Johnson Center at North Park University Opens

The Johnson Center, North Park University’s new centerpiece of science and community life, opened on Friday. Hoerr Schaudt worked with a world-class, multidisciplinary team of architects and engineers to ease this state-of-the-art facility into the middle of this compact urban campus. The landscape vision for the Johnson Center preserves the University’s campus green and honors its role as a hub of both science education and student engagement. In addition, the design contributes directly to the Center’s application for LEED Gold status.

Hoerr Schaudt’s work on the campus landscape at North Park spans two decades. We are honored to work with such a wonderful client and celebrate its transformation! These pairings of before/after photographs illustrate some of the most dramatic changes that have occurred over the last decade.

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Core campus

The core campus landscape renovation in 2003 closed off Spaulding Avenue and an alley behind Nyval Hall to traffic, created a new circulation pattern, and introduced a simplified landscape palette that unifies the 100 year old campus.

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Campus Edge

More recent changes in 2012 addressed the edge and entrance to the campus. Streetscape improvements, a new fence and planting along Foster Avenue return a sense of grace and identity to the front of the campus and its most historic building, Old Main.

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Campus Gateway

Improvements to the campus gateway at a busy intersection help the University make a confident statement of its identity and activate an underutilized plaza.

North Park University is located in northwest Chicago at the corner of Foster Avenue and Kedzie Avenue. Find out more about the Johnson Center at the University’s newsroom.