Leopardo-built Y.O.U. Headquarters Project Honored with Evanston-based Design Award

The Leopardo-built Youth and Opportunity United, Inc. (Y.O.U.) headquarters and education center was awarded Excellence in Design for New Construction at the 2017 Design Evanston Awards.

The annual event recognizes significant aesthetic and functional improvements to the community and was held on Thursday, November 2 at the Evanston Art Center.

Y.O.U. is a non-profit youth development agency offering after-school programs, mentoring, as well as parental engagement and counseling services to meet the emerging needs of young people and their families. The new 12,871-square-foot, two-story headquarters features first-floor transformative learning spaces, counseling offices, a makerspace for science, technology, engineering, arts and math programs, a teaching garden and demonstration kitchen for nutrition and cooking programs, as well as additional instructional and gathering spaces. The second floor houses administration and office spaces, along with conference rooms. The new space is helping Y.O.U. accommodate the addition of more than 1,500 youth to its programs.

Leopardo, serving as construction manager, provided preconstruction and construction services in collaboration with architect Studio Talo and owner’s representative PMA, Inc. Local subcontractors and suppliers were utilized on the job, making it a true community effort.