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"Gov. J.B. Pritzker picked a development team Wednesday that will take over the James R. Thompson Center in the Loop, favoring a plan that would preserve the 17-story building.

"Pritzker chose a proposal from a group led by Michael Reschke, chairman of Prime Group, a longtime developer in the region. His plan calls for preserving the building as a mixed-use property with office, retail and hotel space — and with the state retaining about a 30% ownership. In a move sure to be hailed by preservationists, Reschke will pay $70 million upfront and the state will retain some offices in the Thompson Center.

"Reschke said he expects the sale to close within six months and renovations to start within a year. He said the project — a 'gut renovation' including a new glass curtain wall and mechanical systems — should take two years from start to finish, with a budget of $280 million.

"Reschke said members of the development group initially 'were a bit cynical, because of the reputation the building had. But we took a very hard, conscientious look at the opportunity to make further investment in LaSalle Street, for the benefit of local businesses, the city and the state.'

"The former home of state government in Chicago opened in 1985 and was designed by the internationally acclaimed architect Helmut Jahn, who died in May. Preservationists have argued the Thompson Center, with its soaring atrium and generous public space, is a postmodern landmark and keeping it would honor Jahn’s contributions in his hometown.

"Reschke called the building’s issues 'very manageable.' Chief among those are sun glare and its propensity to overheat at all times of the year. 'It’s been a nightmare to control. The temperature in the building constantly requires air conditioning,' he said. 'The heat gain from the sun is so strong that the air conditioning needs to run in the middle of January.'

"Pritzker has said the building never lived up to Jahn’s 'creative genius.' But the proposal accepted Wednesday represented a partial change of heart. Pritzker not only signed on to a preservation plan, but he agreed to keep 425,000 square feet of state offices there.

"The governor said Reschke’s plan 'offered the best vision for the building’s future, preserves the transit hub and yields tremendous cost savings on this property.'

"Preserving the building will win acclaim from architectural enthusiasts, who were critical of Pritzker’s original inclination to seek top dollar for the building, increasing the chances for a teardown.

"Ward Miller, executive director of the group Preservation Chicago, said he was thrilled with Pritzker’s announcement. He said city officials should give the Thompson Center official protection as a landmark to assure it is never again faced with demolition." (Roeder and Armentrout, Chicago Sun-Times, 12/15/21)

Ward Miller Interviewed on WBEZ Chicago, Pritzker saves the Thompson Center in $70 million deal; The Helmut Jahn-designed building will be converted into a mixed-use property with office, retail and hotel space, Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons, Nereida Moreno, WBEZ Chicago 91.5, 12/16/21 (15:36 min)

"If a casino is coming to Chicago, then adapting Lakeside Center at McCormick Place for that use is the ideal choice.

"Lakeside Center is architecturally ambitious, innovative and massive. It’s also underused and has an uncertain future. Preservation Chicago considered it a “most endangered” structure in 2016 — and again in 2021 as part of the Chicago lakefront category.

"In 2019, an end-of-session legislative maneuver in Springfield attempted to raise $600 million in additional taxes to demolish and replace Lakeside Center. Fortunately for taxpayers and architecture aficionados, this effort failed. But the risk persists, and the loss of Lakeside Center would be tragic for Chicago.

"Alternatively, the Rivers Chicago McCormick plan would fully renovate the historical building at no cost to taxpayers, contribute about $200 million annually in additional tax revenue to pay down pension debt, generate hundreds of well-paid union jobs and create a dynamic south lakefront entertainment district.

"Chicago is a city of architectural innovation. This makes for great architecture tours and attracts visitors, but more importantly, massive buildings such as the old main post office, Sears Tower, Merchandise Mart and the old Cook County Hospital are powerful economic engines.

"Completed in 1971, Lakeside Center at McCormick Place was designed by Gene Summers and Helmut Jahn while they were at the C.F. Murphy Associates architecture firm. Both were students of world-renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe at the Illinois Institute of Technology, and they applied many of Mies’ studies and design principles to Lakeside Center — on an enormous scale.

"The result was an architecturally innovative and monumental achievement for Chicago that helped reinforce Chicago’s title of “convention city,” by featuring the largest roof, the largest convention hall and the largest space-frame structure in the world. To provide scale, a football field is 1.3 acres. Lakeside Center’s rooftop is 19 acres.

"Lakeside Center is on a par with other legendary superstructures of that period. However, unlike the vertically oriented Hancock Center and Sears Tower, Lakeside Center is essentially “a horizontal skyscraper.”

"In true Chicago form, Lakeside Center could easily become the world’s largest casino. The WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma, with 370,000 square feet of casino floor, is currently the largest. Lakeside Center has 583,000 square feet of exhibit space, leaving plenty of room for restaurants, bars, food halls, and concerts and cultural events, anchored by a fully renovated Arie Crown Theater.

"The Arie Crown is one of the largest theaters in Chicago with seating for more than 4,200 people. Additionally, the Arie Crown has been well-maintained, with a significant 1997 renovation.

"A dynamic adaptive reuse presents a wonderful opportunity to return this prominent lakefront building and a portion of the lakefront to use by Chicagoans and compensate for decades during which it has been reserved largely for out-of-town conventioneers.

"Additionally, the Rivers Chicago McCormick plan would likely help boost McCormick Place’s ability to attract and retain major conventions, which Las Vegas has slowly eroded over the past few decades.

"Cafes and restaurants located at the northeast corner of the Lakeside Center, along with its enormous terraces and rooftop, would all have panoramic views of the lake and lakefront, likely becoming a must-see destination for locals and tourists alike. These are some of the greatest views of the city skyline that most Chicagoans have never experienced.

"If a casino is coming to Chicago, Preservation Chicago strongly supports the adaptive reuse of Lakeside Center for it. The plan offers a once-in-a-generation chance to create a dynamic south lakefront entertainment and cultural district — and a way to embrace our past and strengthen our future." (Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago's Op-ed in the Chicago Tribune)

Lakeside Center is perfect site for pop-up casino, with the city drowning in pension fund debt and desperate for gambling tax cash, the only logical casino choice is Lakeside Center – the original McCormick Place East, Don DeBat, Loop North News, 11/31/21

More details on Chicago casino bidders—and how the Bears factor in: As the Bears eye the suburbs, several bidders propose putting a Chicago casino a stone's throw from Soldier Field. Here are the latest details on the gambling bids and how the NFL team's moves might make a difference. Greg Hinz, Crain's Chicago Business, 11/2/21

"It’s been nearly a year since Rep. Bobby Rush introduced a bill that would designate Bronzeville a 'national heritage area,' an official designation he and others community leaders hope will draw more tourists to the historic neighborhood.

"And with Rush announcing his impending retirement from Congress, he is more determine than ever to see it happen.

"His bill, named HR 670, would designate the community an official national heritage area. Sen. Dick Durbin introduced a similar bill to the Senate in 2021. Both went before the Natural Resources Committee in October.

"A landmark designation would mean $10 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of the Interior over the course of 15 years after the act is enacted, and potential oversight from the National Park Service. Currently 85 sites are on the National Historical Site register.

"It also means an economic boon that would benefit parts of the community that have been overlooked.

"'The committee actually invited the National Park Service to be a part of it. Part of what you have to do to become a national heritage area is that you have to meet certain criteria,' said Bernard Turner, president and executive director of the Black Metropolis National Heritage Area Commission. Turner and other stakeholders have spent years working on the designation.

"With efforts underway to open a Till-Mobley House Museum, the construction of the Obama Presidential Library, the installation of the Ida B. Wells monument and the landmark designation of Blues legend Muddy Waters’ childhood home joining other cultural community assets, Turner and others are confident that Bronzeville’s rich history will be a big draw for tourists.

"'Few places have been as touched by African American culture as the city of Chicago. From Ida B. Wells to Nat King Cole, Bronzeville is a birthplace of Black genius — genius that has had a lasting influence on our city, our state and our entire nation,' said Rush. 'It unequivocally deserves landmark recognition and I intend to continue fighting to make that a reality.'

"A similar bill was introduced for the Pullman National Historical Act in 2019." (Golden, Block Club Chicago, 1/27/22)

"Located in the South Austin neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, the building was originally home to the Francis Scott Key Public School. Built in 1907, the building was designed by Dwight Perkins when he was the chief architect of the Chicago Public Schools.

"The Key School originally served 300 students in kindergarten through 8th grade. As the neighborhood desegregated at the end of the 1960s, enrollment increased to nearly 800. The school remained overcrowded for decades, with the teachers’ lounge and several closets used as classrooms at one point.

"Through the early 2000s, the school district added several charter schools and other educational options to the area and the school’s enrollment began to drop. Within a decade, the school’s enrollment had been declined by half. In May of 2013, the Chicago Board of Education announced that it was closing 49 of its schools, the largest single wave of closings in the history of the United States.

"Using 'low enrollment' as the primary determining factor, the district flagged nearly half the schools in the system as under-capacity, including the Key School. The school closed in 2013 and has remained vacant since. Now, the doors will open once again to serve students of the South Austin neighborhood.

Once complete in 2023, the former Key School annex building will become the new, larger home of The Field School, an independent elementary school founded in 2017 to prioritize the educational needs of low-income students on the west side of Chicago. The Field School uses a distinctive pedagogical approach that is academically rigorous and holistic, with a strong emphasis on arts programming, family engagement, and community revitalization.

"The Field School currently operates out of a rented church space in the Oak Park neighborhood and serves more than 150 students in kindergarten through 5th grade. It is, however, projected to run out of room to grow by the end of 2022. To provide the space needed for the school to operate and expand, the Field School purchased the historic Key School buildings. The initial phase of rehabilitation will reactivate the North annex building, enabling the Field School to increase student enrollment up to 400.

"Purchasing and revitalizing the vacant school buildings will allow the Field School to move from the more affluent Oak Park neighborhood into the Austin neighborhood of Chicago’s Westside, where the need for quality and accessible elementary school education is great.

"Every year, at least half of the School’s seats are reserved for families from low-income homes (meaning they either qualify for free or reduced-price lunch or Section 8 housing assistance). This school year, 25% of the students at the School come from extremely low-income families earning less than $30,000 a year. The School’s goal with the expansion is to increase the extremely low-income student population to thirty percent (30%) or greater.

"NTCIC’s New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investment will reduce the fundraising burden on the school. It will also help prevent significant delays in completing the rehabilitation, allowing the Field School to move to its new home and begin increasing enrollment. The project will create an estimated 55 construction and permanent jobs and retain 15 existing positions.

