The owners of Navy Pier claim the entertainment company Illuminarium has broken its promise to build a $30 million “state of the art” immersive sensory experience at the pier’s Crystal Gardens and instead created a “run-of-the-mill virtual reality exhibit.”
Illuminarium entered a 10-year lease agreement with NPI, the nonprofit that operates Navy Pier, in 2021 to build what it described as a “cutting edge immersive experience unlike anything most people have ever experienced,” according to a lawsuit filed by NPI last week in Cook County circuit court.
But after the lease agreement, Illuminarium said its finances had worsened because of the COVID-19 pandemic and that it would need to raise money to afford creating the $30 million attraction.
The company started paying rent in March 2024, and it opened a temporary “pop-up immersive theater exhibit” in June 2024 that took guests through a safari and space. That exhibit closed last September, then reopened in November and closed again Jan. 5, according to the lawsuit.
“The reviews of this experience were terrible, casting a very negative light on Navy Pier,” the lawsuit claims. “NPI was unhappy with this situation but recognized that it was only temporary and would not permanently impact the experience that Illuminarium was required to build pursuant to the Illuminarium Lease.”
On Jan. 9, Illuminarium allegedly told Navy Pier operators that it decided to use the Crystal Gardens for a walk-around virtual reality experience rather than its initial proposal.
The $30 million plan was to build a 360-degrees canvas with “state-of-the-art laser projection, rich spatial audio, in-floor haptics, and scent and interactive technologies [that] engage one’s entire visual and sensual framework,” the lawsuit states.
Illuminarium likened the venue to similar projects it built in Atlanta, Las Vegas and Miami.
“In a move akin to a ‘bait and switch,’ Illuminarium attempted to substitute the breathtaking and unique experience that it promised to bring to Navy Pier for a run-of-the-mill virtual reality exhibit,” the lawsuit states.
“Most certainly, NPI did not agree, and would never have agreed, to commit the iconic Crystal Garden to Illuminarium for a period of at least ten years if Illuminarium intended to use the space for a virtual reality exhibit.”
The lawsuit alleges Illuminarium has breached its lease agreement with NPI by failing to build the immersive attraction it originally planned, by not paying rent in February and by not operating the site for the past 60 days.
NPI seeks an order from a judge to require Illuminarium to construct the fully immersive attraction that it first proposed. Illuminarium was not immediately available for comment.
A hearing in the case was set for May 19.