As you may or may not have heard, most Booth students live in “The Loop”. The Loop is at the heart of downtown Chicago, making it easy to get to the Hyde Park campus or virtually any part of the city via public transport, car, or bike. There are a few buildings in the Loop that are popular amongst Boothies, but none of them are quite as celebrated within the Booth community as Millennium Park Plaza (MPP).
For years, decades, centuries – probably not centuries – MPP has been home to the greatest number of Boothies. As an MPP resident, I have been happy as a clam, so I wanted to highlight for y’all some of the reasons that I love MPP and think it is the ideal place to live as a Boothie.
It’s affordable! While Chicago is not as expensive as many coastal cities, some of the fancier housing options in the Loop can get pretty pricy! From discussing with classmates, I learned that other housing options that have nicer amenities, etc. can cost over twice as much as MPP. Think about all that savings that could be going towards MBA travel and/or Chipotle bowls (yes, I’d like to add guac thx)!
It’s convenient! MPP is directly adjacent to Millennium Station, which offers a direct train service to Hyde Park equating to a ~25-30 minute door-to-door commute. While some of the other housing options in the Loop are also close to the train line, none of them are quite as close as MPP, and every step matters when trekking to Harper Center in mid-Winter.
It’s got awesome views! Like all buildings in a metropolitan area, there are units with great views and those with not-so-great views, but the views from most MPP apartments are fantastic! Pro-tip: the 3-bedroom units have the very best views because they are on the corners of the building. In particular, those on the southeast side of the building provide an unobstructed view of Millennium Park and Lake Michigan!
It’s where Boothies get together! For everything ranging from study groups and small group dinners to larger group gatherings, social life at Booth largely revolves around MPP! Living in the building means getting to run into classmates in the elevators and walking through the lobby. Considering how many people you’ll meet in business school, bumping into classmates you haven’t seen in a while can serve as a great reminder to stay in touch with people, and it’s a great way to keep updated on what’s going on socially at Booth.
It’s got great amenities! While MPP does not have in-unit washers and dryers in most units, the laundry room rarely gets crowded, and I have had never had a problem with the shared washers and dryers since moving in. There are also numerous study rooms, a pool, a gym, and a rooftop patio!
I recognize that it might seem odd that I’m fanboying so hard about MPP right now, but the reality is that MPP has truly been one of my favorite parts of the Booth experience. The fact that I get to live in the same building as so many other Boothies has made the social component of business school even more immersive than I could have ever imagined. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions about my experience at MPP!
