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2026 Lerch Bates
People's Choice Awards Finalists

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Affordable Housing • Community & Civic • Cultural & Museum • Education & Research • Healthcare • Multi-Family Residential • Office • Retail & Hospitality • Single Family, New Construction • Single Family, Adaptive Reuse

affordable housing

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Canopy

Encuentro Square

Chicago, Illinois

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JGMA

Grace Manor

Chicago, Illinois

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Gensler

The Haven on Lincoln

Chicago, Illinois

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DesignBridge Ltd

United Yards - 1A

Chicago, Illinois

community & civic

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LJC

Aspire Center for Workforce Innovation

Chicago, Illinois

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EXP

Chicago Transit Authority Red Purple Modernization

Chicago, Illinois

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Nurture Architects

Evanston Ecology Center

Evanston, Illinois

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Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)

West Bund Convention Center

Shanghai, China

cultural & museum

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Goettsch Partners

James & Elizabeth Bramsen Tropical Forests

Brookfield, Illinois

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LBBA Architects

National Public Housing Museum

Chicago, Illinois

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Jahn/

Pritzker Military Museum & Library

Somers, Wisconsin

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Valerio Dewalt Train

Shedd Aquarium Experience Evolution Phase II

Chicago, Illinois

EDUCATION & RESEARCH

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Perkins&Will

Crow Island School

Winnetka, Illinois

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CannonDesign

Ehrman Crest Elementary and Middle School

Seneca Valley, Pennsylvania

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DLR Group

Kalamazoo RESA Career Connect Center

Kalamazoo, Michigan

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CannonDesign

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Chemistry

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

HEALTHCARE

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Converge Architecture

Beloved Community Family Wellness Addition

Chicago, Illinois

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LJC

Northwestern Medicine Bronzeville Outpatient Center

Chicago, Illinois

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Moody Nolan & Converge Architecture

Sankofa Village Wellness Center

Chicago, Illinois

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DesignBridge, Ltd.

Thresholds | Center for Health and Mental Wellbeing

Chicago, Illinois

MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENTIAL

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Jahn/

1000M

Chicago, Illinois

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Optima, Inc.

7220 McDowell Mountain

Scottsdale, Arizona

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bKL Architecture

The Dylan

Chicago, Illinois

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SCB

Raye

Shaker Heights, Ohio

OFFICE

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SCB & Ste. Marie

The Bell

Chicago, Illinois

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Gensler

Neal Gerber & Eisenberg

Chicago, Illinois

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LJC

RBB - Russell Burns Building

St. Louis, Missouri

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Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)

Sany IROOTECH Headquarters

Guangdong, China

HOSPITALITY & retail

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geniant Eastlake

Atrium Club at 25 E Washington

Chicago, Illinois

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SCALA+MANA

Double Clutch Brewing Company

Evanston, Illinois

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Nurture Architects

Jackson Lake Lodge Restoration

Moran, Wyoming

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SCALA+MANA

Millennium Park Pavilion

Chicago, Illinois

SINGLE FAMILY,

NEW CONSTRUCTION

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Kipnis Architecture + Planning

Evanston's First Passive House

Evanston, Illinois

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Wheeler Kearns Architects

Lakewood Balmoral Residence

Chicago, Illinois

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Robbins Architecture and Interiors

Shoreline Reflections

Illinois

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dSPACE Studio

Strata House

Avon, Colorado

SINGLE FAMILY, 

ADAPTIVE REUSE

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Studio Dwell Architects

House on the Park

Chicago, Illinois

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34-Ten Architecture

The Lantern House

Chicago, Illinois

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TBDA

Midcentury for the Next Century

Arlington Heights, Illinois

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SMNG A Ltd.

Vintage Lincoln Park Residence

Chicago, Illinois