The Shops at North Bridge

The Shops at North Bridge is an upscale urban retail and entertainment district in Chicago, Illinois, centered on 520 N. Michigan Avenue within the larger North Bridge complex. Its principal retail anchor is Nordstrom, whose multilevel store occupies a full-block building near North Rush Street and East Grand Avenue. The center is distinguished by its unusual urban form: the enclosed retail circulation crosses both East Grand Avenue and North Rush Street through elevated, four-level bridges, connecting buildings on a site where Michigan Avenue and the surrounding streets change elevation near the Chicago River. The development is part of a broader mixed-use complex that also contains five hotels, three parking garages, and two office buildings. The office component has housed organizations including the American Medical Association and Euro RSCG. The complex formerly included DisneyQuest, an indoor entertainment attraction, which was later converted for furniture retail use. The district's name refers both to its location within the nine-block North Bridge development and to the physical bridges incorporated into the shopping center. The property combines contemporary retail construction with preserved and relocated architectural elements. The former McGraw-Hill Building, an Art Deco structure completed in 1928 and recognized as a City of Chicago historic landmark, was demolished as part of redevelopment, but its facade was dismantled, restored, stored, and reinstalled on the exterior of the new building. The mall also occupies upper and lower street relationships created by the area's unusual grade changes. A prominent Michigan Avenue entrance was built as an approximately 80-foot atrium between the former McGraw-Hill site and an existing Marriott hotel. Ownership and branding changed several times. The Westfield Group acquired the shopping center in 2003 and initially renamed it Westfield Shoppingtown North Bridge, later dropping “Shoppingtown” in 2005. The Macerich Company acquired the property in January 2008 and restored the name The Shops at North Bridge, making it Macerich's first mall in Illinois. By December 2024, the retail property was associated with the Alaska Permanent Fund, which surrendered the asset to its lender. That event was reported as a sign of declining property values and continuing weakness in Chicago's Magnificent Mile retail market after the COVID-19 pandemic. Current ownership and the property's longer-term operating structure are not established by the supplied reference material.

The Shops at North Bridge developed as part of a large mixed-use redevelopment in Chicago's central retail district. Rather than functioning as a conventional suburban mall, the project integrated enclosed retail circulation with hotels, offices, garages, and street-level commercial spaces around North Michigan Avenue, East Grand Avenue, and North Rush Street. The site's topography shaped the design: Michigan Avenue is elevated in this area and slopes toward the Chicago River, while Grand Avenue passes beneath the retail connection. The resulting complex uses atriums, ramps, and elevated bridges to link otherwise separate structures. A notable element of the redevelopment was the treatment of the McGraw-Hill Building. The original Art Deco building, completed in 1928 and later designated a Chicago historic landmark, was removed for the new development. Its facade was carefully dismantled, cleaned, stored, and reassembled on the exterior of the replacement building. This approach allowed the project to preserve a prominent historic streetscape element while creating new retail and hotel space. The former Conrad Hotel occupied upper floors before being renamed The Gwen in 2015; the hotel had opened under the Le Meridien flag and was converted in 2006. The retail center's physical design is unusually vertical and infrastructural. The mall connects to a Nordstrom store occupying the first four floors of a full-block building near Rush Street and Grand Avenue. Because direct street-level retail frontage was constrained by the surrounding roads and grade differences, a major Michigan Avenue entrance was created as an approximately 80-foot atrium between the former McGraw-Hill building site and an existing Marriott hotel. The enclosed center crosses Grand Avenue and Rush Street, but development agreements excluded leasable retail space from the bridge portions themselves. Additional street-level retail exists below the main mall circulation. The broader North Bridge complex has included five hotels, three parking garages, and two office buildings. The American Medical Association occupies or has occupied an office building at 515 N. State Street, while another office building housed Euro RSCG. The complex also contained DisneyQuest, an indoor Disney entertainment concept, when the retail district opened; that attraction was subsequently converted into a furniture store. Other nearby construction generated architectural controversy, including the demolition of the Arts Club of Chicago's former interior, designed by Mies van der Rohe in 1951. The Arts Club relocated its floating staircase to a new building. The complex's principal architects included Anthony Belluschi Associates, OWP&P, Kellermeyer Godfryt Hart, Farr and Associates, and Callison for the Nordstrom building. Thielbar and Fugard designed the original McGraw-Hill Building, while Kenzō Tange designed the American Medical Association building at 515 N. State Street, identified as his first American building. The property's corporate identity changed during the 2000s. The Westfield Group acquired the shopping center in 2003 and used the name Westfield Shoppingtown North Bridge before dropping “Shoppingtown” in June 2005. Macerich acquired the mall in January 2008 and restored The Shops at North Bridge as the operating name. In December 2024, the Alaska Permanent Fund, then associated with ownership of the retail property, surrendered it to its lender. The event reflected broader pressure on Magnificent Mile retail real estate, including lower property values and the sector's slow post-pandemic recovery. The supplied references do not establish the property's current owner or any subsequent redevelopment plan.

