Insurance holding company Kemper Corporation has signed a nearly 65,000-square-foot lease to move its corporate headquarters to the 32nd and 33rd floors of the Aon Center. This is the first significant deal since the building’s owner, 601W Companies, began a $25 million renovation last year.
Matt Pistorio, Caroline Colnon and Steve Smith with The Telos Group, LLC—the Aon Center’s marketing agent— represented 601W Companies in the transaction. A Cushman & Wakefield tenant representation team including Scott Goldman, Chris Wood, Dan Fisk and Adam McCostlin represented Kemper in the move from its namesake building at 1 E. Wacker Drive.
One of Chicago’s most iconic buildings, the Aon Center is located at 200 E. Randolph Street, overlooking Millennium Park in the East Loop. The building is undergoing its first major renovation in more than two decades. Once complete, tenants will enjoy modern lobbies, inviting common areas and more retail space, as well as the new Cloud Level, which will feature full-service fitness, conferencing and entertainment space on the 70th floor.
“We are committed to creating a unique and vibrant community within Aon Center with interiors designed to inspire employees and create a better corporate culture,” said Caroline Colnon, leasing director at The Telos Group. “We took cues from the hospitality industry in making Aon Center a flexible, service-oriented environment for tenants. It’s closer to a luxury hotel than it is to a stuffy office. That’s what distinguishes this property from others.”
Aon Center’s location is both commercially attractive and easily accessible. It is within walking distance of Millennium Park, the Art Institute, world-class shopping and dining as well as the city’s underground pedway system and CTA transportation.
Built in 1972, Aon Center was acquired by 601W Companies in 2015, after leasing and transforming the adjacent Prudential Plaza. The third tallest building in Chicago, towering 83 stories above Millennium Park, recent conversations have also reignited surrounding potential exterior renovation plans by Aon Center’s current owners to build an elevator and observation deck.
