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If you don't know, in celebration of McDonald's 50th anniversary, McDonald's decided to replace the famous and enormous Rock n Roll McDonald's with an even bigger monstrosity.
Here is a good news article on the celebration and new McDonald's:
http://www.strategiy.com/inews.asp?id=20050416143921
Now, I'm not bashing the entire structure. It has it's moments with some great furniture and spectacular views of the city. But compared to the other designs, it is nothing remarkable.
I found it pretty amazing that McDonald's asked some of Chicago's top architects to design a new McDonald's but then dismissed their ideas and instead opted out for its own inhouse designer's vision.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/arts/chi-0408080302aug08,1,2660369.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
Here were the proposals:
Helmut Jahn:
Helmut Jahn's plan for the River North McDonald's featured a giant pair of golden arches that created a gateway for cars and pedestrians.
The Jahn-designed restaurant would have had whimsical electronic signs attached to its steel-and-glass exterior. As seen in the computerized rendering, the arches would have had a powerful urban presence.
Dan Coffey:
In Dan Coffey's McDonald's design, the restaurant becomes a collage of elements. An elevated ramp leads drive-through customers over a ground-level Ronald McDonald park.
And the best in my opinion, Martin Wolf:
A strikingly modern design for a new McDonald's in River North, by Chicago architect Martin Wolf, was one of three contemporary plans invited, and then rejected, by Oak Brook-based McDonald's earlier this year.
And what does McDonald's come up with?
Past (first McDonald's in Des Plaines, IL):
Present McDonald's:
I understand where McDonald's is coming from with this design, but that does not mean I agree with it. Sure it's a blast from the past and pays homage to their humble beginnings, but there is nothing humble about this building in the first place. Fifty years ago this design was spaceage- it is no longer. Instead of moving on and taking a futuristic approach, McDonald's sticks with the tried and true. I guess for possible redemption, McDonald's has another chance with a 10,000 sq. ft. restaurant near their HQ in Oak Brook, IL.
Here is a good news article on the celebration and new McDonald's:
http://www.strategiy.com/inews.asp?id=20050416143921
Now, I'm not bashing the entire structure. It has it's moments with some great furniture and spectacular views of the city. But compared to the other designs, it is nothing remarkable.
I found it pretty amazing that McDonald's asked some of Chicago's top architects to design a new McDonald's but then dismissed their ideas and instead opted out for its own inhouse designer's vision.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/arts/chi-0408080302aug08,1,2660369.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
Here were the proposals:
Helmut Jahn:


Helmut Jahn's plan for the River North McDonald's featured a giant pair of golden arches that created a gateway for cars and pedestrians.
The Jahn-designed restaurant would have had whimsical electronic signs attached to its steel-and-glass exterior. As seen in the computerized rendering, the arches would have had a powerful urban presence.
Dan Coffey:

In Dan Coffey's McDonald's design, the restaurant becomes a collage of elements. An elevated ramp leads drive-through customers over a ground-level Ronald McDonald park.
And the best in my opinion, Martin Wolf:

A strikingly modern design for a new McDonald's in River North, by Chicago architect Martin Wolf, was one of three contemporary plans invited, and then rejected, by Oak Brook-based McDonald's earlier this year.
And what does McDonald's come up with?
Past (first McDonald's in Des Plaines, IL):

Present McDonald's:

I understand where McDonald's is coming from with this design, but that does not mean I agree with it. Sure it's a blast from the past and pays homage to their humble beginnings, but there is nothing humble about this building in the first place. Fifty years ago this design was spaceage- it is no longer. Instead of moving on and taking a futuristic approach, McDonald's sticks with the tried and true. I guess for possible redemption, McDonald's has another chance with a 10,000 sq. ft. restaurant near their HQ in Oak Brook, IL.