• 2024

  Retail property surrendered to lender

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The Alaska Permanent Fund surrendered the retail property to its lender in December amid weakness in Magnificent Mile commercial real estate.

• 2015

  Conrad hotel renamed The Gwen

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The luxury hotel occupying upper floors of the complex was renamed The Gwen.

• 2008

  Macerich acquires and renames the property

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  Macerich acquired the mall in January and restored the name The Shops at North Bridge, making the asset its first mall in Illinois.

• 2005

  Westfield drops the Shoppingtown name

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The property name was shortened from Westfield Shoppingtown North Bridge to Westfield North Bridge.

• 2003

  Westfield acquires the shopping center

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The Westfield Group acquired the property and renamed it Westfield Shoppingtown North Bridge.

• 1990

  American Medical Association building designed by Kenzō Tange

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The office building at 515 N. State Street became notable as Kenzō Tange's first American building.

• 1928

  McGraw-Hill Building completed

  [1]The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org

  The Art Deco McGraw-Hill Building was completed on the future North Bridge site. Its facade was later dismantled, restored, and incorporated into the new retail development.

Upscale, urban, mixed-use shopping and entertainment district serving visitors, residents, office workers, and hotel guests in Chicago's Magnificent Mile area.

• Department store

  Nordstrom

  Nordstrom is the principal anchor of The Shops at North Bridge. Its store occupies the first four floors of a full-block building near the southwest corner of North Rush Street and East Grand Avenue, providing the district with a large-format fashion, beauty, accessories, and general merchandise offering.

• Shopping center

  The Shops at North Bridge retail district

  The core offering is an upscale enclosed and street-connected shopping district with specialty retail, department-store merchandise, dining, and visitor-oriented services. Its distinctive architecture links multiple buildings through elevated bridges spanning East Grand Avenue and North Rush Street.

• Entertainment attraction

  DisneyQuest

  DisneyQuest was an indoor amusement and interactive entertainment attraction included in the complex when it opened. It was later converted for use as a furniture store, making it a former rather than current offering.

• Home furnishings

  Furniture retail space

  The former DisneyQuest space was converted into a furniture store, adding home furnishings to the property's retail mix after the entertainment venue closed or ceased operating in that format.

• 2024

  Surrender of the retail property to its lenderStrategy

  Background

  The property faced declining retail-property values and weak recovery in Chicago's Magnificent Mile market after the COVID-19 pandemic.

  Action taken

  The Alaska Permanent Fund surrendered the retail property to its lender.

  Aftermath

  The transaction underscored financial pressure on the asset and left current ownership and future plans unclear in the supplied sources.

  Source

• 2008

  Macerich acquisition and return to the original nameM&A

  Background

  Macerich acquired the property after its period under Westfield branding.

  Action taken

  Macerich purchased the mall and restored the name The Shops at North Bridge.

  Aftermath

  The acquisition became Macerich's first mall investment in Illinois and re-established the property's original identity.

  Source

• 2003

  Westfield acquisition and rebrandingM&A

  Background

  The shopping center changed ownership as the Westfield Group expanded its presence in the property.

  Action taken

  Westfield acquired the center and introduced the Westfield Shoppingtown North Bridge name.

  Aftermath

  The Shoppingtown designation was later removed, leaving the Westfield North Bridge name until Macerich's acquisition.

  Source

1. 1The Shops at North Bridgeen.wikipedia.org