Marina City: The Definitive History of a Chicago Landmark Trope Publishing Co. Publication date: October 28, 2025

Short description:

No other residential building in the United States has a more interesting history than Chicago’s Marina City. Built on unused railroad property by visionaries in the nicotine-and-alcohol-fueled decade of the 1960s, Marina City is a rags-to-riches-to-rags-to-riches story, with plenty of high points and low points. Adored, then neglected, then brought back to life, Marina City is an official Chicago landmark, a Chicago icon, and recognized worldwide. Typically, only its history in the 1960s is told. But that’s when it was just getting started.

Author bio:

Steven Dahlman is a journalist with 47 years of experience. He has been a professional photographer for 25 years, specializing in architecture and photojournalism. He is editor and publisher of Loop North News, a news and information website serving the Loop and Near North neighborhoods of downtown Chicago. He was a radio news director, reporter, and anchor for more than a dozen stations, networks, and news outlets, including Rivet Radio in Chicago and ABC Radio Networks. Steven was co-creator with Dr. Neal Samors of two books about Chicago, Chicago’s River: At Work And At Play (2014) and Changing Chicago: A Portrait in Postcards and Photos (2017). He was a resident of Marina City from 2005 to 2015.