Mortenson recently completed this Chicago real estate development project, a new 17-story, 206-room Home2 Suites by Hilton Chicago River North. Mortenson teamed with the lead developer and owner Akara Partners on the extended-stay hotel, one of the few Home2 Suites by Hilton's urban high-rise hotels, while also serving as the design-builder with Norr Architects.

Mortenson built the flagship hotel at 110 West Huron Street in just 14 months on the site of a former parking lot. Unlike the smaller, 3-story Homes2 Suites by Hilton suburban locations, the 120,000 square-foot River North building features a modern glass enclosure system and a jump lobby configuration to maximize space for 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail.

Key project tools:

• Virtual Reality: The use of VR along with a full-scale model room provided a streamlined final layout and décor decision.

• Lean construction: 5S, Pull Planning and Last Planner System

• Green features: sorting, recycling and tracking nearly 90% of construction waste, a green roof using sustainable materials and exceeded City of Chicago's requirement of Green Globe certification Renderings courtesy of Norr Architects