"The $4.7 million project was made possible in part by $3.25 million in NMTC allocation provided by NTCIC’s Irvin Henderson Main Street Revitalization Fund. Additional project financing also included over $1 million in fundraising efforts from the Field School."

There are more than a dozen former Chicago Public School Buildings that remain vacant awaiting possible sale or reuse. Preservation Chicago encourages the City of Chicago and the Chicago Board of Education to accelerate the speed at which these important buildings are returned to a community use through adaptive reuse including community oriented uses such as affordable housing. Gyms, pools and auditoriums could be reused as community centers and school kitchens could be repurposed to serve meals to those most vulnerable within our communities.

"A community kitchen is in the works for a well-known South Side food desert. Soul City Kitchens is a $4.6 million plan to give culinary entrepreneurs access to commercial kitchen space to build their businesses and boost the local economy.

"Part of the city’s Invest South/West initiative, the kitchen is poised to take over a century-old former Streets and Sanitation facility, 5021 S. Wabash St., that has been vacant for more than a decade. Four proposals were submitted for the property last year, with Black-owned developer Urban Equities, LLC winning the bid.

"At a recent 3rd Ward town hall meeting, Beasley and Urban Equities CEO Lennox Jackson said they would rehab the existing 1,800-square-foot building and add a 8,300- square-foot building housing all the kitchens. Soul City Kitchens would serve as an incubator and communal space for those typically shut out of the industry, giving business owners the opportunity to work together and learn from one another, said Aaron Beasley, a chef working with Urban Equities on the project. It also is meant to support food truck owners, officials said. And by giving emerging chefs a place to sell their food, the space also could provide more food options for an area that has been neglected for years.

"Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd) said she supports the project, whose team members include TNS Studio, Civic Projects Architecture and Build Bronzeville, the group behind Boxville.

"Build Bronzeville Founder Bernard Loyd said he sees Soul City Kitchen as a partner in cultivating local talent 'while addressing a key need.'

“We currently have nearly a half dozen culinary enterprises, all of whom need back of the house culinary support, and we have many more who are trying to get into Boxville,' Loyd said. 'We’re excited about the possibility to work with Lennox and his team to bring folks who want to start their enterprise at Boxville or at our brick and mortar enterprises.'

The city will sell the former Streets and Sanitation building to Soul Kitchens for $1. A 2020 appraisal valued the site at $90,000." (Golden, Block Club Chicago, 1/25/22)

"The South Chicago community joined with Mayor Lightfoot, U.S. Representative Robin Kelly, and 10th Ward Alderwoman Susan Sadlowski Garza to celebrate the formal opening of a renovated senior affordable apartment building and its new community center in a building preserved by two Chicago nonprofits.

"Built 93 years ago for the YMCA, the property at 3039 East 91st Street served as the Southeast side’s community and athletic center and provided low-income affordable housing. When the building was put up for sale, many feared that the critical community asset would be lost. Instead, the building was purchased and renovated by a partnership between two of Chicago’s most respected advocates for community development and affordable housing advocates – the South Chicago-based Claretian Associates and Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), the Chicago affiliate of one of the nation’s pre-eminent housing preservation organizations.

"The $29 million renovated building is now home to the 40,000 square foot Salud Center operated by the Claretian Associates and 101 affordable senior apartments updated and improved by POAH. Upgrades to the building included modernizing apartments, replacing heating and cooling systems with energy efficient mechanicals, installation of a new roof and landscaping and repurposing of the non- residential portion of the building as the Salud community Center.

"We’ve been proud and excited to be part of this unique partnership with the Claretian Associates,' said Bill Eager, Senior Vice President, POAH. 'We were able to not only update and improve the building but to also provide the housing and support services that are all important to the community’s health and contribute to the revitalization of South Chicago.'

"The Salud Center’s revitalization is a great example of the wonderful collaborative efforts happening in South Chicago to bring resources to the entire community,' said Congresswoman Kelly. 'Not only does the Salud Center provide affordable housing to our seniors, but it also provides recreational space for youth, resources for our growing businesses and fitness opportunities for everyone. I am so grateful to everyone who worked together to bring this project to life. The Salud Center is a space our whole community can be proud of, and I look forward to the future collaborative endeavors coming to South Chicago.'" (Chicago Defender, 12/21/21)

"The Commission on Chicago Landmarks approved a final recommendation of landmark designation for the Ludlow Typograph Company Building, built in 1913 and designed by Alfred Alschuler. The building at 2028 N. Clybourn is part of the rich industrial history of the North Branch."(Chicago DPD)

"Meeting four different criteria, the first criterion for landmark status is Criterion 1, Critical Part of City’s History. The structure is significant for its association with the printing industry that was centered in Chicago during the early and mid-20th century. It is also significant for its association with the Ludlow Typograph Company as it developed the Ludlow Typograph and many different typefaces.

"The next standard is Criterion 4, Important Architecture. The building is an example of the commercial style of architecture applied to a utilitarian industrial building. The repeating layout of the facade creates a flexible design that easily allowed for expansion over time that yet retains a cohesive design. Limestone trim around the doorways is influenced by the Prairie School.

"The final criterion is Criterion 5, Important Architect. The first portion of the building was initially designed by Alfred S. Alschuler, a notable architect who designed the London Guarantee and Accident Building at 360 N. Michigan Avenue and the Benson and Rixon Department Store at 230 S. State Street.

The building meets the Integrity Criterion as it retains very good physical integrity of the exterior. The only minor changes include new windows and doors as well as a raised loading dock at the northwest end. Significant features that will be protected will include all exterior elevations and rooflines." (Kugler, Urbanize Chicago, 12/8/21)

Preservation Chicago applauds the landmark designation and adaptive reuse of the Ludlow Typograph Company Building by Jon Morgan from Interra Realty and Mike Whalen from Heart of America Group. The adaptive reuse of historic loft buildings is a best practice and we encourage the development team to continue to consider the adaptive reuse of other historic loft buildings with in the district.

This outstanding development is the second historic industrial adaptive reuse by the development team of Interra Realty and Heart of America Group in the Clybourn Corridor. Their earlier development was the Lofts at Southport at 2065 N. Southport Avenue. With massive changes underway within this former industrial corridor, it’s essential that the City of Chicago and preservation-oriented developers move quickly to protect architecturally significant buildings.

"The Austin neighborhood’s oldest house is up for Chicago landmark status. The Seth Warner House, built in 1869 at 631 N. Central Ave., has weathered a few transitions from its start as a gentleman’s farm on the prairie, to a hotel during the 1893 Columbian Exposition, to music school and back to single-family home in the midst of an urban city landscape.

"Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago, has been excited about the Seth Warner House for years. Noting that the house is one of 110 significant homes featured in John Drury’s 1940s guide 'Old Chicago Houses,' Miller says that when he met the current owner, James Bowers, he tried to convince him to pursue landmark status for his home.

"The house was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, but lacks landmark status from the city of Chicago itself.

"'I told [Bowers], you have to landmark it,' said Miller. 'Your home is contemporary to the much-revered Old Chicago Water Tower, downtown on Michigan Avenue. We’re possibly just one heartbeat away from losing this historic house forever if anything happens to you.'

"Miller makes the case that the Seth Warner House is more than just a historic building that’s worth saving. Yes, he says, the house has some striking original light fixtures, staircases, marble fireplaces and black walnut wood trim. The cupola and Italianate influences are amazing as well.

"Beyond the individual house, Miller says that city landmark status is galvanizing for the community in which it’s located.

"'The building represents who we are as a city, at our strength and our core,' Miller said.

"Designating the house a landmark would be a healing gesture that Miller says would give people pride in the city and pride in their neighborhood. He notes that as prairie gave way to city, the rest of the block built up and contains some significant painted lady Queen Anne-style homes. Eventually, he’d love to see the block win landmark designation.

"Making more houses landmarks could encourage pride and investment in the community, Miller said.

"'Each of these landmark designations injects hope,' he added. 'It adds to the quality of life. These kinds of designations could help spark a lot and bring about a carefully crafted, planned renaissance that wouldn’t displace people but would make this a place people want to invest in, live in and visit.'" (Sikora, Wednesday Journal, 12/20/21)

"Strong. Sturdy. A broad base.

"This is how Ald. Michael Rodriguez describes the iconic Little Village arch. It’s also how he describes his community.

"'I think it represents the strength of the community,' Rodriguez said of the arch. 'I think it represents the vitality of the community and the beautiful culture that the Mexican American community has not only in Little Village but throughout the midwestern United States.'

"The City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to make the arch an official Chicago landmark, bringing a months-long effort to a close. The designation also marks the first time a Mexican architect’s work has been granted landmark status.

"The arch spans West 26th Street in the Southwest side neighborhood, symbolically welcoming residents and visitors to 'the Mexican capital of the Midwest' and serving as an entry point into one of the liveliest commercial corridors in Chicago, only second to North Michigan Avenue in gross retail sales, according to a report by the Little Village Chamber of Commerce.

"Lifelong Little Village resident Cristy Calderon, 24, hopes the landmark status will bring positive attention to the neighborhood.

"Little Village has for decades served as a point of entry from Mexico into Chicago and the rest of the Midwest. An influx of Mexican immigrants in Little Village between 1960 and 1980 revived commerce and retail in the neighborhood — particularly on West 26th Street.

"It was built in 1990 and designed by Chicago architect Adrián Lozano in the same Spanish colonial style arches commonly found in Mexican cities, towns, haciendas and religious sites. It features a stucco and terracotta structure, a wrought-iron grille, a metal banner that reads 'Bienvenidos a Little Village' and a mechanical clock.

"Lozano, the architect of the arch, also designed the National Museum of Mexican Art and the Benito Juarez Community Academy, both in Pilsen. He died in 2004.

"The landmark designation will protect the structure from significant alteration or demolition, preserving it for future generations." Stratman, (Chicago Sun-Times, 1/26/22)

"Preservation Chicago strongly supports the use of City’s Adopt-A-Landmark funds for both roof and exterior repairs to Chicago’s John J. Glessner House and Museum, located at 1800 S. Prairie Avenue, Chicago.

"The Glessner House, is one of three projects by noted architect, Henry Hobson Richardson, constructed in Chicago, and the last remaining of these buildings. The others, the Marshall Field Wholesale Warehouse and the Franklin McVeigh House, were both unfortunately destroyed.

