REALTOR® Relief Plaza – 2026
430 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago
Acting as the project manager and general contractor, GNP Realty Partners facilitated the renovation and structural reinforcement of a small plaza on Chicago’s North Michigan Ave., adjacent to a building owned by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), which GNP manages. The plaza honors the association’s Realtors® Relief Foundation (RRF), which, since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, has provided fast, efficient financial assistance to individuals impacted by natural and man-made disasters, such as fire, floods and hurricanes, to help them rebuild their lives.
Once NAR decided to use the space to recognize donors to its nonprofit foundation, the association tapped GNP to work with foundation leaders on the plaza’s design and implementation. After multiple discussions about the group’s goal for the space and the desired look and feel, GNP developed a proposal that detailed every aspect of the space, from technical and artistic design and a recommended architect to lighting and the font for signage recognizing donors. After the proposal was approved, the multi-year project began, and in August 2026, more than 80 people gathered for a ceremonial ribbon cutting.
GNP has done a fantastic job managing and completing the Realtors Relief Foundation’s Memorial Wall in the plaza at the National Association of Realtors office on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Special thanks to Dean and Vasi Kutrumanes for GNP’s efforts, continued support, and contributions to the Realtor® Relief Foundation!
–Greg Hrabcak, president, Realtor® Relief Foundation
Key to the plaza’s success was GNP’s meetings with various Chicago officials (including the local alderman and the Chicago Department of Transportation), which resulted in a memorandum of understanding that enables NAR to exercise long-term control over the plaza (which sits on public property and is one of the few plazas on the famed stretch of Michigan Ave. north of the Chicago River) and invest in the design and much-needed structural reinforcement. The space sits atop a lower-level roadway that accommodates traffic and commercial activity.
