The CTA’s busy Clark and Lake station is slated for an overhaul as part of the redevelopment of the James R. Thompson Center into a high-tech home for Google.
One of the biggest changes will involve moving the main entrance to the station from Lake Street, where it is currently located under the “L” tracks, to the northeast corner of Clark and Lake streets. The move is intended to make the station entrance more prominent and provide better connections to bus routes, the CTA’s chief infrastructure officer, Bill Mooney, said.
Work will also include cosmetic changes to the station, he said. That includes expected changes to the finishes on the station’s interior mezzanine, better signs to direct passengers and upgrades planned for the elevated platform. The station is expected to connect to the building’s atrium, but passengers won’t have to enter the building to get to the station.
The cost of moving the station’s entrance and revamping the look of the mezzanine will be covered by the company that owns and is renovating the Thompson Center, JRTC Holdings, as part of the broader work on the building. The CTA referred questions about that portion of the project cost to JRTC Holdings, and a representative did not provide a figure Wednesday afternoon.
The CTA plans to pay $10 million for the platform work.
CTA President Dorval Carter billed the project as an opportunity to work with Google, and said further discussions with the tech company could yield new ideas about technology or connectivity the company might want to test out with the CTA.
The project is also an example of the ways the private sector can invest in the transit agency, he said. He has sought the ability for the CTA to make better use of its surrounding property, he said, as the agency braces for a looming fiscal cliff when federal pandemic aid dries up.
“it creates this space in which we can really work with (Google) to find new and innovative ways to improve the customer experience while supporting the Google brand,” he said.
Work to relocate the station entrance is slated to take place first, in November 2025. Other interior work is planned for June 2026, and work on the platform is expected later that year.
The work is part of a renovation, already underway, of the Helmut Jahn-designed Thompson Center. It’s being undertaken by Prime | Capri Interests, a venture led by Chicago developers Michael Reschke and Quintin Primo, which bought the Thompson Center in 2022 from the state of Illinois for $105 million. Google has agreed to take it over after the duo completes the renovation.
The redevelopment has been heralded by state and city officials as a new beginning for downtown Chicago, which has struggled with empty offices and storefronts. It includes plans to transform the iconic 17-story atrium inside the building into a comfortable public space open to Loop office workers and other visitors, renderings show, replacing an old food court with a terraced green space and a set of new cafes, restaurants and retail.
The Loop station inside the building is one of the CTA’s busiest, serving all but two “L” lines and connecting five elevated lines to the Blue Line subway. This year through August, the most recent month for which data is available, about 1.8 million passengers had entered the station.
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