“The transformation of the Thompson Center into the new Google HQ in The Loop continues, as the new glass skin continues to wrap around the building’s skeleton. As is well known by now, the Prime Group is renovating the former state office building, with a deal in place to sell it to Google upon completion. Google plans to move employees in next year.

“We last checked in on the installation in March when a permit was issued to renovate the CTA station that connects to the building, and glass had just gotten started at that point. Now, nearly six months later, the west and north façades are mostly completed, there’s a giant swath of new windows on the front of the building facing Randolph and Clark Streets, and progress is underway to enclose the first floor.” (Schell, Chicago YIMBY, 9/10/25)

“Google glass has come to the corner of Randolph and Clark streets. But not the wearable tech spectacles the company introduced about 15 years ago.

“Panes of glass — huge ones — are being installed at the soon-to-be Google headquarters, replacing exterior fenestration that was installed on the building during its previous life as the James R. Thompson Center.

“‘We’re installing the curtain wall with high-performance, triple-pane glass sourced from Minnesota that will reduce glare and solar heat gain to enhance the building’s insulation and thermal efficiency,’ Google spokesperson Ryan Lamont said.

“‘The building is certainly undergoing a revisioning,’ Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago, said. ‘We continue to be grateful for the commitment to the building by Google and the development team.’

“Lamont said glass on the sloped facades will have frits — a kind of pattern that is fashioned into the windows — that will help prevent flying birds from hitting the building.

I’m glad to see the once-doomed building find a new and productive life and championed for its reuse when it was threatened with demolition a decade ago.

“The new version feels sleek and corporate. But it certainly beats seeing the building wrecked.

“‘The renovations are progressing as planned,’ Lamont said. ‘And we continue to work closely with the development team to thoughtfully modernize the interiors of the Thompson Center while respecting its architectural integrity.’ (Bey, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/22/25)

“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.

“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 Chicago Sun-Times, CoStar News and Chicago YIMBY

• Google makes progress on Chicago headquarters with windows update; The new exterior glass is expected to help keep the building cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. But it certainly changes the structure’s look and feel,  Lee Bey, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/22/25
• 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
• Google Glass Progress Continues At The Thompson Center, Daniel Schell, Chicago YIMBY, 9/10/25
• 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