln Park community. The property hosts dozens of events each year that are open to the public, including children’s programming, fitness classes, concerts, markets, and cultural events.