Statement on Prentice Lawsuit Dismissal

Northwestern University is pleased to learn that two preservation groups have moved for a voluntary dismissal of their lawsuit regarding the decision by the City of Chicago not to give landmark status to the former Prentice Women’s Hospital.

Northwestern will now work with the City of Chicago and Ald. Brendan Reilly to move forward on the University’s plans to build a new, state-of-the-art biomedical research facility on that site. Doing so will create approximately 2,500 construction jobs, 2,000 full-time jobs, have an annual economic impact of nearly $400 million on the area and make Chicago a global leader in medical science. 

The new building on the Prentice site will be connected on a floor-by-floor basis with the existing University research building just to the west of the site. Doing so will bring researchers together and thereby enhance the chances of finding breakthroughs in cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and neurodegenerative disorders, among others. The site is the linchpin for what will be a major new medical research hub.

Northwestern will conduct a design competition for the new biomedical research facility. The University will invite many of the world’s best architectural firms, including Chicago firms, with substantial accomplishments in designing biomedical research or similar buildings to submit expressions of interest and statements of qualifications.

The University also will maintain its partnerships with the city and the Streeterville community on ways that Northwestern can continue to benefit both the neighborhood and the University’s students, faculty and staff on our Chicago campus.