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"A years-long journey to honor a 14-year-old child brutally murdered by racism has ended.

"It was a journey to acknowledge Emmett Till, and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, whose selfless decision to show the world what racism looks like sparked the Civil Rights Movement.

"The City Council on Wednesday passed an ordinance landmarking Till’s childhood home at 6427 S. St. Lawrence Ave. in West Woodlawn, where he’d lived before that fateful trip Down South in August 1955, that ended with his body being pulled from the Tallahatchie River.

"Preservationists and the Till family won their battle just in time for Black History Month.

"'Achieving Landmark status for the Till-Mobley House is an important step in recognizing that Black cultural heritage sites long overlooked by the city are a vital part of Chicago’s past, present and future,' said Naomi Davis, founder and CEO of the building’s nonprofit owner, Blacks in Green, which plans to convert the brick two-flat into a museum.

"The building, at risk of deterioration or demolition after failure of previous landmark efforts, had been purchased in 2019 by a developer unaware of its history. Blacks In Green bought the 125-year-old building from Blake McCreight of BMW Properties in October.

"It’s where Till and his mother lived in August 1955, on the second floor, with other aunts and uncles in the first-floor and basement units. He left there for a train trip to visit family in Money, Mississippi, where he was kidnapped by white men from his uncle’s home on Aug. 28, 1955, for allegedly whistling at a white woman at a grocery store.

"Till’s body was recovered on Aug. 31, 1955, barbed wire wrapped around his neck, face beaten beyond recognition, his body weighted down in the river with a cotton gin fan.

"The lynching of the 14-year-old — whose confessed murderers were acquitted at trial — lit a fire under the Civil Rights Movement. It was cited by Rosa Parks in her refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus in December 1955, triggering the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

"That boycott would be led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who in a famed 1963 sermon, evoked 'the crying voice of a little Emmett C. Till, screaming from the rushing waters in Mississippi.'

"It was Preservation Chicago that spearheaded the years-long effort to save the building, and its director of community engagement, Mary Lu Seidel, who had immersed herself in Till’s life to draft all supportive documentation undergirding the ordinance, cried when Mayor Lori Lightfoot said, 'Hearing no objections, so ordered,' and the ordinance passed.

"Another behind-the-scenes player in the effort was Jonathan Solomon, director of the department of architecture at the Art Institute of Chicago.

"'Preservation Chicago is elated. This is a remarkable day, a day of celebration as we enter Black History Month,” said Ward Miller, the group’s executive director. 'We were honored to help in recognizing this home as a landmark, pushing for its designation for so many years. We are humbled by the experience. This site of reverence and remembrance will continue to endure long into the future.'

"Blacks In Green, which promotes the design and development of green, self-sustaining, mixed-income Black communities and land stewardship, has launched an $11 million fundraising campaign for what will be called 'The Till-Mobley Great Migration Museum, Garden and Theater.' It is working to secure an adjacent lot to expand the campus.

"In December 2019, the nonprofit purchased a nearby parcel at 6354 S. St. Lawrence Ave. and established the Mamie Till-Mobley Forgiveness Garden.

"Forgiveness, after all, begins with acknowledgement." (Ihejirika, Chicago Sun-Times, 1/27/21)

Chicago Union Station Power House, Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, in 1931. Photo Credit: Darris Lee Harris http://darrisharris.com/industrial

Chicago Union Station Power House, Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, in 1931. Photo Credit: Darris Lee Harris http://darrisharris.com/industrial

Chicago Union Station Power House, Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, in 1931. Photo Credit: Darris Lee Harris http://darrisharris.com/industrial

Chicago Union Station Power House, Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, in 1931. Photo Credit: Darris Lee Harris http://darrisharris.com/industrial

The iconic Art Deco Chicago Union Station Power House is threatened with demolition.

