In 2015, the City of Chicago designated the Fulton-Randolph Market District a Chicago Landmark. The area, once the thriving meatpacking district, had been a symbol of the city’s industrial, hard-working culture, the “city of big shoulders,” as poet Carl Sandberg wrote. The area is evolving, home to trendy restaurants, a vibrant nightlife, and headquarters for companies such as Google and McDonald's. Brick buildings have been replaced by structures with clean glass façades. The City hired landscape architecture firm Altamanu to design a streetscape that reflected both the history of the area and its cultural evolution. Altamanu partnered with Landscape Forms’ Studio 431 to build custom benches that also bridged the area’s industrial past with its modern vibe.
The benches’ laminated Alaskan yellow cedar seats are reminiscent of thick timber beams, and the steel powdercoated structure, laser-cut with Fulton Market identity, reminds visitors of the district’s gritty, industrial past while branding its dynamic future.