"Richardson’s architecture and influence on America’s built environment is well recognized and documented in many publications around the world. The Glessner House is truly a work of art in every respect, from its exterior walls to its richly appointed interiors and furnishings, most of which are authentic to the Glessner’s occupancy of the house from 1887 to 1936.

"Glessner House is an extraordinary asset to Chicago and its built environment, its Landmark buildings, its history and cultural arts, and all furthered with the museum’s programming. The house and museum stand among “the very best of the best” of Chicago’s institutions and house museums.

"It was from efforts to save this structure from an uncertain future—perhaps demolition, that 'The Chicago School of Architecture Foundation' was also established, now known as 'The Chicago Architecture Center,' with its many tours and educational outreach. The Chicago Architecture Center is credited with helping to promote Chicago’s architectural legacy with tours extending throughout the city and region.

"Noting Glessner House as an exemplary institution in so many respects, we encourage the Commission on Chicago Landmarks to approve the Adopt-A-Landmark funds for repairs to this remarkable Chicago Landmark building."

"Projects to protect Chicago’s 'fragile' lakefront from the impacts of climate change and invasive species will receive millions of dollars in federal funding. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ General Reevaluation Report — an upcoming study of lakefront protection needs across Chicago — is among the projects supported by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in November. Illinois will receive $17 billion of the $1.3 trillion package.

"The priority areas include Juneway Beach; Promontory Point; 67th to 73rd streets, including La Rabida Children’s Hospital; and the South Water Purification Plant at Rainbow Beach.

"'Lake Michigan is a crucial and iconic part of Chicago,' Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. 'We not only rely upon it for our clean water, but its beautiful shoreline draws residents and visitors alike to our city, making it vital to our tourism industry and economy as a whole. It is the thing that sets us apart from every other city in the country.'

"Any shoreline upgrades at the 'iconic' Promontory Point, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, must be completed with the state’s Historic Preservation Officer’s guidance, Lightfoot said.

"The Hyde Park-area residents who have demanded the city preserve and rehabilitate the Point’s historical limestone barriers — not replace them with concrete — will also be involved, she said. 'They’re gonna have one or two opinions about what happens at Promontory Point,' Lightfoot said.

"Rep. Robin Kelly, who was also on hand for Thursday’s news conference, supports a 'true preservation approach' to repairing the Point’s limestone barriers, according to the Hyde Park Herald." (Evans, Block Club Chicago, 1/28/22)

"The non-profit organization Preservation Chicago reignited the debate surrounding the restoration of Promontory Point’s limestone at a September meeting of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks Program Committee. Currently, the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the Chicago Park District plan to demolish and replace the Point’s limestone revetments with a concrete-and-steel barrier. But a nomination for landmark designation by Preservation Chicago, which, as outlined by the City, would necessitate a preservationist approach to its restoration, may hold promise for preventing the limestone’s demolition.

"Promontory Point is a forty-acre artificial peninsula running from 54th to 56th Streets on Chicago’s lakefront. Its landscape design was developed by renowned architect Alfred Caldwell, and the limestone revetments were built in between 1937 and 1938 as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project meant to serve as a buffer against flooding from DuSable Lake Shore Drive. Now, the Point serves as a recreational place for residents.

"Chicago’s lakeshore limestone barriers were built nearly one hundred years ago. CDOT and the Park District determined in 1993 that the limestone revetments had degraded to the point where they no longer sufficiently protected the shore against flooding and erosion. A $300 million plan to repair or replace revetments from Montrose Ave. to 79th Street was created by the Chicago Park District, the City of Chicago, and the Army Corps of Engineers. Emergency protection measures at the Morgan Shoal nearby were completed in 2020. The City announced work underway for the final restoration project at Morgan in April 2021, with the Point being the next and final project.

"In 2000, the Park District and CDOT presented a plan to demolish the limestone and replace it with concrete, a move the Promontory Point Conservancy stated on their website 'severely restricted access to the water.' Support from the community and from then-Senator Barack Obama in 2006 pushed the City to further consider a preservationist approach. Finally, in 2018, the Promontory Point Conservancy applied for Promontory Point to be listed as part of the National Register of Historic Places, and this status was awarded, which according to the conservancy group is a positive step towards protecting the limestone.

"Preservation Chicago deals with the landmarking of historic sites, and Promontory Point is one of their priorities in terms of taking action for its preservation. In an interview for The Weekly, Ward Miller, its executive director, described his own experiences, and those of his parents and other members of the community, with the Point as a place for social gathering. Miller said, 'Your soul is a little wrapped in these communities.'

"The suggestion for a landmark designation was submitted by Preservation Chicago at the September meeting. The Chicago Landmarks Committee received over one hundred emails and letters from residents and community groups in support of granting the Point a landmark designation. Miller pointed to the inherent beauty of the Point and its importance to the South Side. He also points to a similar landmarking process in notable pieces of architecture like Caldwell’s Lincoln Park Lily Pool. 'If we landmarked a Caldwell landscape on the North Side, I think we should landmark a Caldwell landscape on the South Side.'

"Preservation Chicago hopes that federal infrastructure funding will be directed towards important restoration projects such as these, making the Point’s restoration a greater priority. He said he hopes that, with greater funds for infrastructure and restoration, along with a landmark designation, the limestone revetments can simply be reset on a new foundation, so that community residents can enjoy them for generations to come." (Morrow, South Side Weekly, 1/12/22)

Read the full story at South Side Weekly and Block Club Chicago

Sundays at 10:30am

"A treasured but decrepit Prairie Style building on 75th Street that has been on the market for some time may soon have a new owner, although it’s not known whether that portends a better future for the building.

"Built in 1908, the Cornell Store & Flats was the work of Walter Burley Griffin, an architect who with his wife and fellow architect Marion Mahony Griffin left Chicago in 1913 to design the new capital city of Australia. The present owners, whose South Shore construction firm keeps trucks and equipment on other portions of the one-fifth of an acre site, bought the site in June 2015 for $175,000, when the Cornell building was already empty and crumbling.

"The property, which has been for sale on and off for at least two years, has a contract pending with a buyer, Devon Granger told Crain’s. Granger and his brother Ananias are identified in public records as the heads of the legal entity that bought the site in 2015. He said Ananias is the owner of A&D Construction, which uses the site.

"In a brief phone interview, Devon Granger said the asking price for the site was 'about $850,000.' He said when they bought the property, 'we wanted to do something about' improving the Cornell building at the south edge of the site, but that they have not made any changes to it. He declined to identify the buyer with whom the contract is pending.

"Because the potential buyer’s identity isn’t known, it’s not clear whether the building will be improved of left to disintegrate further.

"Over the past six years, both Preservation Chicago and Landmarks Illinois have put the Cornell Store & Flats building on their endangered buildings watch lists.

"'It’s a unique and important building,' said Meg Kindelin, president of JLK Architects, a Chicago firm that specializes in historic buildings and a board member of the St. Louis-based Walter Burley Griffin Society of America. Griffin’s work is known worldwide because of his work in Australia and later India. In Chicago and the suburbs, he designed at least 30 houses, but on 75th Street, the combination of street-level retail space and upstairs rental apartments is 'the only one I know of him doing,' Kindelin said.

"Beyond its pedigree, the building 'is instantly recognizable as a pure piece of Prairie Style architecture,' a style with deep roots in Chicago, Kindelin said. The horizontal emphasis of windows, roof and sills are visual cues of the Prairie Style The upstairs apartments surround an open-air common space, seen in the photos below.

"The original retail tenant was a small Fox Department Store, according to Paul Kruty, an emeritus professor of architecture at the University of Illinois who is writing a book about Griffin. Each of the four apartments had a concrete staircase to the roof, where Griffin wanted the residents to plant gardens, Kruty said.

“It might have been the first-ever rooftop gardens in Chicago,” Kruty said. The apartments opened six years before Frank Lloyd Wright’s Midway Gardens entertainment venue, which had rooftop green space. (Rodkin, Crain's Chicago Business, 1/27/22

"Mars Wrigley is closing a nearly century-old chocolate plant on Chicago’s West Side once hailed as the most beautiful candy factory in America.

"Built in a Spanish-style architecture in 1928, the sprawling plant in the Galewood neighborhood bordering Oak Park employs about 280 workers and will be phased out over the next two years, the company said in a statement Tuesday.

"What becomes of the employees and the unique factory — an intriguing part of Chicago’s rich candy history — remains to be seen.

"'The company remains committed to the city of Chicago and intends to partner with the surrounding community on a future vision for the site,” a spokesperson for Mars Wrigley Confectionery said in an email.

"The U.S. headquarters for privately held Mars Wrigley moved to New Jersey in 2017, following Mars’ $23 billion acquisition of Chicago-based Wrigley in 2008. The Mars Wrigley global headquarters are located on Goose Island in Chicago.

"The plant at 2019 N. Oak Park Ave. produces a variety of 'filled bar chocolate' such as 3 Musketeers and Milky Way, the company said. The success of the Milky Way, a malted milk candy bar introduced in 1923, helped build the company and the Chicago factory, with founder Frank Mars moving operations from Minneapolis to Chicago when it opened in 1929.

"Built on 16 acres in a residential area, the plant was named the 'factory of the month' in a 1953 Chicago Tribune series, which called it 'an outstanding bit of architecture ... in a beautiful setting of brilliant green bent grass, beds of flowers, shrubs and towering trees.' The factory included tinted walls, red tile roofs and two-story-high curved-top windows.

"Inside, fine art adorned the walls and Oriental rugs were 'scattered about,' reflecting the company’s mission to create a better workplace and beautify the neighborhood, according to the Tribune article.

"The Tribune reported that the candy bar plant was the 'largest of its kind in the world,' at least as of 1953.

"The property was formerly part of the original Westward Ho Golf Club, which relocated to Northlake. Mars Wrigley plans to donate the factory site 'for the use of the community,' the company said."

"In Avalon Park on the South Side, a massive structure sits, evoking memories of bright futures and immense pride. Nicknamed 'the Palace,' Chicago Vocational High School’s regal architecture and grand size seemed to fit the buzz about the place, former students say. Alums included Bears great Dick Butkus and comic Bernie Mac, and the school drew motivated students, many of them Black and Brown, from across Chicago.

"But that was then. Now, the building, and the school, are hurting. Enrollment has declined. The number of vocational programs at the school, now known as Chicago Vocational Career Academy, has been slashed. The school, which opened in 1940, once housed more than 4,800 students, alumni say. Now it’s about 730. For decades, the school boasted dozens of vocational programs, a nationally recognized marching band and top-notch sports teams. It was known as “the Pride of the South Side,” as alums are quick to remind you.

