Project of the Year Feature – New Construction – Chicago (Above $20M)

January 3, 2025

BURR RIDGE – CISCO’s 1st 2024 Project of the Year Feature is the top choice of New Construction – Chicago (Above $20M), which is the Damen Green Line Elevated CTA Station. General contractors were F.H. Paschen, S.N. Nielsen & Associates; client was the Chicago Department of Transportation.

When considering submissions, judging criteria is based on: quality of construction, design, impact on the community and safety record.

Chicago’s Near West Side neighborhood has a new Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Damen Green Line station at Damen and Lake. When the original Damen Station closed in 1948, area residents were left with a serious transportation gap in the 1.5-mile corridor between the Green Line’s Ashland and California stations.

To boost local development and neighborhood connectivity, the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), along with the CTA, sought to reopen the station as a hub for the Kinzie Industrial Corridor, the United Center, Malcolm X College, and surrounding residential areas on the growing Near West Side.

To achieve the City’s vision for this $80-million project, CDOT partnered with Perkins & Will, a global architecture and design firm, to complete the design, and F.H. Paschen, S.N. Nielsen & Associates LLC (F.H. Paschen) as general contractor responsible for construction.

Perkins & Will, CDOT’s design partner, chose and arranged the station materials and design to create an intuitive user experience and to allow for a long-lasting transit facility with minimal maintenance requirements. A grand stair and escalator, visible through the transparent glass façade, guides passengers to the platform level. A glass bridge connects the inbound and outbound train platforms, offering spectacular views of the Chicago skyline and orienting visitors to neighborhood destinations and attractions. In a nod to Chicago’s architectural history, the green trusses along the station’s pedestrian bridge reflect the name of the CTA line and are a dynamic reference to Chicago’s iconic steel bridges.

Perkins & Will, CDOT’s design partner, chose and arranged the station materials and design to create an intuitive user experience and to allow for a long-lasting transit facility with minimal maintenance requirements. A grand stair and escalator, visible through the transparent glass façade, guides passengers to the platform level. A glass bridge connects the inbound and outbound train platforms, offering spectacular views of the Chicago skyline and orienting visitors to neighborhood destinations and attractions. In a nod to Chicago’s architectural history, the green trusses along the station’s pedestrian bridge reflect the name of the CTA line and are a dynamic reference to Chicago’s iconic steel bridges.

The design elements primarily comprised a simple material palette: concrete, steel, timber, glass, and stainless-steel cladding. Since the finish materials are also the structural elements, the architecturally exposed concrete (ACON) and architecturally exposed steel (AESS) required exhaustive coordination to integrate and conceal systems within structural members and to achieve a high level of finish. An additional design challenge was to detail the envelope to provide natural ventilation for passenger spaces to protect passengers from wind but avoid mechanical cooling.

The detailing of these systems includes a shingled glass façade at the east elevation with open joints between panels, a gap between the top of all walls and the station house roof and detailing in the glass systems at the bridge which raises the sill above the floor line and holds the head below the roof line to allow air to move in and out of the bridge volume. All glass in the project is treated with custom frit patterns, designed to minimize bird strikes in transparent areas and enliven the experience while waiting for a train on the platform.

Finally, a mass timber roof deck is used in lieu of a traditional steel deck to provide a sustainable material and bring a biophilic aesthetic to the station palette. The challenge for the team was to design a system that could be fabricated locally. This led to the selection of nail-laminated timber (NLT), a mass timber product that was fabricated in panels and anchored to structural framing to create the roof deck ceiling. Throughout the design process, CDOT encouraged the team to push the design envelope and deliver a station design that is both elegant and functional.

Based on Perkins & Will’s design, F.H. Paschen constructed the new ADA-compliant structure, which includes a three-story 8,700-square-foot station house with floor-to-ceiling-windows and a unique NLT structural ceiling. The front granite slab plaza contains architectural lighting, two honey locust trees, and a new bus stop with underlit benches and a custom CTA sign. Passengers will utilize a glass enclosed, cantilevered pedestrian bridge painted a vibrant and iconic green to connect the inbound and outbound platforms. The station offers two elevators with the north elevator being completely enclosed in glass. The station house walls, stairs, and 70-foot elevator tower are all cast-in-place architectural concrete, with all architectural concrete work self-performed by F.H. Paschen’s in-house team.

Upon entry into the station, there is a 1,260-SF glass mosaic mural created by local artist Folayemi [Fo] Wilson entitled “Promise (for tomorrow from the past looking to the future).” Located near the entrance, the mural gives a visual representation of the various racial and ethnic groups comprising the Near West Side neighborhood. Due to the complexity of the design, construction of the mural required close coordination.It comprises nearly 800,000 individual ½-inch vitreous glass tiles, in 31 different colors.

The platforms consist of precast concrete, an all-glass canopy, new LED advertising displays, and interactive system map touchscreens. A new alley and crosswalk on Seeley Avenue provide access to the existing residential area behind the station. At night, the station lights up with the illuminated windows, station house, and vertical “Damen” sign. Moreover, the Damen Green Line station is designed and constructed to provide an enhanced and modern transit experience for decades to come.

