Daley Center Opens Plaza to Private Events

Serving as one of Chicago’s most notable cultural epicenters, the Daley Plaza has long been recognized as a venue for civic and community events. Speaking about the team’s rationale for opening up the venue to a broader set of clients, MBRE’s Andre Wiggins, general manager of the Daley Center, commented, “Expanding the Plaza’s use will help to attract private and major corporate clients for events such as work outings, exhibitions and performances, markets and festivals, and wedding receptions. Not only will the Daley Plaza provide a truly unique and beautiful backdrop for an event, but the new activity will also generate revenue that will offset many of the Daley Center’s operational expenses.”

The Daley Center hosted its first private event in July for client Time Out Chicago, a leading media and entertainment business, for the company’s Battle of the Burger 2017 competition. The event featured 14 Chicago restaurants and over 800 guests were in attendance. MBRE’s Sydney Pryor, special events coordinator for the Daley Center, stated, “Time Out’s Battle of the Burger showcased restaurants from all over Chicago and brought people together for a very successful event,” adding, “We want the Daley Plaza to continue to be a space that promotes Chicago culture and brings the community together, and we can do that more effectively by expanding the criteria for who can host events at the venue.”

Referring to the PBC’s resolution to open the Daley Plaza to private and commercial events, Carina E. Sánchez, executive director of the PBC, stated, “As the premier civic center, and one of Chicago’s architectural highlights, there have been a number of requests to have weddings and other types of special events in the Daley Plaza.” She continued, “Seeing how much interest there was in the Plaza, in December of 2016, the Public Building Commission of Chicago’s Board of Commissioners approved a resolution that authorizes the expanded serviceability of the Richard J. Daley Center and Plaza to allow private and commercial events and activities. We are delighted to open up the Plaza so more people can have the opportunity to take advantage of such a remarkable space.”

Originally known as the Chicago Civic Center, the Richard J. Daley Center was designed by architect Jacques Brownson of C.F. Murphy Associates and is located in the heart of the Chicago Loop. The building includes 31 floors, more than 120 court and hearing rooms, the Cook County Law Library, and office space for the City of Chicago and Cook County. The building’s plaza, known as the Daley Plaza, features approximately 88,000 square feet of space, as well as the famed Picasso statue, designed by world renowned artist, Pablo Picasso. The Daley Center was designated as a Chicago Landmark in 2002 and is now LEED Certified Gold.

View the Daley Plaza Events Brochure here.

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