"Michael Mims, class of ’78, chairs the Chicago Vocational High School Restoration Project, which works to preserve the building. They also organized an online petition to obtain landmark status, which they hope will prevent the building’s demolition and prompt CPS to undertake extensive repairs — ideally, enough to attract more students and add more programs.

"'The push to save the building is also tied to a belief in vocational education, which alumni say has the power to lift many Chicago youth from underserved communities. 'I just want to see kids be excited like that again, saying, 'I’m going to learn something new,'' Mims said.

"The building, constructed in the late 1930s, was a project of the Depression-era Works Progress Administration. It blends art deco and art moderne design, and features fluted exterior columns, curved ceilings and wood inlaid murals. It’s also one of the largest CPS buildings. The school was built for 6,000 students, Sun-Times editorial writer Lee Bey noted in his 2019 book, 'Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side.' It also has 800,000 square feet of interior space over a 27-acre site, the equivalent of 5.5 blocks, according to the Restoration Project.

"But today, the building is in disrepair, with water-damaged ceilings, a non-functional swimming pool and a shuttered 'Anthony Wing,' named for its location along Anthony Avenue, that housed many of the school’s vocational programs, alumni say. In 2015, $56 million in work was completed, including interior renovations and mechanical, electrical and plumbing upgrades. But lack of funds prevented a second round of work, which, among other things, would have included demolishing the 'Anthony Wing,' at an estimated cost of $7 million. Demolition of the wing hasn’t been included in any CPS capital plans since 2012.

"To alums, the funding crunch that inadvertently saved the Anthony Wing, for now, offers a glimmer of hope. The restoration group’s push for landmark status centers on saving the wing, as well as restoring the structure and its community to its prime. For Mims and other alums, the Anthony Wing was a key part in their robust vocational education. At one time, the school offered almost 30 vocational programs, including aviation, welding and tailoring. Today, the school has seven vocational programs.

"Mims says recognition from the Commission on Chicago Landmarks not only would help preserve the school’s storied architecture, but also be the first step in turning the school around. 'Once we get the landmark designation on the building, and can begin to look forward to having the property physically restored, that will create the space to reinstitute those vocational programs.'

"Lisa DiChiera, the director of advocacy at Landmarks Illinois, a historic preservation advocacy organization, said there’s 'no question' the school meets the criteria for a Chicago landmark. However, actually getting that status is more complicated. 'It really does come down to a political coalition that needs to make a push for this building to be designated as a Chicago landmark.' While a landmark designation often saves buildings from demolition and adds another layer of scrutiny to any alterations, it doesn’t force property owners to maintain or repair their buildings, she said. 'Landmarking is only one part of the entire endeavor to make this place better.'" (Beeferman, Chicago Sun-Times, 11/11/21)

"Less than 10 years after the Merchandise Mart was crowned as the epicenter of Chicago's tech scene, the historic Art Deco property is launching a major makeover to try to regain its shine.

"Even before COVID-19 hammered demand for downtown workspace, the owner of the hulking 3.7 million-square-foot building watched as the Old Post Office—a cavernous structure redeveloped in the Mart's image—supplanted it as the more modern destination of choice for tenants seeking massive floor plates along the Chicago River.

"Now, with the public health crisis lingering and the rise of remote work pushing some big Mart tech tenants to try to shed space in the building, owner Vornado Realty Trust plans to plow tens of millions of dollars into renovations aimed at giving the building a new competitive edge. The project—said to cost more than $60 million, according to real estate brokers familiar with the plan—comes just a few years after Vornado completed a $40 million upgrade to the building.

"At the heart of what Vornado touts as 'theMart 2.0' is an overhaul of the first two floors, a high-traffic portion of the mammoth building. Brokers who represent tenants say the space needs more than the food hall and revamped main staircase done under the most recent renovation.

"Most visible from the outside will be a new 'front yard' with green space and landscaping along the Chicago River, according to a presentation from building leasing agency Stream Realty Partners that was obtained by Crain's.

"Inside, Vornado plans a 27,000-square-foot tenant amenity and conferencing space, a "speakeasy" lounge and a 23,500-square-foot fitness center—the building's second gym—on the second floor. Transformations are coming to the building's entrance at the corner of Kinzie and Wells streets as well as its main south lobby. Vornado declined to confirm the cost of the plan, but is aiming to begin work this year with the goal of completing the renovation 12 months to 18 months after work begins.

"The Old Post Office and Fulton Market aren't the only competition. Other buildings with similarly oversized floor plates but newer amenities than the Mart also offer compelling alternatives to tech tenants. The developer that turned the upper floors of the Marshall Field building into modern offices recently beat out the Mart, among other buildings, for the headquarters of online ticket marketplace Vivid Seats." (Ecker, Crain's Chicago Business, 1/20/22)

"Final touches begin to take shape on the first phase of a new office development at 1334 N. Kostner Avenue in Humboldt Park. Dubbed The Terminal, the project is the redevelopment of the old Pyle National Company manufacturing plant which had sat mostly dormant for many years, and is now being developed by the IBT Group along with Chicago businessman Joe Mansueto. The design is being led by local firm RATIO Design along with one of the nation’s leading preservation specialists MacRostie Historic Advisors.

"Founded in 1897 by Royal C. Vilas, the Pyle National Company became popular for its Pyle-O-Lytes, one of the most popular locomotive headlights which were introduced in 1913. Due to a federal mandate requiring all trains to have headlights in 1915, the company grew rapidly and in 1916 moved into the new plant. By the 1930’s Pyle had provided the lighting for many Chicago icons including Soldier and Wrigley Fields before departing the city in 1992. Most recently, the Davidson & Weiss designed building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

"Phase one involves the rehabilitation of the main factory building which will provide 175,000 square feet of office space divisible into offices as small as 5,000 square feet. The massive space features a shared lobby with a monumental staircase and exposed industrial structure throughout. While all spaces offer ceilings over 10 feet, the second-floor bay space stretches as tall as 32 feet and can house an added mezzanine for extra floor space.

"A central gathering space between the three buildings will be created by demolishing an old storage shed but preserving the old smoke-stack and water tower base as decorative elements. Other amenities for future workers include a food truck lane, hydroponic gardens, various private and public roof decks, and picnic areas

"The project was kickstarted by Joe Mansueto himself with a $50 million investment and a collaboration with the city’s Invest South/West program. Phase one of the project will wrap up work this year, but no news on future tenants has been released." (Achong, Chicago Yimby, 11/2/21)

Read the full story at Chicago Yimby and Crain's Chicago Business

"After 22 years as a city-run event space, the legendary interior that once housed Maxim’s de Paris restaurant inside the Gold Coast’s Astor Tower will be revived as a private neighborhood-centered social club.

"The City Council Wednesday approved the $680,000 sale of the former restaurant to a couple who lives in the tower. The city owned the restaurant’s space since 2000, when it was gifted by the family of famed architect Bertrand Goldberg. The club sits beneath a spray of lightbulbs and down an ornate spiral staircase tucked into the bottom of the Goldberg-designed tower at 1300 N. Astor St.

"Down the staircase is a series of lush rooms clad with organic shapes and curving lines, served among a backdrop of mirrors, wood trim and burgundy walls. Maxim’s de Paris, the first franchise of the famed 19th century French restaurant, was known for its Art Nouveau interior and high end gastronomy. It was designed by Bertrand Goldberg and owned and operated by his wife, Nancy Florsheim Goldberg.

"Bertrand Goldberg’s work has helped define Chicago’s architectural identity, with the iconic 'corn-cobs' of Marina City being among the most widely recognized Chicago buildings in the world. His innovative designs for hospitals like Prentice Women’s Hospital, demolished in 2014, organized patient rooms into clusters, allowing doctors and nurses to better distribute care, while residential projects like the Hillard Towers Apartments provided Chicago Housing Authority tenants a place to live with dignity.

"Maxim’s de Paris served French haute cuisine and fine wines to an audience of food lovers, politicians and celebrities from 1963 to 1983. That included Eartha Kitt, Liza Minnelli, Frank Sinatra and The Beatles. Its twenty-year run introduced Chicago to the art of classical French cooking and gave the city its first discothèque.

"Its new owners, Astor Tower residents Adam and Victoria Bilter, will reopen it as the Astor Club, a private social club. 'It’s nice to see how much people love Maxim’s' said Victoria Bilter. 'We’ve heard from a lot of neighbors who thought this would make a great private club.'

"'We are interested in historic places in the Gold Coast, so we did some research,' said Adam. 'We loved the Art Nouveau of Maxim’s when we saw the place, which is kind of our style, but we also loved that the building is so modern.'

"'Despite their inclusion in a landmark district, Astor Tower and, more specifically, Maxim’s de Paris are deemed non-contributing, which means they have no protection against alteration or demolition,' said Max Chavez, Director of Research and Special Projects at Preservation Chicago. 'It is dangerous to assume that without landmark status, Maxim’s legendary interiors will remain as-is forever.'" (Blasius, Block Club Chicago, 1/26/22)

"A plan to convert a former commercial building into a mixed-use project is advancing after demo permits were issued for the one-story building set to be replaced by a new addition. Located at 4640 N. Western Ave, the existing structure rises directly south of the CTA Brown Line tracks and the Western CTA L station. The existing building is a four-story concrete and brick commercial and storage building.

"A venture by Glascott & Associates, the development will rehab the existing four-story building and construct a five-story addition in place of the one-story building that will be demolished. Expected to rise 67 feet, the project will produce 23 dwelling units, including one ground-floor live/work unit, as well as 3,500 square feet of ground floor retail space.

"With a design by Hirsch MPG, the addition will match the existing structure, creating a cohesive project. The rooftop of the addition will include private terraces and green roofs for those top-floor units. As part of the project, two apartments will be set aside as affordable.

"The development went through a rezoning process in March 2021 to convert the property from B3-2 to B3-3. Zoning variances were tacked on in August 2021 to reduce the rear setback, remove the required loading berth, and allow the live/work unit on the ground floor." (Kugler, Urbanize Chicago, 12/26/21)

"An Italianate home in the West Loop, built about a decade before the Great Chicago Fire, is headed for demolition, likely to be replaced by condos.

"The three-story Italianate building at 116 N. Willard Court was built around 1860, according to the Cook County Assessor. The October 1871 fire stopped at the east bank of the Chicago River’s South Branch, and this building is several blocks west of the river. Thus, it's not quite a survivor of the fire, although it's very rare for the downtown parts of Chicago.

