Open to Conference Attendees Only!

CAF's Architecture River Cruise spotlights over 50 historic and architecturally significant sites where you'll gain a new perspective of the city. Come aboard either of our well-appointed vessels, Chicago's First Lady, Chicago's Little Lady and Chicago's Fair Lady where open-air and indoor seating will add comfort to your journey. Snacks and beverages are available for purchase on board. All seats are sold for upper decks, don't worry you won't have to sit inside. All seats are general admission, the number on your ticket does not represent a seat number. Don't forget your camera to capture the beauty of the architecture. Experience this fabulous tour with other professionals for a unique opportunity!

Registration for this tour is separate.  Please click here and enter code CAF2010.  Make sure you arrive dockside Michigan & Wacker SE Corner of the Michigan Ave. Bridge 30 to 20 min early.  Tour departs at 2 pm.

Open to Conference Attendees Only!

The design of the new Orthopaedic Ambulatory Building (OAB) at Rush University Medical Center (RUMC) powerfully expresses formal simplicity with careful attention to detail. The building is basically rectilinear in form with compositional variations that respond to site and environmental conditions. The building core and associated services were organized to the west to maximize dramatic views of the Chicago skyline for the building's occupants. The eastern face also has a distinctive curtain wall pattern that was designed in tandem with the new hospital across the street to form a gateway to the Rush campus. Sustainable strategies were incorporated throughout the building, including a green roof that covers nearly 50% of the roof and thereby aids in the reduction of stormwater run-off.

Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush offers comprehensive outpatient care in orthopedics and sports medicine. Four of the five floors occupied by Midwest Orthopaedics feature 60 examination rooms, six x-ray and imaging suites, an imaging center with CT and two MRIs, fullservice physical and occupational therapy facilities, orthotics and prosthetic services, and research facilities of the RUMC Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. These include laboratories for Human Motion Analysis, Biomechanics, Tribology (the study of friction, lubrication and wear) and Implant Retrieval. The new facility also contains offices for all orthopedic surgeons, researchers and staff, a conference and learning center, and retail space on the ground floor. Bridges from the OAB to the existing parking garages to the west allow easy access to the OAB for ambulatory patients and visitors.

Open to Conference Attendees Only!

Jesse Brown VA Medical Center’s inpatient addition opened in May 2008 with 200 patient beds, seven operating rooms, a cystology room, inpatient dialysis center, SPD, outpatient surgical center and a chapel. The seven-floor, 224,000 square foot, “Bed Tower” was designed by two of the premier architectural and design firms in the world – Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and Ellerbe Beckett – and used input from 17 separate user groups comprised of VA employees that worked with the architectural firms for over a year to design a building that best met the needs of veterans and hospital staff.

The building’s unique design allows it to fit in among existing buildings on the 13-acre urban medical center campus that includes a Veterans Benefits Administration regional office, a 1560-space parking garage and an energy center. The Bed Tower, constructed by Walsh/DeMaria Joint Venture, is environmentally friendly and utilizes recycled materials for woodwork and flooring, thermal windows for temperature control and a green roof that controls storm water runoff and returns oxygen to the atmosphere.

Jesse Brown VAMC opened in 1953 and is one of the most active VA medical centers in the nation, serving over 58,000 veterans and providing a half-million outpatient visits annually.

Open to Conference Attendees Only!

The new five-story, 50,000 sf, LEED-certified Kellogg Cancer Center on the Evanston Hospital campus enhances Kellogg¹s model of collaborative cancer treatment which offers a host of complimentary medical, social, and educational services in one location. The architect tailored the building as much to its location on a land-locked campus as to treatment delivery. Design drivers included clinical pods dedicated to different types of cancer, the importance of natural light, multiple patient privacy options, and the centrality of the pharmacy. The design team met with the center's oncology patient advisory board to explore the issues most important to those undergoing care.