Story

The Gary Comer Youth Center, located on the South Side of 

Chicago, holds an activity, performance and education center for 

area youth.  At its core, lies a gymnasium where the South Shore Drill 

Team practices and performs. Flexible, the gym quickly converts to a 

600-seat theatre with an 80-foot wide by 30-foot deep stage. The 

facility also includes music and band rooms, a small recording suite, 

classrooms and offices.  Energy conservation and "green" features 

include skylights which draw natural light into the 

gymnasium/theatre; and a courtyard roof garden hosting plants and 

vegetation.  Kirkegaard’s scope of work focused on room acoustics 

and mechanical noise control in the sound sensitive spaces.