"The development firm that bought the red brick building from longtime owners in mid-November received a demolition permit from the city’s department of buildings on Dec. 2, 2021.

"Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago, said 116 N. Willard is one of about 200 'first-quality buildings,' still recognizable in their early form, remaining from the years just before and just after the fire in the downtown neighborhoods.

"'There’s a finite number of them, and they really should be honored,' Miller said. His group recommended that the city create a thematic landmark district this year in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the fire, but 'that didn’t go anywhere in City Hall,' he said.

"The Willard site is an unlikely one for a single-family home, as most of the neighbors on the block are warehouses, commercial buildings and parking lots. But in the fast-changing West Loop, with a short-street site that is half a block south of Randolph Street’s dining and drinking scene, anything is possible.

Developer "PLD initially applied for a demolition permit in November 2020, but because the building is rated orange in the city’s historical buildings survey, it was subject to an automatic 90-day delay. That delay expired in February." (Rodkin, Crain's Chicago Business, 12/7/21)

"Seven projects to improve public spaces across Chicago will receive up to $1.5 million each in city grants as part of the Chicago Works Community Challenge.

"The $10 million initiative, launched in 2021, supports upgrades to parks, libraries and outdoor facilities at public schools. The city received nearly 500 submissions, and shortlisted 21 projects in the fall.

"Residents 'know better than anyone what their parks, their libraries and their schools are lacking, and what would be a value-add in terms of investments,” Mayor Lightfoot said Tuesday. ' … Positive, impactful and long-lasting change must come from the community, in collaboration with stakeholders all across our city.”

"Rainbow Beach Park, 3111 E. 77th St., will get new surfaces, seating areas and landscaping for the racquetball and handball courts and clubhouse. The project, proposed by Illinois State Racquetball Association board member Carolyn Vazquez, will likely include repairs and accessibility improvements for the facility’s clubhouse.

"Kelvyn Park field house and auditorium at the park, 4438 W. Wrightwood Ave. in Hermosa, will receive roof repairs and accessibility upgrades. The proposal to improve 'the largest building in the area for public use,' according to Lightfoot, was submitted by Casey Guerra on behalf of the park’s advisory council.

"The two-story brick fieldhouse was completed in 1928. The locker room’s bathroom is unusable by the public and staff because of plumbing issues that include rusty water coming out of the faucets. Other problems at the field house include mold, asbestos, lead paint and a lack of ADA compliance, park advisory council members previously said. (Evans, Block Club Chicago, 1/18/22)

"In a South Shore landmark district, a once-grand house with clay tile roof and the remains of a Spanish-inspired interior, vacant for years and recently foreclosed, is for sale to someone who can take on a thorough rehabilitation project.

"The brick and stone exterior is in relatively good condition, but inside, there are holes in walls and ceilings, rooms that have been stripped down to the studs, and no kitchen fixtures. Vintage touches that remain include twisted columns, an opera-style balcony looking over the barrel-ceilinged foyer, and brightly colored vintage bathroom tile.

"'When I walked in, I just said, ‘Wow,’' said Ryan Smith, the Re/Max Properties agent representing the house for DLJ Mortgage Capital, which took ownership in a sheriff’s sale in September. The house, built in 1924 on Cregier Avenue in the Jackson Park Highlands, came on the market Dec. 7 at $224,900. Smith said the house has been vacant since at least 2019, and possibly years longer.

"Smith, who has long experience selling foreclosures, estimated the cost of a rehab at “$300,000 to $350,000,” and said appraisals based on nearby homes in better condition suggest it would be worth up to $700,000 when redone.

"In the first three days the house has been on the market, Smith has shown it to 32 potential buyers, he said, and most of them were investors who would do the work and put the finished project back on the market. [The house sold on 1/31/22]

"The house 'is so cool,' Smith said. 'When it was in its prime, it must have been fantastic.'

"The Jackson Park Highlands was declared a landmark district in 1989, a designation that prohibits demolition without approval of the city’s landmarks commission. But Smith said he doubts a buyer would consider demolition, because 'the exterior is solid,' not to mention handsome. Slender on its Cregier side and broad on 68th Street, which it faces, the house is on a lot that is slightly more than twice the city norm of 3,125 square feet. (Rodkin, Crain's Chicago Business, 12/9/21)

"One-of-a-kind Romanesque brownstone on enormous lot in East Garfield Park. Located on a block full of stately properties, this magnificent home was surveyed by the Chicago Historic Resources Survey and was said to possess potentially significant architectural or historical features.

"This expansive home is zoned and certified as a 4-unit building but is in the process of being converted back into its original use as a single-family home. As it is now the property has 7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms and multiple living/family room spaces. The garden level is a separate unit with no current access to the rest of the house.

"While some renovations have already been done, the home will require a significant amount of additional work. Bring your ideas and make this beautiful piece of Chicago history your own. In addition to the amazing home the lot is approximately 60' x 130'. Zoned RT-4.

"Building is being sold AS-IS. Cash offers preferred but renovation loans will be considered.

"Decades of shifting from a single-family home to a 19-room boarding house to a three-flat hadn’t changed the stately exterior of this Cleveland Avenue building, but inside, “There was nothing redeeming left,” says Leslie Glazier, who bought it in 2007 with her husband, Josh Glazier.

"They knew they would do a complete gut rehab, but what they didn’t know was that the guts they’d get down to, historical brick walls, would captivate them and drive the course of the interior they built out.

"'The most important thing for this house was not to screw it up,' Josh Glazier says. 'We had uncovered all this beautiful brick, so the less we did to it, the better.'

"The interior became 'like a loft inside an old home,' Leslie says, with the brick walls, open living spaces and minimal casements on doors and windows familiar from lofts in Chicago’s countless converted warehouses.

"'You’d never know when you look at the outside what you’re going to see inside,' Leslie says. The loft look gives way at times to pop accents: keyhole-shaped doorways in the basement and vivid tile patterns in bathrooms.

"The house, on an oversized lot on Cleveland Avenue, is six bedrooms and 6,200 square feet, with a backyard and a three-car garage topped by a large deck. It’s in the core historical section of Lincoln Park, the blocks between Lincoln Park Zoo and Oz Park.

"The family of six is shrinking as the kids age out of their family home, so downsizing is imminent. Leslie Glazier, an @properties agent, has the home as a pocket listing, not on the multiple listing service. The asking price is $5.4 million.

"Brick walls, wood floors and tall windows give the open living spaces on the main floor an airy attitude that is likely the opposite of the long-lost original floor plan from 1885, when homes were typically cut up into series of rooms.

"Leslie Glazier grew up with parents who were habitual renovators, and with husband Josh, a real estate developer, had renovated past homes. This project became organic, he said, evolving as they discovered what was there.

"Because of its extra-wide lot, 40 feet as compared with the city norm of 25, the house originally had a portion that projected off to the side. In the rehab, the Glaziers pushed it out about 6 feet and lined the new walls with brick salvaged from the old garage they demolished.

To maintain the openness of the space, the Glaziers swore off upper cabinets and any 'big clunky things' suspended above the 14-foot island, Leslie says. Wood veneer cabinets and stainless-steel appliances continue the 'don’t screw it up' theme, providing a low-key contemporary look. The countertops are stainless steel, except on the island, where it’s granite." (Rodkin, Crain's Chicago Business, 11/18/21)

"The Commission on Chicago Landmarks today honored 12 exceptional development projects at the 2021 'Preservation Excellence Awards,' including the restoration of Union Station, the adaptive reuse of the former Cook County Hospital, the rehabilitation of two 19th century homes in the Old Edgebrook District, and the adaptive reuse of the former West Pullman School.

"The awards, established in 1999, are presented annually to individuals, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and public agencies that have worked to preserve Chicago's architectural and cultural heritage. Honored during a virtual award ceremony, the winners were chosen from dozens of projects reviewed by the Landmarks Commission’s Permit Review Committee over the last year.

"'Whether reimagining a Chicago icon like the Old Main Post Office, or awakening a ‘sleeping beauty’ like the shuttered 1894 school in Pullman, each of the projects honored today represents an enormous commitment to preserving Chicago’s past,' said Commissioner Maurice Cox of the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), which provides staff services to the Commission on Chicago Landmarks.

Established in 1999, the awards recognize a wide range of efforts to preserve, restore and promote the City’s architectural heritage.

More information at City of Chicago Landmarks Commission website

The Demolition Delay Ordinance, adopted by City Council in 2003, establishes a hold of up to 90 days in the issuance of any demolition permit for certain historic buildings in order that the Department of Planning and Development can explore options, as appropriate, to preserve the building, including but not limited to Landmark designation.

The ordinance applies to buildings rated red and orange in the Chicago Historic Resources Survey (CHRS), but it should be modified to include all buildings included in the survey. These buildings are designated on the city's zoning map. The delay period starts at the time the permit application is presented to the department's Historic Preservation Division offices and can be extended beyond the original 90 days by mutual agreement with the applicant. The purpose of the ordinance is to ensure that no important historic resource can be demolished without consideration as to whether it should and can be preserved.

Preservation Chicago is advocating to extend the existing Demolition Delay Ordinance to at least 180 days or longer, in order to create the time community members, stakeholders, decision makers, and elected officials need to conduct robust discussions regarding the fate of these historic buildings and irreplaceable Chicago assets. The support of the Mayor and City Council is necessary to advance this effort.

#100946230

Date Received: 12/3/2021

Ward: 40th Ald. Andre Vasquez

Applicant: Alpine Demolition Services, LLC

Owner: Doris Eneamokwu

Permit Description: Opening of closed existing windows, install new window frame and glazing, repair existing glazed brick as needed (tuckpointing) [removal of ornamental masonry panel]

Status: Under Review

"As of September 2, 2021 it seems that the beautiful terra cotta face that has looked down over Devon Avenue for more than 100 years is no more. No one is quite sure what happened, but there was scaffolding on the building and someone was chipping away at it in the morning, and it was gone by the afternoon. And the Assyrian American Association name is no longer on the building either.

"The New Devon Theater, with its distinctively austere glazed block façade featuring a large arch and a large bust of a woman’s face, was built in 1912, and was quickly eclipsed by the nearby Ellantee Theater. It disappears from news listings after October, 1917.

