De La Salle Institute
Chicago, IL (Bronzeville)
De La Salle is a 130-year-old historic educational institution in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. Committed to its South Side location at 35th and Michigan, its evolving academic programs, aging infrastructure, and lack of adequate athletic grounds required expansion. Eckenhoff Saunders’ plan capitalizes on an available site across Michigan Avenue, creating a campus identity with plans for an expanded technology-rich learning environment, a championship-quality stadium, increased parking capacity, and improved accessibility.
A new academic building located across Michigan Avenue and connected to the rest of the campus via a glass-enclosed bridge increases the school’s academic space by 50 percent by employing the latest educational technology in an all-laptop learning environment: A state-of-the-art performing arts complex, including traditional and black box theaters, will also become a resource for the whole community. The master plan targets LEED silver certification.