The 16-story fence

It was not until October 3, 1961, that Bertrand Goldberg Associates actually filed a request for a permit to construct the 16-story office building on the north edge of the site. Although James McHugh Construction Company was expected to bid on the project – its equipment and crews were already on site – other contractors were invited to submit bids.

Goldberg often described the office building as a fence, separating Marina City from the less developed areas to the north. In 2011, real estate developer Roger Levin recalled a meeting with Goldberg in 1993 in which Goldberg called the building, “his visual barrier, blocking out the slum property to the north.”

Expected to cost $10-11 million, it would contain a 54-lane bowling alley, retail shops, swimming pool and health club. The sixth-floor roof of the building would be a plaza for use by office workers and building visitors, with a garden complete with trees and benches. Each of the top ten floors would have 18,000 square feet of office space.

Original tenants included Sperry-Univac (now known as Unisys) and Goldberg’s architectural firm. BGA moved into Marina City in 1963 from its previous location at 721 North Michigan Avenue. His 30-person staff occupied the entire sixth floor.

With 44 major construction projects in progress or completed between 1958 and 1961, downtown Chicago was in the middle of a building boom. Much credit for this was given to the Chicago central area committee, created by business leaders for the sole purpose of promoting the downtown area. They were reversing a ten-year trend of decline in Chicago’s downtown similar to what was happening in other major American cities.

Soon, more than a billion dollars would be invested in such projects as Richard J. Daley Center, McCormick Place, and Marina City.

(Above) The office building at Marina City in 2010, now Hotel Sax. (Below) Under construction in October 1962. View from northeast, captured by Portland Cement Association, with the east tower at left.