"By 1923 it had been converted to a Ford dealership. By 1936 it had become an American Legion hall. In the 1950s it operated as a radio and TV store. Since 1963, it has served Chicago’s Assyrian community as the home of the Assyrian American Association of Chicago." Cinema Treasures.org

Address: 1535 N. Maplewood Ave., Humboldt Park

#100898128

Date Received: 11/23/2021

Ward: Ward: 1st Ward Daniel La Spata

Applicant: Soma Design Consultants, Inc. C/O Bryan W. Hudson

Owner: Greg Fordon

Permit Description: Partial demolition of a two-story, masonry residential building to accommodate a third-floor addition.

#100945948

Date Received: 10/26/2021

Ward: 43rd Ald. Michele Smith

Applicant: Quality Excavation Inc. C/O Anne Quinn

Owner: Patrick Nash

Permit Description: Wreck and removal of the three-story, masonry residential building and a frame garage.

#100945235

Date Received: 10/22/2021

Ward: 47th Ald. Matt Martin

Applicant: Precision Excavation, LLC C/O Angela Dillon

Owner: Angelico Two Series 3849, LLC C/O Jay I. Hausler

Permit Description: wreck and removal of a two-story, masonry and frame, multi-family residential building.

Status: Released 01/19/22

#100937432

Date Received: 10/15/2021

Ward: 41st Ald. Anthony Napolitano

Applicant: Dan Durkin

Owner: Nicholas W. Degnan

Permit Description: Substantial demolition, alteration and expansion of the two-story frame, single-family building.

Address: 2622 N. Dayton St., Lincoln Park

#100943432

Date Received: 10/08/2021

Ward: 43rd Ward Ald. Michele Smith

Applicant: Tir Conaill Concrete, Inc. C/O Charlotte McVeigh

Owner: David Hansen

Permit Description: Wreck and removal of a single-family, frame residential building and garage.

Status: Released 01/05/2022

#100934954

Date Received: 10/01/2021

Applicant: Thomas Montgomery

Owner: Sam Brashler

Permit Description: Wreck and removal of the existing roof structure on a two-story, masonry residential building, to accommodate the construction of a new rooftop addition

Address: 4323 N. Paulina St., Ravenswood

#100941425

Date Received: 09/29/2021

Ward: 47th Ward Ald. Matt Martin

Applicant: American Demolition Corporation

Owner: GXSR, LLC C/O Josephine Cronnolly and Thomas Taylor, Managers

Permit Description: Demolition of a two-story, frame, single-family residential building.

Status: Released 12/30/2021

Address: Commonwealth Edison Substation, by Hermann von Holst, 747-751 W. 82nd St., Auburn Gresham

#100937610

Date Received: 08/31/2021

Ward: 21st Ward Ald. Howard B. Brookins Jr.

Applicant: Alpine Demolition Services, LLC

Owner: Commonwealth Edison Company C/O Leon Guaquil

Permit Description: Demolition of a 1-story, masonry substation building Fieldhouse for the

Status: Released 11/30/2021

“It’s an old, common cry in a city where demolition and development are often spoken in the same breath, and where trying to save historic homes from the wrecking ball can feel as futile as trying to stop the snow. My Twitter feed teems with beautiful houses doomed to vanish in the time it takes to say ‘bulldozed.’ Bungalows, two-flats, three-flats, greystones, workers’ cottages. The photos, posted by people who lament the death of Chicago’s tangible past, flit through my social media feed like a parade of the condemned en route to the guillotine,” mused Mary Schmich in her Chicago Tribune column on July 12, 2018.

Crain's recent article regarding the demolition of another pre-Fire residence reinforces my belief that Chicago is in desperate need of a museum of architecture ("Say goodbye to this 1860s West Loop home," Dec. 07).

"The overwhelming success of the two exhibitions now featured at the Wrightwood 659 Gallery prove that audiences are interested in Chicago's architectural legacy. The success of "Reconstructing the Garrick" is in no small way due to the creative ingenuity of Chris Ware, Tim Samuelson (with his ability to render historical material in an engaging way) and Eric Nordstrom (who supplied material gathered from the Richard Nickel archives at the Ryerson Library at the Art Institute of Chicago).

"Exhibitions such as this are dependent on resources that, as of today, have no permanent home. Collections of artifacts such as terra cotta blocks, building fragments and ephemera need a secure facility where they can be displayed, maintained and catalogued and made accessible. Besides Samuelson's collection of hundreds of objects, many of which are of massive in size, there is the collection of David Phillips, historical photographic negatives in dire need of archival storage and preservation. Important collections of architectural fragments owned by Nordstrom range from early wood frame house joinery to extraordinary sculptural building fragments. His collection also includes archival material from Chicago's pioneering architects such as William LeBaron Jenney.

"While their material recognizes past achievements, an architecture museum is necessary for more recent material that may not have a home. Methods of architectural presentation rapidly change, such as architectural model makings and renderings. Today much of this material is discarded.

"Museums such as the Art Institute of Chicago, the Chicago History Museum and the Museum of Science & Industry are stewards of architectural material, but they are also multi-disciplined and have not made architecture one of their major concerns.

"An architectural museum can also focus on education: classes on global warming, housing and building techniques, energy efficiency and perhaps teaching building trades.

"A building of approximately 50,000 square feet or more would serve this purpose. Besides exhibition space, it would need elevator access, secure storage, preparation space for mounting exhibitions, classrooms and offices. Parking would also be essential.

"Location can be anywhere in the city, since I believe people would have multiple ways of attending. Such a facility would become a destination for schools, organizations and planned groups.

"My hope is to initiate such a project. The city of Chicago can be in the forefront to recognize such a need and should act favorably on such a project.

"Letter to the Editor by John Vinci, Fellow of the American Institute of Architects"

"Lake Shore Drive, Chicago’s most scenic thoroughfare, is undergoing an identity crisis.

"The 16-mile roadway was envisioned by its original builders as a pleasant ribbon winding through the city’s lakefront parks. But after 40-plus years of straightening, widening and other adjustments to accommodate traffic, the road often feels more like a highway than a parkway.

"That’s why a careful design hand is crucial to make sure that two new planned improvements to the Drive — one aimed at overhauling DuSable North Lake Shore Drive, the other tied to the Obama Presidential Center — don’t further erode its character and the historic park space through which it runs.

"There is no doubt that DuSable Lake Shore Drive, which handles 100,000 cars and buses each day, needs a makeover. For all its remarkable views of sky, water, architecture and — in warm weather months — green space, it is an aging and crumbling roadway, with unsightly concrete Jersey barriers protecting it from lakefront erosion, particularly on the northern end.

"And there are other quirks. There is, most obviously, that traffic-halting Oak Street curve. And there’s that traffic signal at Chicago Avenue that stays red so long a backseat toddler could grow to adulthood and take the wheel by the time the light turns green again.

"Many of Lake Shore Drive’s current limitations could be addressed as part of a $3 billion city, state and federal plan to improve and rebuild the road from Grand Avenue to Hollywood Avenue. Called 'Redefine the Drive,' the not-yet-funded proposal would include straightening that Oak Street curve, creating park space to protect the shoreline from erosion and improving bike lanes in the park.

"Among the improvement scenarios are proposals to create dedicated bus lanes where cars now run, putting a greater value on public transit without widening the Drive. That could be good, but only if those bus lanes are properly balanced with additional parkland and greenery — and only if accesses to the lanes doesn’t end up looking like interstate highway ramps.

"The same goes for proposed solutions to the interminably long traffic light at Chicago Avenue. One idea is to replace the entire intersection with a vehicle overpass or underpass that would require a lot of concrete, space and structure. We urge caution here as well.

"We’re fans of the Obama Center, but we’re not fans of spending that much public road money in one place to benefit a single project. And we don’t want to see South Lake Shore Drive get any wider.

"We’re not looking to trap Lake Shore Drive in amber or to treat it like an heirloom that can’t be touched. The Drive has always had to keep up with the times. But Lake Shore Drive is a special street. Before all else, we must keep it that way." (Chicago Sun-Times Editorial, 1/26/21)

"Sunday, Dec. 19, will mark 40 years that the landmark Uptown Theatre in the North Side’s Uptown neighborhood has been closed. It is a leading contender for the largest and finest movie palace not yet restored, not only in the United States but in the world.

"A lot of great, memorable full-house concerts happened there between 1975 and 1981. Some of the biggest names in music performed there. A select few of them, such as Bruce Springsteen, are still working today.

"By the time it closed in 1981 with a rousing concert by yet another chart-topping rock group, the J. Geils Band, tens of millions of people had been entertained there for over 56 years. Since then, the Uptown has only hosted special events, movie locations, historical tours and the humble activities of mostly volunteer caretakers.

"Its beauty and importance are legend. Neighbors began promoting its potential for reuse as early as 1985. There is no recorded opposition to restoring and reusing the Uptown. In fact, all of the studies carried out by the city and Uptown neighborhood identify the Uptown as an anchor that would make the entertainment district complete and successful. People from around the world message to ask: What is going on with the Uptown Theatre?

"The trouble is, plans have stalled again. A deal announced by city of Chicago planners in 2018 to begin the project and deliver it finished for modern entertainment died a lonely death before the pandemic took hold.

"Farpoint Development, which teamed up with owner Jerry Mickelson (of Jam Productions and UTA II LLC), worked for more than a year on research and planning needed to begin restoration. For reasons unknown, the partnership paused and all of the city, state and federal incentives were left on the table. There’s been no substantive public update or explanation from Ald. James Cappleman, 46th, who consistently defers comment and action to the Department of Planning and to Mickleson.

"The Uptown is a riddle that’s not been answered by a succession of owners, mayors, aldermen, city planners, chambers of commerce, planning commissioners and financiers. And no one’s livelihood appears to depend on solving the riddle.

"On the plus side, we have four decades of theater restoration projects and entertainment district planning to learn from here and across the United States. And our statewide preservation agency, Landmarks Illinois, headquartered in Chicago, has a custom-made committee, its Real Estate and Building Industry Council, with the knowledge, experience and connections to provide guidance and counsel to Mickelson and the city.

"Though not immediately threatened by development, the Uptown Theatre is at risk from stasis and disinterest. Most of the interior damage happened over the hard winters of the early 1980s. It stands today due to the quality of its initial construction and the ongoing stabilization and monitoring overseen by the city and Mickleson.

"When I first began giving tours at the Uptown as a 26-year-old volunteer in 1998, it was not uncommon to meet people who had fond memories of going to the show at the Uptown, movies and concerts. Old-timers would wistfully say aloud, 'I hope to see it restored in my lifetime.'

"Today, most of the theater’s tenured fans have passed away, leaving new generations of advocates curious and supportive but without a strong emotional attachment to it — yet. Now at 50, I also wonder if I will live to see it restored.

