SOM has joined a growing coalition of civic, cultural, philanthropic, and design leaders contributing ideas to Chicago Cultural Stadium, an ambitious initiative led by Broadway In Chicago President and CEO Lou Raizin to reimagine downtown Chicago through the power of arts and culture.
Conceived as more than a single destination or building, the Cultural Stadium is a citywide framework for renewal—one that positions culture as essential civic infrastructure. The initiative brings together many voices around a shared goal: to create a downtown that draws people in, connects communities, supports artists and cultural institutions, and reflects the creativity and optimism that have long defined Chicago.
Working alongside fellow architects, designers, cultural leaders, and community advocates, SOM contributed ideas for The Link, a concept that reimagines a forgotten stretch of Lower Wacker Drive as an unexpected civic and cultural destination. Set within the layered infrastructure of downtown Chicago, the proposal transforms an overlooked urban passage into a cultural venue animated by light, movement, and performance. The Link envisions a dynamic public space that celebrates the city’s creative past while opening new possibilities for cultural life downtown.
“SOM’s work has always been rooted in the belief that cities are shaped by the public life they support,” said Doug Voigt, Urban Design and Planning Partner at SOM. “The Cultural Stadium invites Chicago to think expansively about culture—not as something contained within a venue, but as an experience that can animate streets, bridges, plazas, riverfronts, and civic spaces across downtown. Our contribution focuses on how design can help connect those moments into a memorable urban experience.”
The Cultural Stadium’s broader program includes ideas for artist support, cultural access, public art, adaptive reuse, open access to museum collections, and activations of overlooked spaces. SOM is one of several architecture and design practices contributing to the initiative, which brings together a broad network of civic leaders, cultural organizations, designers, and advocates around a shared vision for downtown Chicago.
SOM’s contribution builds on the firm’s long history in Chicago and its experience designing public spaces, urban districts, and civic frameworks that bring people together. SOM’s ideas examine how cultural activity can be woven into the daily experience of downtown, creating a more legible, lively, and inclusive network of places.
That approach aligns with the Cultural Stadium’s central premise that culture can be a catalyst for economic vitality, public safety, tourism, community pride, and belonging. As Lou Raizin has described it, the initiative is about bringing culture into the places where downtown has gaps—from retail and office vacancies to underused public spaces.