This streamlined architectural masterpiece was designed in 1931 by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, one of Chicago’s greatest architecture firms. They designed many of Chicago’s most iconic and beloved landmark buildings including Chicago Union Station, Wrigley Building, Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, Lyric Opera House, Merchandise Mart, and the Old Chicago Main Post Office. The Chicago Union Station Power House should take its honored place among these world-class buildings.

To avoid maintenance, Amtrak wants to spend $13 million dollars to demolish it and replace it with a parking lot or storage shed! There is a better way. Just sell it!

One of Chicago’s most experienced and successful developers wants to buy and restore the long-vacant Chicago Union Station Power House.

Their restoration plans for the historic building includes a tech data center and possibly a café along the Chicago River. It’s located directly across from the “78”, the largest high-tech R&D development in the Midwest.

If sold, it would be a powerful win-win. Amtrak would save $13 million dollars, avoid maintenance, and earn money from the sale. These funds could better be used for true priorities like upgrading train stations to meet ADA requirements. (Chicago Sun-Times, Amtrak reverses course,1/20/20)

But stubbornly Amtrak is still pushing hard for demolition. But there’s a hitch.

In order for Amtrak to use federal tax-payer funds to demolish a historic building, they must be able to claim during the Section 106 hearing on February 3, 2021 that they have exhausted all other options to save this significant National Register-eligible and Chicago Landmark-eligible building.

Perhaps this helps explains why despite frequent and repeated outreach for over a year, Amtrak stubbornly refuses to consider any purchase offers, allow a meeting or even allow a site visit!

Amtrak may be able to ignore a few lonely voices, but they will have no choice but to listen when we all speak together!

"Whether its future holds a second life as a data center, an addition to the city’s expanding Riverwalk or something even more distinctive, the building should be saved for future generations to enjoy, Ward Miller said, noting that London’s Tate Modern Museum was once the Bankside Power Station.” (Chicago Sun-Times, Iconic South Loop power station should be saved, 10/9/19)

With your help, the voice of the people will be heard. This petition will ensure that the sale and restoration option can’t be ignored at the hearing!

"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.

"Here in Chicago, we have had a few successes, some of them very recent such as the remarkable reuse of the Old Chicago Main Post Office, designed by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White. After sitting vacant for decades and with some failed attempts to reuse it, it finally opened to new tenants in the fall of 2019 after an extensive renovation led by Gensler. A decade earlier, the Charles H. Shaw Technology and Learning Center opened in the former coal-fired power plant, one of the four main buildings designed by Nimmons & Fellows and part of the Sears, Roebuck and Company facilities in North Lawndale. Designed in 1905 and decommissioned in 2004, the work of Farr Associates was named Project of the Year in the 2009 Richard H. Driehaus Preservation Awards. It is worth noting that these two successful examples are also of a scale that requires a large investment. That should not discourage exploring other opportunities to reuse many other buildings of much smaller scale and easier to tackle but of equal value.

"Despite some successes, Chicago is losing its industrial heritage at an alarming rate. These are buildings that, while they might not appear in architecture guides, have an important role in the history of the city. Their spaces have unique qualities, are easily transformed into residential, commercial, or civic uses, and allow for the adaptive reuse of an existing and valuable heritage. Not everything needs to be saved, but there is no reason to demolish perfectly fine buildings that can be reused.

"And the point to make here is that buildings are important for what can happen in them, for how they can provide a remarkable framework for things to happen. Local residents, community groups, architects, landscape architects, historians, ecologists, economists, those working in public administrations, and anybody interested in the future of their community can provide ideas, ambitions, and visions of how those buildings can contribute to their lives and the city, combining analysis, observation, and participation, defining a strong relationship between place and use. The opportunities are infinite when diverse voices and perspectives are included, and we all understand the value of these buildings. But we can’t afford to wait to consider the value of the industrial buildings once the demolition permit has been issued.