F.H. Paschen had to overcome two key challenges during construction: minimizing impacts to normal CTA services and fabrication, delivery, and placement of the pedestrian bridge. Part of the construction scope was to remove and replace the existing columns supporting the track structure so that the new station could be integrated into the existing network. However, because the tracks are part of the active Green Line operations, we could not close the tracks for extended periods. This meant taking an innovative approach to constructing the new columns and supports.

F.H. Paschen’s approach essentially reversed how support columns are usually constructed. After reinforcing the track structure with shoring towers and removing the existing columns, they hung the new columns from the existing track girders. Once those were in place, they poured the pile caps and piers up to the new column base plate instead of the more traditional approach of building the caps and piers and then placing the columns. After testing to ensure the new concrete met the design strength specifications, F.H. Paschen transferred the load to the new columns and removed the shoring towers. Throughout this process, they monitored the track structure and shoring towers daily to verify that no settlement or movement had occurred. This allowed track operations to continue safely and without interruption as the new columns were built.

The second and perhaps biggest challenge was the fabrication and delivery of the pedestrian bridge. The design required AESS as a key feature. AESS has different standards for use, depending on how visible it will be in the final construction, and the bridge required AESS 4, the highest quality meant to create a flawless surface on showcase elements. This meant that to achieve the AESS 4 standard, F.H. Paschen had to fabricate as much of the bridge as possible in the shop. However, this created a new problem: how would they deliver the nearly complete bridge to the project site?

Traditional trucking methods to transport the bridge weren’t possible because it was too large to safely navigate through overpasses and other tight spaces enroute to the jobsite. Instead, they opted to fabricate the bridge in two halves and load them onto a barge that traveled up the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal to the South Branch of the Chicago River. F.H. Paschen then unloaded the bridge at the site of “The 78,” placed the bridge sections onto trucks, and transported them the remaining 4.5 miles to the jobsite. Once the two halves of the bridge were on-site, they used a combination of welded connections and Cast Connex Diablo connectors to splice them together into a complete structure. Through careful coordination with the CTA, CDOT, and rail authorities, F.H. Paschen orchestrated a 52-hour weekend track shutdown to erect the bridge using a tandem crane pick. They completed the bridge placement within the required timeframe, allowing the tracks to reopen as scheduled in time for the Monday morning rush.

F.H. Paschen’s three-phase quality approach, which is based on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s quality process, involves carefully planning, communicating, and documenting of all work. F.H. Paschen used this approach successfully for the Damen Green Line project, which presented unique quality challenges due to the design and materials used. For example, building information modeling (BIM) was used extensively throughout construction and not just for the expected MEP trades. Glazing, NLT, and metal panel systems all had unique components and custom details that required close coordination with multiple other trades to ensure all work met specifications. BIM allowed us to work with both the architect/engineer and the trades to identify and resolve issues prior to actual construction beginning and was key to accurate planning and scheduling of these customized components for F.H. Paschen’s project management team.

The NLT structure used for the station house ceiling required significant coordination and monitoring because the ceiling also acts as the structural roof deck. NLT is an engineered wood product that is made by placing dimensional 2x12s on edge and fastening them together with nails to create a solid timber panel. Its structural performance and aesthetic appeal made it suitable for both exposed and hidden portions of the station house ceiling while offering the strength and durability needed to support not only the structure but also the green roof installed above the NLT ceiling. The NLT panels were customized to fit the design vision while providing a sustainable, cost-effective solution. This required careful coordination with electrical and plumbing systems as all openings had to be cored in advance of installation.

We also had to closely monitor the AESS used throughout the construction. Different classes of AESS were specified for the steel structures ranging from AESS 2 (for feature elements not closely viewed) to AESS 4 for showcase elements that require a flawless look. The steel structures used included the north elevator tower and stair enclosure (AESS 2), the canopy steel over the platforms (AESS 3), and the pedestrian bridge (AESS 4).

The installation of the AESS required significant coordination with the designer and trades. For example, the AESS columns at the station house had to be coordinated amongst disciplines to maintain a slim profile while integrating conduit for attached light fixtures and downspouts from the roof above. The resolution conceals these systems from view and provides a refined aesthetic, seamlessly blending functionality with design excellence.

As with any project of this complexity and scale, safety was a top concern throughout construction. We had to be particularly careful with the construction in and around the CTA train tracks due to the added hazards of the active train lines. Working closely with the CTA and CDOT, CTA flaggers were used whenever work was scheduled adjacent to or above the tracks to ensure all workers were protected from oncoming trains. Further, we protected workers from the energized third rail during activities near the track by using rail covers to prevent workers from accidentally touching the electrified rail. Over the course of the 18-month project, a total of 189,290 manhours were worked. F.H. Paschen self-performed 41,518 manhours without a safety incident.

The City of Chicago’s goal for reopening the Damen Green Line station was to boost local development and neighborhood connectivity. The new station now provides easier access to public transportation for residents living in between the Ashland and California stops and offers sustainable transportation options such as bike-sharing and pedestrian-friendly spaces. In fact, the station is the proud home of Chicago’s 1,000th Divvy Bike Station. By restoring service to the neighborhood, the City also expects the station to spur economic growth by attracting businesses and creating new job opportunities in the area. For example, the new Damen Station was successfully opened in time for the Democratic National Convention that took place just blocks away at the United Center.

F.H. Paschen has played a key role in helping the City achieve these community-focused goals by achieving participation rates as follows:
MBE: 28.2%
WBE: 9.2%
VBE: 1.02%