Kara Mann Discusses Her Plans for Chicago's Newest Luxury Residence
"It pushes the envelope in terms of location," says the effortlessly cool Chicago designer Kara Mann of her latest project, the interiors for her native city's newest luxury residence, 1000M. If the building's developers wanted a creative mind who could transform an up-and-coming neighborhood into a hip destination, they picked the right girl. From her debut furniture line for Milling Road, which became an instant editor favorite when it launched at High Point a few years ago, to her interiors that marry luxe materials with modern sensibility for an edgy look that doesn't sacrifice comfort, Mann seems to possess a preternatural ability to give everything she touches a certain cool factor.
No doubt that's what the developers, Time Equities, JK Equities, and Oak Capitals, was looking for when it tapped her earlier this summer to design the 74-story, 323-unit condo tower on South Michigan Avenue, which breaks ground in 2018. And, if the building's first renderings are any indication, she hit the nail on the head. Working with architect Helmut Jahn, Mann and her team devised the residences from the ground up, considering everything from floor plans to finishes in order to develop the perfect setting for a certain type of modern, sophisticated urban living.
"Having had a hand in the layout was really great," Mann recalls of the project, her first ground-up residential tower. "Sometimes with developments, you have so many constraints to work within. We really tried to push the limit—maximizing layouts, optimizing views and square footage. To me, starting with a fantastic floor plan is a big plus—that doesn’t always happen."
As far as stylistic inspiration, Mann took her cues from her surroundings. "Thinking about the project, you obviously think about location," she explains. "It's at the south end of the park, which is up and coming. So it’s pretty forward-thinking, which I thought was really exciting. It’s a pocket of lakefront property that’s kind of underdeveloped at the moment, so it can be this spearhead in the neighborhood. It’s a very tall tower, so it can kind of be this beacon at the south end to reflect the many great buildings at the north end."
The idea of a new spearhead building in a city so known for historic architecture may be a bold one, but Mann believes the clientele for it exists. "To me, this person is forward-thinking, a definite city dweller," Mann says of her envisioned client. "It's someone who is adventurous, who's willing to understand that this is a space you grow into. It’s someone who appreciates design, certainly. I wanted it to be really well edited; it’s modern, it’s current." It just might be the next wave of great Chicago design.
