308 East Green Street

HistoryOriginally, the land at 308-312 E. Green St. in Champaign, Illinois had been occupied by an IHOP and a liquor store which had changed ownership several times. The IHOP had been in operation since 1974. Both establishments have since closed and been demolished to make way for the construction of the new 308 East Green Street skyscraper.Initial controversyBecause the IHOP was viewed by some employees and area residents as an "Green Street institution", many opposed the closure and demolition of the restaurant. Located in Champaign's Campustown district, which occupies part of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus, employees of the IHOP argued that their restaurant's open hours late into the night enable students to eat something after bars close at 2 a.m. Those against the development furthered their opposition by claiming the rate of drunk driving will increase if their establishment is forced to close.Despite the opposition's concern over campus safety, those in favor of the development cite IHOP's correlation to the increase in crime during early morning hours of the summer months, such as a shooting that occurred in June 2013 sometime after 3 a.m. Employees and restaurant patrons reported ducking under tables as several shots rang-out. While no one was injured, two men were arrested in connection with the drive-by shooting.Building design308 East Green Street is planned to meet the standards for an LEED Gold rating by the U.S. Green Building Council. The tower was designed by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture, which is the same firm that designed the 309 Green building, which was completed in 2008 and is located directly across the street.