Harbor Deck

Above a mixed-use development in the South Loop, the roof deck had been engineered to hold weight, not to be lived in. We built a lightweight growing medium and structural planting system that let the deck support full-canopy trees within the existing load limits, then organized the plan around sightlines to the skyline rather than around the mechanical equipment it was hiding. What was once service infrastructure is now the only public green space within several blocks used daily by residents who never have to leave the building to find it.