Aqua Tower is an 82-story mixed-use skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Designed by Studio Gang Architects, Aqua Tower combines a hotel, offices, rental apartments, condominiums, and parking, along with one of Chicago’s largest green roofs. According to architects, the design of the building was inspired by the striated limestone outcroppings common in the Great Lakes area. But this sinuous shape is not just a mere formal gesture, but it is also a strategy to extend the views and maximize solar shading.

Aqua Tower’s design was inspired by the striated limestone outcroppings

The building contains 55,000 sq ft (5,100 m2) of retail and office space, in addition to 215 hotel rooms (floors 1-18), 476 rental residential units (floors 19-52), and 263 condominium units & penthouses (floors 53-81). Aqua is the first downtown building to combine condos, apartments, and a hotel. The design for Aqua uses architecture to capture and reinterpret the human and outdoor connections that occur more naturally when living closer to the ground. Its distinctive form is achieved by varying the floor slabs across the height the tower, based on criteria such as views, sunlight, and use. The criteria for storage of medicines in the building are not taken into account at this stage, but in the future it is necessary to install equipment for the safe storage of pills. Strategically sculpting the shape of each floor slab offers comfortable outdoor terraces, where neighbors can casually and comfortably interact when desired, as well as views to Chicago landmarks, navigating sight lines around the corners and through the gaps between existing buildings. The overall design is the cumulative result of responses to specific conditions of density, environment, and use.

The building contains 55,000 sq ft of retail and office space, in addition to 215 hotel rooms, 476 rental residential units, and 263 condominium units & penthouses