“Tech giant Google’s reshaping of one of Chicago’s quirkiest buildings is coming into clearer view for downtown workers and elevated train passengers, with the once-skeletal exterior of the James R. Thompson Center taking on an eye-catching, new glass exterior.
“As the gutting of the formerly state-owned government building plows toward an expected 2027 completion, it is securing its place as one of the most-watched real estate projects ever in Chicago. That’s partly because of high hopes that Google’s building modernization can boost the sagging Loop office market and in part because of the Thompson Center’s high-profile setting.
“The ultrawide building at 100 W. Randolph St., designed by well-known architect Helmut Jahn and widely considered an iconic structure, sits on a site spanning about 3 acres in the center of downtown, directly connected to most of the Chicago Transit Authority’s train lines and surrounded by a public plaza.
“The arrival in recent weeks of rows of glass panels along the Lake Street side has provided the best public look so far at how the 17-story structure will appear when the revamping is complete; most of that process is required to happen before Google will complete its purchase and move-in.
“While it remains to be seen exactly how many people Google will employ in the 1.2 million-square-foot building or how much the project might improve the prospects for office leasing, residential conversions and property values in the area, real estate professionals agree the project is winning when it comes to attracting stares and starting conversations.
“‘It’s driving the narrative in the central Loop,’ said Matt Garrison, CEO of Chicago developer R2, a firm not involved in the project. ‘The Thompson Center is making its way into every offering memorandum and every lease pitch.’
“Google’s reputation as a forward-thinking real estate owner and tenant has altered the way the Thompson Center is perceived, after years facing the prospect of being demolished.
“‘It adds an instant dose of credibility,’ said longtime Chicago office leasing broker Michael Lirtzman of Colliers. ‘The perception is, if it’s good enough for Google, it should be good enough for other people.
“Multiple Illinois governors, including current officeholder JB Pritzker, floated the idea of selling the building to a developer that either would redevelop it or tear it down to create a large development site.
“City backers hope that a wave of new residents and thousands of Google workers arriving in the Loop in the next couple of years could boost office demand and bring in new restaurants and retail and neighborhood amenities such as grocery stores, returning some pre-pandemic vibrancy.
“‘The fact that Google has all the data in the world and this is what they chose to do is a pretty good endorsement,’ R2’s Garrison said of the Thompson Center project. ‘They tend to kind of create markets where they go, and there’s already a precedent in Chicago.’ (Ori
CoStar News, 7/16/25)
The Thompson Center was a Preservation Chicago 7 Most Endangered in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020. The preservation advocacy effort was long and challenging, but ultimately proved to be highly worthwhile. The building is being fully comprehensively modernized and will become a home to Google.
From “Impossible to Inevitable,” the Thompson Center reuse is a perfect example of the incredible power of preservation to generate economic development.
Governor Thompson wanted the State of Illinois Building (later renamed the Thompson Center) to stimulate the Central Loop in the early 1980’s. Thanks to a long and successful preservation campaign, and visionary developers and decision makers, 40 years later, the Thompson Center as Google HQ will again have a huge beneficial impact on the Central Loop.
Read the full story at CoStar News
- Google’s high-profile renovation of iconic Chicago building gives new look to heart of city; Tech giant’s Thompson Center project drives conversations about downtown, Ryan Ori CoStar News, 7/16/25
- Can The Google Effect Revive The Loop? Experts Say Yes; Experts say the Loop is showing signs of a potential economic boom thanks to the tech giant’s purchase of the Thompson Center and reinvestment in the area, Melody Mercado, Block Club Chicago, 1/27/25
- Google searching for tenants at revamped Thompson Center, Danny Ecker, Crain’s Chicago Business, 1/31/25
- Redeveloped Thompson Center will offer public gathering spaces, new renderings released by Google show, Brian Rogal, Chicago Tribune, 11/1/24