"One of the best things to happen to the Uptown in my time as a volunteer was when then-building commissioner Stan Kaderbek vowed to use funds set aside for emergency demolition for much-needed stabilization work in 2005, which bought the building considerably more time and kept it from further damage. Mickelson has continued to keep the building from further decay by maintaining the roof and converting one of its three oil boilers to natural gas so that it may be heated in the winter.

"The last free, public tour I gave was in the early 2000s. My experience tells me it is time to open the Uptown again for regular public tours so its story may be told and its value shared anew. It has tremendous potential in its three ornate lobbies and large auditorium.

"One can easily see how it could lead to new ways of thinking about and designing for in-person and streamed entertainment in our recovering, post-pandemic economy. The Uptown has spaces for audiences from 50, to 500, to 5,000 people.

"In a great Chicago tradition celebrated by the Blues Brothers, it is time to get the band back together. The city, the developer and the owner had a good thing lined up in 2018. It is time to revisit the plan, jump-start the motor and share what help they need to make the project happen. People want to go to the show again at the Uptown.

" Andy Pierce is a volunteer with Friends of the Uptown." (Pierce, Chicago Tribune, 12/16/21)

"From the 1920s through the 1950s, Chicago's South Side was the center for African-American culture and business. Known as "'Bronzeville,' the neighborhood was surprisingly small, but at its peak more than 300,000 lived in the narrow, seven-mile strip.

"Chicago's black population stretched along 22nd to 63rd streets between State Street and Cottage Grove. But the pulsing energy of Bronzeville was located at the crowded corners of 35th and State Street and 47th Street and South Parkway Boulevard (later renamed Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive). At those intersections, people came to see and be seen, shop, conduct business, dine and dance, and experience this bustling black metropolis. The crowds reflected the diverse mix of people living in the black belt: young and old, poor and prosperous, professionals and laborers.

"Bronzeville was well known for its nightclubs and dance halls. The jazz, blues, and gospel music that developed with the migration of Southern musicians attracted scores of diverse listeners and admirers. In the 1920s, the Regal Theater opened its doors and hosted the country's most talented and glamorous black entertainers. The community was also home to many prominent African-American artists and intellectuals, including dancer Katherine Dunham, sociologist Horace Clayton, journalist and social activist Ida B. Wells, jazz man Louis Armstrong, author Richard Wright, and poet Gwendolyn Brooks.

"Bronzeville's businesses and community institutions Provident Hospital, the Wabash YMCA, the George Cleveland Hall Library, Parkway Community House, the Michigan Boulevard Garden Apartments, Binga Bank, Overton Hygienic Company were more than alternatives to racially restricted establishments downtown. They were pillars of the community which helped to instill pride and contribute to the upward mobility of African Americans.

"But Bronzeville fell into decline after the end of racially restricted housing. Upper and middle class families moved away, and over-population and poverty overwhelmed the neighborhood. Today, black heritage tours guide visitors to the nine architectural landmarks that remain from the historic community, while neighborhood groups and business interests continue to work toward rebuilding the 'city within a city' that was once a national center of urban African-American commerce and art." (WTTW Interactive: Bronzeville: The Black Metropolis)

"On January 28, Preservation Chicago tweeted to alert the public about the threat of demolition of the Chicago Union Station Power House, an Art Deco-style industrial building designed by the renowned architecture office Graham, Anderson, Probst and White in 1931. Its owner, Amtrak, is requesting demolition approval in the next few days that would level the building to create a parking lot and a shed. The nonprofit preservation organization has created a petition to raise awareness of the situation and try to save the building.

"The news is, unfortunately, not surprising. The building, that has sat empty for a decade, was included in Preservation Chicago’s 2017 and 2020 Chicago 7 Most Endangered list, and in late 2019 there were articles in the news about the intention by Amtrak to demolish it. The building has a remarkable presence in the South Loop of Chicago, with its brick massing, vertical windows, and two towering black smokestacks. It is a building that exemplifies the role that Chicago has played as a hub of transportation, and more specifically, rail transportation since mid-nineteenth century.

"Before and around the time of the construction of the Chicago Union Station Power House, its architects Graham, Anderson, Probst & White had completed some of the most important buildings in Chicago: the nearby Old Chicago Main Post Office (1921 and expanded in 1932), The Wrigley Building (1924), the Civic Opera House (1929), the John G. Shedd Aquarium (1929), and the Merchandise Mart (1930), the largest building in the world at the time, with 4 million square feet. During those years, the office also worked for the Chicago Union Station Company completing a series infrastructure-related projects that included the Union Station (1925), a building originally designed by Daniel Burnham (Graham, Anderson, Probst and White was the successor firm of D. H. Burnham & Company).

"This is the latest threat to the industrial architecture of Chicago that is disappearing in front of our eyes. Last December, there was a demolition permit issued for the Larkin Company Building, a vacant eight-story masonry building located in Chicago’s Central Manufacturing District. The 1912 building, designed by F. E. Lockwood, is one of the sixty-five contributing properties to the Central Manufacturing District–Original East Historic District, entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 2016. The Central Manufacturing District (CMD) was the nation’s first planned industrial district that emerged in the beginning of the twentieth century. As noted by Preservation Chicago in its 2014 Chicago 7 Most Endangered list, “in 1925 there were more than 40,000 people working at the CMD and the Union Stockyards with the CMD working as a private banker, business incubator and maintaining the general grounds of the development. It was once such an important and bustling district that it had its own police force and during the Great Depression the company extended credit terms and worked with firms at the CMD so that only a single company failed.” The Larkin Company Building is the last in a list of buildings in the Central Manufacturing District lost to fires and demolition, most recently the Wrigley Factory. Soon, a key part of Chicago’s history will be lost."

"Tons of beautiful limestone were thrown into a landfill for a future Amazon Fresh grocery store. Despite Chicago’s well-built environment and rich architectural history, the city continues to destroy itself. Back in the pre-pandemic days I would try to document as many buildings as I could before they met the wrecking ball. Today is different. I’m not at all surprised that I have just a handful of demolition-related photos taken in 2021. Maybe it’s partly staying home too much but I really think I’ve become pessimistic about the whole thing. There is just an unreasonable (and unnecessary) amount of demolitions with tons of historic materials ending up in landfills, whether it’s in some wealthy suburb like Hinsdale (which has literally been destroying its historic built environment for decades) or the city of Chicago.

"I don’t want to go on a rant about the city and its preservation issues. Chicago loves to sell its architectural history to tourists but they keep trashing it at a more frequent rate than ever before, destroying buildings left and right for new development. Although there are demo delays after demo delays, it ultimately doesn’t save anything. The whole act just reminds you there are a lot of orange-rated buildings coming down. We needed to update the Chicago Historic Resources Survey like yesterday.

"With the exception of a couple wins like the “La Luce” Building, the city’s significant structures just end up getting demolished anyway by the people who pray at the shrine of money. Preservation reform now! There is more to the city than a building by a famous architect or with an interesting story to tell. Our vernacular architecture is just as important. It’s sad to see a workers cottage or bungalow or three-flat torn down, no questions asked, usually for some mega-sized single-family home that looks like it belongs in some random suburb. I hardly recognize parts of the city anymore. But this isn’t just a Chicagoland problem - cities around the world are dealing with the same concerns. 2021 proved that climate change is here to stay and not something in the distant future. Even Britain’s top engineers are urging the government to stop demolitions - cement alone causes 8% of CO2 global emissions - and instead re-use buildings and recycling materials."

"The 1906 Joseph Downey House, a large classic American Foursquare, is now the Berger Park Cultural Center.

"Last month, when I blogged about the work of architects Huehl & Schmid, I highlighted two American Foursquares produced by the firm—the Stayart and Zuncker houses. These fine brick residences are actually somewhat different from one another, and they made me think about how the Foursquare is such a fascinating house type. The earliest versions appeared as if by magic in the early 1890s and the house type soon became very popular across the country. I’m definitely a fan of these houses—in fact, I live in one! So, the American Foursquare is the star of this month’s blog.

"The American Foursquare building type generally refers to a two-story house with a square floor plan that includes four rooms on the ground level and four rooms on the second story. They are often cube-shaped in form with a pyramidal hipped roof and a center dormer. One thing I like about the house type is that there are many variations, including gable-roofed versions. Foursquares tend to have wide front porches with the entry door in the center or on one side. The houses were constructed of various materials, including stone, brick, and frame. The wood-frame buildings could be finished with clapboards, shingles, stucco, or a combination of these. And best of all, Foursquares ranged from modest cottages to spacious mansions, and thus provided (and continue to provide) homes to people of varying means.

"Many architectural historians believe that the Foursquare emerged as a reaction to eclectic Victorian house styles, such as the Queen Anne, which had been popular for more than two decades at the end of the 19th century. In a master’s thesis entitled The Four Square House in the United States, Thomas Walter Hanchett wrote: “The gaudy complexity of the Queen Anne brought a widespread revolt which set the course of American design from the 1890s through the First World War. Architects and the general public as well cried out for a simpler, more sensible residential architecture.” In contrast to Victorian houses, Foursquares featured clean lines, simple and often minimal ornamentation, and an efficient use of space. The new house type quickly sprouted up in cities, suburbs, and even rural areas across the country."

"When I first moved to Chicago and looked out over Lake Michigan, I had the same thought as many people: What are those big round buildings out there in the water? Oddly located grain silos? Drums for a giant?

"They are the water intake cribs supplying Chicago with clean water. Back before the Chicago River was reversed, the water close to the shore was fouled with raw sewage. Who wanted to drink that? The solution: Get clean water from several miles out.

"'The cribs are basically straws located in the lake that suck water in from the cleaner part of the lake and bring it into the purification plants,” says Megan Vidis, director of media affairs for the Chicago Department of Water Management.

"The first crib, completed in 1865 two miles out into the lake, sent water through a tunnel 60 feet below the lake surface to the Chicago Avenue Pumping Station at the historic Water Tower.

"Over the years, the city built a total of nine. Six stand today. Two still supply Chicago with water, piping it to two purification plants. Two house security equipment and serve as temporary lodgings for staffers performing duties like ice removal. Two no longer function.

"The city may demolish them. 'We are exploring ways to safely and cost-effectively deal with the two decommissioned cribs,' Vidis says.

"Preservation Chicago considers them iconic Chicago structures and opposes demolishing them. The group placed the cribs on its 2017 list of the city’s seven most endangered places.