"Chicago’s industry has shifted over the decades. The hard-working conditions that many people had to endure during their shifts do not have to be replicated or celebrated. However, the change in the type of industries does not require the destruction of the industrial fabric that has defined parts of the city. New uses and existing buildings are not mutually exclusive. They can complement each other, pushing the city forward in a successful and equitable way while maintain its character and qualities that have made Chicago what it is. The Chicago Union Station Power House provides an immediate opportunity to explore what we can envision for this valuable structure that has anchored this part of the city for nine decades. With a series of new residential and office buildings being built north of Bertrand Goldberg’s River City and a new neighborhood proposed across the River, this can become a great asset for the area and the city." (Gil, Mas Context, 1/28/21)

"A surviving Victorian building in Chicago’s rapidly developing Fulton Market district, originally a Schlitz tavern and later the home of the Italian restaurant La Luce, has been temporarily spared a date with the wrecking ball.

"City officials on Wednesday revoked a demolition permit for the building, located at 1393-1399 W. Lake St., that was mistakenly issued Monday, according to Peter Strazzabosco, a spokesman for the city’s Department of Planning and Development.

"The permit has been put on hold through March 1 [revised to March 30] under Chicago’s so-called demolition delay ordinance, which requires city officials to review applications to tear down potential landmark buildings.

"'This sort of slipped through,' said Ward Miller, executive director of the advocacy group Preservation Chicago.

"An online Preservation Chicago petition that calls for the building to be permanently saved had gathered more than 1,000 signatures as of Thursday morning. [Now up to ~7,750 signatures]

"Built in the early 1890s and featuring such flourishes as a corner turret, the four-story structure is rated 'orange,' the second-highest rating, in the city of Chicago’s color-coded survey of potential landmark buildings.

"This time, preservationists hope the delay will give them time to persuade the city to confer landmark status on the building or to convince the owner to save its facades as part of an upcoming development.

"The building is “beautifully designed and crafted,” Miller said. “It’s really an intriguing building that just your regular citizens who walk and drive by have such an affection for it.” (Kamin, Chicago Tribune, 12/3/20)

Preservation Chicago's research indicates that the Schlitz brand belted globe symbol designed by artist Richard W. Bock was introduced at the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, one year after the Lake Street Tied House was built. This may explain why the characteristic Schlitz brand belted globe does not appear on the building's facade. Artist Richard W. Bock was also credited with designing the lunettes and large spandrel friezes which framed the stage in Adler & Sullivan's Schiller/Garrick Theater completed in 1892 and demolished in 1961.

Preservation Chicago has advocated for the building's preservation since 2016 and over the past six months since its change of ownership.

"The state of Illinois has bought a West Loop office building, a move that ought to erase any doubt it soon will fully vacate the historic but dilapidated James R. Thompson Center downtown.

"In a deal being announced this morning, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office says the state has closed on the $73.3 million purchase of 555 W. Monroe, the former home of PepsiCo. The 18-year-old structure has 430,000 square feet of office space and has green certification for energy efficiency.

"More than 1,000—and potentially 1,400—of the 3,500 state workers now based in downtown Chicago eventually will relocate to the new facility, starting in April, according to Ayse Kalaycioglu, chief operating officer of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, which manages the state’s real estate needs.

"About 900 of the employees moving to 555 W. Monroe will be coming from the Thompson Center, leaving 1,300 in the structure named after the former governor who championed its construction and mourned its declining fortunes. But they won’t be there long, said Kalaycioglu and Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes in an interview late yesterday.

"The Thompson center is so old and dilapidated that “it makes no financial sense for the state to occupy (it),” Hynes said. Added Kalaycioglu, “We are continuing to evaluate . . . and look for other opportunities such as 555 W. Monroe.”

"A list of which agencies will move is not yet available, but Kalaycioglu’s department and the Capital Development Board will be included, while the secretary of state, treasurer and other constitutional offices are expected to stay at the Bilandic Building, across LaSalle Street from the Thompson Center.

"Officials have talked for years about selling the Thompson Center to a private developer to help shore up the state’s cash-short budget. Pritzker finally won that authority from the Legislature year, but faces a 2022 deadline for action.

