Grainger Plaza

AT&T Plaza

Plaza with Cloud Gate behind McCormick Tribune Plaza & Ice Rink
Location	55 N. Michigan Ave Template:City-state
Owner	City of Chicago
Tenants
Cloud Gate

"SBC Plaza" redirects here. For other uses, see SBC Plaza (disambiguation).

"Ameritech Plaza" redirects here. For the Ameritech Center in Cleveland, Ohio, see Ameritech Center.

AT&T Plaza (formerly Ameritech Plaza and SBC Plaza) is a public space in Millennium Park within the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States that hosts the Cloud Gate sculpture. It is located above Park Grill and adjacent to the Chase Promenade and it was opened in the summer of 2004 with the initial unveiling of the sculpture.

History

Pavers engraved with the name SBC Plaza.

The plaza was originally named Ameritech Plaza for Ameritech Corporation, the corporate sponsor. Ameritech donated $3 million for the plaza and the sculpture and received the naming rights. By the time the park officially opened in 2004, Ameritech had merged with SBC Communications and the plaza was called SBC Plaza. When SBC acquired AT&T and subsequently changed the name from SBC to AT&T in 2005, the name of the plaza changed again.

Cloud Gate was originally estimated to weigh 60 short tons (54.4 t; 53.6 long tons) because it was impossible to estimate the thickness of the steel compatible with the desired aesthetics. The final piece, however, weighs 110 short tons (99.8 t; 98.2 long tons) and care had to be taken in supporting it. The roof of the Park Grill, upon which Cloud Gate sits, had to be strong enough to bear the weight. A large retaining wall separating Chicago's Metra train tracks from the North Grant Park garage travels along the back side of the restaurant and supports much of the sculpture's weight. This wall, along with the rest of the garage's foundation, required additional bracing before the piece was erected.

External links

• Millennium Park map
• City of Chicago Loop Community Map