a rooftop meadow of purple wildflowers in chicago

February 19, 2024

Picnic in This Meadow Atop Chicago’s Old Post Office

2023 Best of Year Winner for Commercial Landscape

Thanks to an adaptive reuse initiative, Chicago’s Old Post Office, a monumental art deco structure that was once the center of the city’s postal system now has the capacity to house 16,000 office workers, thanks to a massive renovation by Gensler. A key offering the now mixed-use property lacked pre-renovation was outdoor space, so developer 601W decided to take advantage of the sprawling 3 ½-acre rooftop, calling on Hoerr Schaudt to create an alfresco amenity. Footpaths meander around major structural beams where the roof is strongest; everywhere else, perennials and grasses are planted in a custom ultra-lightweight soil mix. The garden—one of the nation’s largest private green roofs—brings a vibrant natural beauty to the building and helps it meet sustainability goals to boot.

See Interior Design’s Best of Year Winners and Honorees

Explore must-see projects and innovative products that took home high honors.

2025 WINNERS

the chicago skyline from the roof of the old post office

Projects
Ippolito Fleitz Group Entices Shoppers To China’s MixC Mall
MixC Mall by Ippolito Fleitz Group revives in-person shopping with shimmering metal panels and a radiant lunar orb sculpture, exuding modern glamor.
Projects
Explore the Written Word in This Conceptual Bookstore
In the atrium of a bustling Foshan, China, shopping mall, there is an oasis of calm: a 27,000-square-foot conceptual bookstore by Panorama Design Group.
Projects
A Modern Hub for Life Sciences Rises from a 1920’s New York Gem
Perkins&Will puts a 1920’s New York building under the microscope, transforming it into West End Labs, a 21st-century hub for life-sciences professionals.