Today's Flexible Prototype

Today, the PBC continues to apply lessons learned from its past as it builds for the future. While the progressive concepts detailed here are more than 30 years old - and some no longer used in the same way - their value is still evident. For example, strategic purchasing is a subject that has been recently reopened, while the objective of designing buildings for durability and ease of maintenance has endured over time.

Today's prototype designs are being built with a clear emphasis on "smart building" concepts and environmentally-friendly criteria; or, by using a contemporary version born of the concepts and specifications included in three-decade's-old Technical Standards for Building Systems Guidelines.

"Green" rooftops and solar panels, are no longer considered the wave of the future. They are now standard features for all municipal buildings constructed in Chicago.

The following pages feature the progressive concepts of today. We invite you to look how far we've come, and yet, how strongly we connect to our blueprint of the future from our past.