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Hilliard Towers Apartments

13 Mar 2026 Chicago 1966

One of the few remaining Chicago housing projects from the 1960s, the Hilliard Apartments carry echoes of architect Bertrand Goldberg’s more famous Marina City Towers.

The project has 2 16-story circular towers for the elderly and 2 18-story curved residential blocks for low-income residents.

Hilliard Towers Apartments

Circular Towers Exterior

A morning serenade outside, with the west tower.The main entrance with a tower and both residential blocks.Hilliard Towers ApartmentsDetail of the west tower, with the west residential block in back.Hilliard Towers Apartments

Circular Towers Interior

Pictured is the community room and outdoor space of one of the towers.

View of the east tower from inside the west tower.The community room in the west tower.The service core from the rooftop of the west tower.The rooftop of the west tower.

Curved Residential Blocks

The residential blocks from atop west tower.The east residential block through an open-air window in the west tower.Detail of a residential block.The east residential block with a bit of the South Loop.The west residential block.The east residential block with a little bit of the lake.Between the residential towers.

I was able to visit the Hilliard Towers Apartments during the Open House Chicago event, as normally the residents are busy living their lives and don’t need strangers with cameras wandering through their homes.

View from the Cermak-McCormick Place green line CTA station.

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All photos and text are original work. © 2026 Greg Willis | This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0