Columbia College, located in the South Loop, has recently been approved for an expansion project to begin winter of 2009 at 1600 South State Street. A project that has been much needed since the institution’s student population has increased significantly in the past couple of years.

It will include the development and construction of a 35,000- 40,000 square foot media center with two sound stages, a motion-capture studio and an animation lab.

Columbia College is one of the nations top 10 film schools and with the arrival of the new media production center presents a great opportunity for students to bring style and energy to Chicago’s booming South Loop. It is a college that provides its students with direct experiences in state of the art facilities and the South Loop is a great location for that.

This impressive building will not only help those at the college, but will also help the ongoing revitalization project by occupying a current vacant lot. This new building will also resemble many of the same qualities as other new structures in the South loop, like New West Realty’s newest development at 1555 Wabash –- built for functionality and stability while bringing focus of the outside world, indoors through glass exteriors and open terraces. Both will have their own unique design and features and will certainly be remarkable resources to the neighborhood.

1555 Wabash residents will benefit from this and every new project that helps improve the city.