"Not only are they historically significant marvels of engineering, says Ward Miller, the group’s executive director, but they could be transformed by some visionary entrepreneur into stunning destinations, like restaurants offering crib-top cocktails and a view of the city from the middle of the lake.

"'It would be as big a draw as Millennium Park — and an incredible source of revenue for the city,' he says." (Brotman, Chicago Magazine, 1/3/22)

"In the Brooklyn neighborhood of Gowanus, a 100-year-old metal foundry has been transformed into a state-of-the-art performing arts center. Dating back to 1901, the old warehouse had a quintessentially industrial, albeit worn-down, frame and precious longleaf pine timber from forests that were wiped in the building boom of the 1900s. Now, the neighborhood has one less blighted building and one more cultural destination.

"This kind of adaptive reuse, whereby an old building is converted for a new purpose, has been in vogue for decades. 2021 even kicked off with one of the largest adaptive reuse projects ever built, when the James Farley Post Office building in midtown Manhattan was transformed into the Moynihan Train Hall. Later in the year, in Beloit, Wisconsin, a coal-burning power plant from 1908 was reborn as a vibrant college campus. In Houston, an old Sears department store was transformed into an innovation hub. And in St Louis, the former headquarters of the Post-Dispatch became a residential building with 51 loft units.

"Now, we find ourselves at the cusp of a new year, with a climate crisis that has accelerated the drive for adaptive reuse. Buildings generate almost 40% of annual global CO2 emissions, and 11% of that comes from materials and construction. The most sustainable buildings are the ones that already exist.

"So, what if we made a collective decision to not build a single new building next year and instead, focused on reusing what we already have? A year-long building moratorium is a radical approach, and it comes with obvious shortcomings, but looking at our existing building stock could help with more than just the climate. In the last three years, nearly 800 old buildings have been repurposed into apartments. And as the pandemic continues to shutter properties across the country, more buildings like offices, hotels, and malls could enter the draw." (Brandon, Fast Company, 12/29/21)

Schiller Building / Garrick Theater, 1890-1892, Adler and Sullivan, 64 W. Randolph St. Demolished 1961. Photo credit: Richard Nickel / Ryerson & Burnham Archives Archival Image Collection

Schiller Building / Garrick Theater, 1890-1892, Adler and Sullivan, 64 W. Randolph St. Demolished 1961. Photo credit: Richard Nickel / Ryerson & Burnham Archives Archival Image Collection

"Why are buildings designed by architects Louis H. Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright so haunting, especially those that have been destroyed? More than simply creating a physical structure, both architects had rare gifts for engaging the human senses and emotions through the power of space, color, light, and motion – all qualities that can never quite be conveyed by photography or drawings. Their buildings demanded to be experienced.

"This exhibition attempts to conjure the essence of two long-gone masterpieces. Louis Sullivan’s Garrick Theatre Building in Chicago stood for only sixty-nine years and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Larkin Building in Buffalo lasted only forty-four years, and yet, these buildings continue to resonate, far outlasting their physical presence.

"Reconstructing the Garrick: Adler & Sullivan’s Lost Masterpiece, Curated by John Vinci with Tim Samuelson, Chris Ware,

"Reimagining the Larkin: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Modern Icon, Curated by Jonathan D. Katz

"The virtual exhibit tour, hosted by WTTW's Geoffrey Baer, offers a fascinating look at 100+ works and documents that cover Bill Mauldin’s life and work for the Chicago Sun Times. Mauldin, an award-winning cartoonist documented and satirized military and political affairs, often featuring important figures like Robert F. Kennedy, Mayor Daley, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., several U.S. presidents and his famous military characters, Willie and Joe.

"Get a fresh, virtual take on our latest exhibit without leaving the comfort of your home!

"Welcome to the Pritzker Military Museum & Library’s newest exhibition, Drawn to Combat: Bill Mauldin & The Art of War, a retrospective of the provocative work by two-time Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist Bill Mauldin about our nation’s time of war, civil rights, and social justice.

"Explore Mauldin’s largest collection featuring 150 framed drawings and published cartoons, as well as personal material from his exceptional career including his Pulitzer Prize awards, fan letters, and Purple Heart medal. #WhoIsBillMauldin

"Learn more and purchase your exhibit tickets ahead of time here:"

"MAS Context and the Goethe-Institut Chicago are hosting the digital screening of Helmut Jahn: In A Flash, a documentary by Nathan Eddy. The film will be available on this page. Helmut Jahn: In A Flash had its world premiere in Chicago on December 1, 2021, presented by MAS Context and the Goethe-Institut Chicago.

"Helmut Jahn was an endlessly inventive, persistently evolving architect in possession of astounding nerve and unflagging creative exuberance. An interview from June 2016, conducted in Jahn’s Chicago office, sheds light on his approach to design, his personal evolution as an architect, and the challenges facing the contemporary city.

"Nathan Eddy is an award-winning American filmmaker and journalist specializing in architecture and urban planning issues. His first two films, The Absent Column and Starship Chicago, document the struggle to protect Chicago’s architectural heritage. In 2017, Eddy organized and led the successful protest movement to landmark New York City’s epochal postmodern skyscraper, Philip Johnson and John Burgee’s AT&T Building." (MAS Context)

Louis Sullivan’s Idea by Tim Samuelson. Rachel Freundt @chi_geek on twitter

"The story of Louis H. Sullivan is considered one of the great American tragedies. While Sullivan reshaped architectural thought and practice and contributed significantly to the foundations of modern architecture, he suffered a sad and lonely death. Many have since missed his aim: that of bringing buildings to life. What mattered most to Sullivan were not the buildings but the philosophy behind their creation. Once, he unconcernedly stated that if he lived long enough, he would get to see all of his works destroyed. He added: “Only the idea is the important thing.”

"In Louis Sullivan’s Idea, Chicago architectural historian Tim Samuelson and artist/writer Chris Ware present Sullivan’s commitment to his discipline of thought as the guiding force behind his work, and this collection of photographs, original documentation, and drawings all date from the period of Sullivan's life, 1856–1924, that many rarely or have never seen before. The book includes a full-size foldout facsimile reproduction of Louis Sullivan’s last architectural commission and the only surviving working drawing done in his own hand."

384 pages, 300 color plates

$45.00 cloth/jacket

"Wrightwood 659 is pleased to announce the virtual release the Schiller/Garrick Theatre Visualization which premiered at Wrightwood 659 as a key element of the exhibition Romanticism to Ruin, the Two Lost Works of Sullivan and Wright. Working under the guidance of John Vinci and Angela Demma, with new drawings by Vinci along with reference photos, drawings and sketches from the Richard Nickel collection as well as insights into coloration discovered during the preparation of this exhibition, Bangladeshi architectural animator Razin Khan spent the better part of a year 'rebuilding' the Garrick as a virtual 3D model, providing the most overwhelming approximation of the experience of the structure to date. Khan’s spectacular animation allows viewers to relive one of Louis Sullivan’s most spectacular works."

"In Chicago, black or silver colored towers designed by Mies van der Rohe are sprinkled across the city from the north to the south. They all sprang up within a relatively short period of time and constitute — in combination with some faithful homages — what’s called the Second Chicago School of Architecture. This timeline makes it seem like Mies' strategies sprang out of nowhere and like they were born already fully developed. This video takes a look at how these tower strategies evolved from smaller projects to larger ones by paying special attention to their section. Whereas open plans promise ultimate fluidity, in section, Mies' buildings present another idea entirely. In this direction, difference and discretion dominate and symmetry rules. All of this is in service of developing a close connection between the occupant and the distant horizon.

__Chapters__

"Architect Helmut Jahn’s kaleidoscopic, controversial State of Illinois Center in Chicago, which shocked the world when it opened in 1985, may not be long for this world. Today the building is a run down rusty shadow of its former self, occupying a lucrative downtown block and deemed expendable by the cash-strapped state legislature.

"Despite initial construction flaws and hefty refurbishment costs, this singular architectural vision of an open, accessible, and inspiring civic building—defined by its iconic, soaring atrium--remains intact. Four years after the stinging loss of brutalist icon Prentice Women’s Hospital, Chicago preservationists, along with the building’s original champion, Governor James R. Thompson, are gearing up for a major battle to save the city’s most provocative architectural statement."

Includes interviews with:

Watch Starship Chicago: A Film by Nathan Eddy (15:50 Minutes)

"At Home In Chicago; A Living History of Domestic Architecture by Patrick F. Cannon and photos by James Caulfield

"Imagine a book that takes you into more than fifty of Chicago’s most striking homes. No need to knock or ring. Here’s your chance to take a slow ramble through lavish dining rooms, working kitchens, private bedrooms, and cozy patios of homes that reveal the city’s 184-year history.

"You’ll be accompanied by an experienced docent. And you’ll join Chicago’s preeminent architectural photographer, who will show you things you might never notice.

"Open your eyes and take in At Home in Chicago: A Living History of the Domestic Architecture, the first comprehensive look at the city’s most private residences. You’ve probably heard of some of these places: Frank Lloyd Wright’s sleek Robie House, Mies van der Rohe’s groundbreaking 860-880 Lake Shore Drive, Jeanne Gang’s sublime Aqua Tower. But most are off limits from Chicago’s famous architectural tours.

"At Home in Chicago is the sixth book by Patrick F. Cannon and James Caulfield. Now they focus on Chicago’s domestic architecture: the log cabins, cottages and bungalows, greystones, three-flats and mansions. The houses that made Chicago.

"The authors travel across the metropolitan region to present an eye-opening look at the city’s 200-year history through different home styles. They inspect houses built before the 1871 Great Chicago Fire, walk through the mansions that rose during the Gilded Age, check out the apartments finished before the Depression, and scrutinize mid-century and new-century homes.

"At Home in Chicago tells an astonishing story about Chicago. It reveals the city’s history through a chronological procession of dwellings―both big and small. These homes show how we lived and how we continue to live in the place we call home."

The 2021 Chciago Lakefront “Chicago 7 Most Endangered” poster is now available for sale on the Preservation Chicago webstore.

Previous years' “Chicago 7 Most Endangered” posters including Thompson Center, Union Station Power House, Jackson Park, and Holy Family Church are also available. The posters are available in three sizes; 8x10, 16x20 and 24x36.

Check out other great Chicago 7 swag including mugs and bags featuring the wonderful Chicago 7 artwork. Please let us know what you’d like to see offered, and we can work to make it happen.

Please note that between 30% and 40% of the sales price helps to support Preservation Chicago and our mission.