"Hynes said a request for proposals for a developer is expected to be issued in April.

"Some preservationists and the Thompson Center’s designer, architect Helmut Jahn, have urged that it be renovated and repurposed, perhaps as part of a larger development. But Hynes and Kalaycioglu made it clear the state just wants out. They rejected comparisons to the state Capitol in Springfield, which, like the Thompson Center, features a large rotunda and lots of open, if wasted, space.

"'It’s an apples and oranges comparison,' said Hynes 'The state Capitol is the state Capitol. (Thompson) is an office building. The state uses lots of office buildings.' (Hinz, Crain's Chicago Business, 1/27/21)

Preservation Chicago respectfully disagrees. The Thompson Center was designed to be and serves as a second state capitol building in Chicago. The City of Chicago and Cook County have a strong and proud presence in Chicago at the City Hall and County Building. So too should the State of Illinois have a strong and proud presence in Chicago.

Pilgrim Baptist Church / KAM Synagogue, Adler & Sullivan, 1890, 3301 S. Indiana Ave. Photo Credit: Richard Nickel, Ryerson & Burnham Archives

"Pilgrim Baptist Church, the Chicago landmark best known as the birthplace of Gospel music, received a grant worth more than $200,000 Thursday from the Citywide Adopt-A-Landmark Fund in what is likely the first of many steps to rebuild the church.

"The grant will go towards stabilizing the exterior walls of the church at 3301 S. Indiana Ave. It will be the first project of many required to restore the church, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Place in 1973 and named a Chicago landmark in 1981.

"The Citywide Adopt-A-Landmark Fund gives money generated by Downtown construction projects to buildings designated as Chicago Landmarks. The city acquires the money by taking 10 percent of the Neighborhood Opportunity Bonus, a fee developers pay to be allowed to build increased density Downtown.

"Designed by renowned architects Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan, the historic building was largely destroyed in a 2006 fire. Then in August, the storm that brought tornadoes to some parts of the are leveled a wall at the church, but the limestone façade that faces Indiana Avenue survived and is being propped up by scaffolding.

"Ward Miller, Executive Director of Preservation Chicago, spoke in support of the grant at the meeting, calling the church an 'extraordinary landmark. The structure is so very important, but historically and architecturally, to not only the Bronzeville community but to Chicago and the world,' Miller said.

"Built in 1891, the building was originally a synagogue. In the 1930s, it was converted to a church that hosted Thomas A. Dorsey, known as the father of modern gospel music.

"The goal now is to rebuild the church and to also build a Gospel music museum on the site. And despite the $216,960 granted to the church on Thursday, the church will need a lot of time and money to reach its goal, a fact acknowledged by commission member Maurice Cox during the meeting.

"'This is simply a small down payment to a much more audacious vision that I think we’ll all see in the near future,' Cox said. 'This is a critical step to a much larger vision that they have.'" (Chiarito, Block Club Chicago, 1/8/21)

The Hollenbach Building at 808 W. Lake Street has been demolished. It was built by Worthmann & Steinbach for Hollenbach Seed Company which was founded in 1877 and operated from Lake Street from 1909 to 1958.

This building was considered green by the Chicago Historic Resources Survey (CHRS). Green rating indicates "pre-1940s properties whose exteriors have been slightly altered from their original condition" and therefore not subject to the 90-Day Demolition Delay requirement.

The Green rating also references the Illinois State Survey (ISS) from the 1970's which noted Chicago buildings of significance. Many of the buildings identified in the ISS were given an orange rating in the CHRS survey of the 1980s and 90s. Orange rated buildings require a 90 Day Demolition Delay. Its possible that the Hollenbach Building was not given an orange rating in the CHRS because the original storefront and windows from 1912 had been replaced.

