Our first stop during Open House Chicago this weekend was the Wintrust Bank Building located at 231 South Lasalle Street in the downtown financial district. The site is more commonly known as the Central Standard Building (formerly the Continental Illinois Bank of Chicago). It’s located directly across the street from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. It was designed by architects Graham, Anderson, Probst and White in 1924.
It is a combination of neoclassical, Gothic Revival and Art Deco architectural styles. The second floor of the building boasts the grand banking hall. It consists of 88,000 square feet of space. It’s a huge space that has been recently restored to grandure.
The building is located on the former site of the Grand Pacific Hotel, where the U.S. was divided into four standard time zones during a commemorative event in 1883. This is commemorated by a plaque on Jackson Street.
The Bank of America was the primary tenant starting in the mid 1980s after Continental Bank folded. They remained there until 2014 when Wintrust leased the building and it became its permanent headquarters.
Thanks for sharing. The pictures turned out really great especially the last one of the stairs.
Thanks as always for accompanying me to these places and reading and commenting on my blog. I appreciate it!