Special Delivery: Old Post Office Opens For New Business
CHICAGO (CBS) -- If you've driven into the city of Chicago, chances are, you went right underneath it.
If you've ever wondered what's inside Chicago's Old Post Office, it's now open for everyone to see.
For the past 20-plus years, the only view you've seen of the Old Post Office is the one from the outside. But now, the public can see the inside of the giant Art Deco structure.
CBS 2's Audrina Bigos has the details.
Three years and 800 million dollars later, it's all shiny and pretty right now. But the "before" pictures showed an eyesore over the Eisenhower Expressway.
More than two million square feet, essentially turned into a new age office building.
Who is this building for?
"One person it's for. That's the young, educated, technically proficient, urban-based workforce," said Brian Whiting, President of Telos Group LLC.
It's those who want to lounge and have a drink after work, or play bocce ball, workout in an old school boxing ring.
But all that is only for people who work there. For everyone else, you can go downstairs. There's a food hall coming next year along with a four acre rooftop with sports courts, running tracks and a bar.
Plus an outdoor area that will connect to the Riverwalk.
It's much more than postal workers had when the structure was built in 1921.
"Well, it was a mandate that we preserved it. This building is a city landmark," said Sheryl Schulze of Gensler, the firm charged with the massive makeover. "The footprint of the building is the equivalent of four football fields."
And when we're you're driving under the Old Post Office you, might have to share the road with more people. The project is bringing thousands of new jobs.
The building officially opens November 1. Nine companies have already signed leases there, including Uber and Walgreens.
