The closely supervised renovation process for the award-winning Illinois Regional Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped insured all changes were carefully measured to sympathize with the building’s primary forms and essential character, while meeting the needs of its new commercial occupant. The exterior was repainted neutral white with blue accents, befitting its new use and matching the bank’s brand colors. The east wall’s metal panels were replaced by a glass curtain wall, matching their dimensions and rhythm exactly, allowing the signature wave-form window facing South Blue Island Boulevard to be retained. The drive-up canopy was derived from “found” design attributes of the existing structure, in which curved forms and circles are a dominant theme.
