1425 Ellinwood Ave, Des Plaines, IL 60016

1425 Ellinwood Ave places ground floor retail and restaurant space at the base of a large residential building in downtown Des Plaines, beside the Metra Northwest Line station. The location puts storefronts in the center of daily movement, where commuters, nearby businesses and residents cross paths on the way to the platform and the surrounding commercial streets.

The building reads as a contemporary mixed use block, with several stories of apartments rising over a clearly defined retail base. The upper floors use white, dark and wood toned cladding with balconies and regular window bays, while the ground floor is set apart by darker masonry and long runs of glass. From the sidewalk, the retail level has a direct and legible presence at the corner, with the station tracks and platform on one side and city streets and parking on the others.

Wide storefront bays with floor to ceiling windows and glazed entry doors run along the street frontage. The glass gives each bay strong visibility and brings natural light deep into the front of the space, while direct entrances let customers step in from the sidewalk without passing through a shared lobby. The rhythm of columns, doors and display windows makes it simple to present merchandise, menus or signage to people passing by.

Inside, the ground floor is an open shell carried on concrete columns with a high concrete ceiling and masonry rear walls. The clear floor area allows a retailer or restaurant to lay out sales space, seating and back of house support in a straightforward way, with the front zone reserved for the light and activity of the storefront. Service areas and storage can sit toward the rear, away from the public edge.

On site parking and nearby lots serve drivers, and the adjoining station provides a rail connection toward Ogilvie Transportation Center in downtown Chicago. Residents living in the 212 apartments above add everyday presence to the building itself, giving the street level a steady neighborhood audience in addition to downtown workers and visitors.