Marina City in Chicago, Illinois

The Marina City complex is located across from the Loop in Chicago. The twin towers house both commercial and residential properties. The buildings occupy a whole city block in Chicago, Illinois. The buildings are sixty stories high, and built on a raised platform and underneath the raised platform there is a small marina used for small boats.

The Marina City complex was designed by Bertrand Goldberg in 1959. The buildings were completed in 1969, and both have identical floor plans. Marina City when finished, were the tallest residential buildings and the tallest reinforced concrete structures in the world. The buildings mimic two corn cob shaped towers jetting up from the Chicago skyline. The complex is so large that is was billed as a, "city within a city''. The buildings featured an indoor swimming pool, theater, shops, restaurants, ice rink, bowling alley, gym, and a marina for small motor craft.

Marina City was the first urban high-rise in the United States at the time. The buildings revived the residential movement of living in the downtown area of cities across the nation. The unique floor plan of the buildings caused almost no right angles in any of the apartments occupying Marina City. On the residential floors of the complex, an elevator sits in the center of the hallway, and the apartments form a wedge or pie shape around the elevator. The kitchen and bathroom in each apartment is located in the point of the triangular shaped residence. The outer circular part of the space is the main living quarters and which boasts impressive views of the city below. All of the apartments in the towers are unique, because they run solely on electricity. Each of the apartments, have their own self contained heating and cooling system, along with hot water, which was unheard of at the time that the structures were built.

The views from the towers are quite impressive. On the south side of the buildings is a great view of the Chicago River and the Chicago Loop. The Sears Tower and the expansion of the city can be seen on the west side of the structures. During baseball season, it is possible to see Wrigley Field illuminated at night when the weather is clear. The observation deck on top of Marina City is great place to get a panoramic view of Chicago. Directly north of the building is an old saddle shaped auditorium, for many years the structure was unused, until the 1990's when it was converted into the House of Blues.

The Marina City complex is a veritable Chicago landmark. The Marina City complex stands out amongst the other steel structures in the city and is one of most famous architectural attractions in Chicago. Because of everything the towers and its features offers, Marina City helped establish a residential revival and bring people back to living in the city, and enjoying the many things it has to offer.