Navy Pier Competition

James Corner Field Operations wins the competition to redesign the existing structure and tourist destination designed by Daniel Burnham to connect the people of Chicago with Lake Michigan.  The designs are a little too candy-colored for my taste, but still Toronto could take a cue about how a city can relate to a lake.

And they have some wicked mobile planters!

Algae Green Loop

Proposal for an algae retrofitting of the Marina City Towers in Chicago, by Influx Studio. The buildings would work as giant air filters, taking in CO2 from the atmosphere and releasing oxygen back into the city.

Chicago

If you’re gonna be in Chicago this winter, here are a couple things I’ve done with friends recently and are totally worth checking out:

Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues
329 N. Dearborn Street
If you've never sung a Negro Spiritual, this is the place to go! The energy is great and you'll eat the best waffles you've ever had.

Noel Coward’s Private Lives at Navy Pier
Chicago Shakespeare's Courtyard Theater
This 1930 play is Coward at his witty best. This Chicago Shakespeare Company production is high quality and the actors do the play great justice.

Teavana
835 North Michigan Avenue
The Apple Store of teas! Stop by and get free samples of a bunch of teas or just smell the store for some free aroma-therapy.

Rio Olympics

Even though the Games are still 7 years away, Rio is partying like it’s 2016. In fact, the announcement created an impromptu holiday in the city, like Cariocas need an excuse to have one. I don’t care much about the games themselves, but I hope the event elevates Rio’s infrastructure and safety. It will be interesting to see how they turn a crime-ridden city often on the brink of civil war into a world-class Olympic destination. They sure had the best promo video -- I like the fact that they used a narrator with a Brazilian accent on it, instead of generic American-English.

And poor Chicago. Not even Oprah and Michelle's power tag-team was enough to charm Olympic officials...

Of course,this is not the first time Chicago loses an Olympic bid. In 1904, occasion of the first US Olympics, Chicago lost the spot to St. Louis. They also lost their bid in 1952 and 1956 (to Helsinki and Melbourne respectively). Maybe 2052?

The 1904 St. Louis Summer Olympics.