"In 2013, the building was sold to One Off Hospitality Group for $1.7 million. The first floor currently houses One Off Hospitality Group's Publican Quality Bread. Developer North Park Ventures plans to demolish the Hollenbach Building and adjacent buildings and build a 19-story hotel and office building." (Hollenbach Building, Wikipedia Page)

The Hollenbach Building should have been preserved and incorporated as part of the larger development. At a minimum, the façade should have be retained and integrated into the new construction. There is a successful example of a façade adaptive reuse a few blocks away at 905 West Fulton Market. In that case, the condition was more deteriorated than at 808 W. Lake Street, yet it was successfully incorporated into the new development and provides a sense of character and authenticity to the new construction.

Preservation Chicago had repeatedly reached out to urge North Park Ventures to pursue this direction, but the developer was unresponsive. The preservation effort was made much more difficult as there were no policy protections which applied to this building. The fate of this building rested solely on the whim of the developer.

"Two Catholic parishes in Uptown will merge this summer, calling into question the fate of Our Lady of Lourdes church and its cherished grotto. The archdiocese will list Our Lady of Lourdes’ vacant school building for sale.

"The Archdiocese of Chicago announced its latest round of church consolidations last week, saying Our Lady of Lourdes will be merged into St. Mary of the Lake in Buena Park. The merger is effective July 1, but both parishes will continue hosting mass beyond that date, said Mike Shanahan, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes, 4640 N. Ashland Ave.

"The Uptown church merger is just the latest in the archdiocese’s Renew My Church effort, which seeks to consolidate parishes to address declining church resources. In some consolidations, churches have been closed or sold off, though in others the fate of merged churches was left in flux.

"That is the case with Our Lady of Lourdes, a 127-year-old Uptown church that is home to a replica of a famous French grotto and one of the area’s only perpetual adoration chapels.

"The chapel within the church is designed to resemble the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, which is a cavernous holy site for Catholics. In 1992, the Uptown church’s grotto was made a perpetual adoration site, meaning it is open 24/7 as a place of worship.

"Catholics from across the area come to visit the grotto at all hours of the day, Shanahan said. It is currently closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Our Lady of Lourdes held its first mass in October 1892 on the southwest corner of Ashland and Leland avenues. A larger church was built in 1916 on the east side of Ashland, but it was manually lifted and moved back to its original site in 1929, when the city decided to widen Ashland.

"The church should remain a community asset beyond the merger because of its history and the popularity of its grotto, Shanahan said. 'We’re trying to keep the church,' he said. 'That’s a big deal.'"(Ward, Block Club Chicago, 1/29/21)

"Our Lady of Lourdes may have the most moving narrative of any Chicago church—quite literally. When the city of Chicago widened Ashland Avenue in 1929, a team of 50 men and horses lifted the 10,000-ton church from its foundation, moved it across the street, rotated it 90 degrees, and finally cut it in half and added a 30-foot expansion in the middle. This enormous undertaking drew national attention during the Great Depression. The parish was established in 1892 and the building was constructed (originally on the east side of Ashland Avenue) in 1916. This ornate Spanish Renaissance church was designed by prolific church architects Worthmann and Steinbach. The 1929 move and expansion was led by Joseph W. McCarthy, another notable ecclesiastical architect." (Open House Chicago)

Our Lady of Lourdes is a robust parish with over 975 parishioners. The Chicago Archdiocese had previously announced that no chinch with more than 800 parishioners would be at risk of consolidation or closure. 

Preservation Chicago was involved with community discussions on the consolidation of Our Lady of Lourdes, St. Mary of the Lake, St. Benedict, and St. Andrew. Additionally, it is unfortunate that the Chicago Archdiocese has determined to sell the Our Lady of Lourdes school building.

"Chicago’s last standing Phyllis Wheatley Home, which offered shelter and resources to young Black women moving north during the Great Migration, is at risk of being ordered demolished in less than two months. The three-story building at 5128 S. Michigan Ave. was built in 1896.

"From 1915 to 1967, the Phyllis Wheatley Association — named after the enslaved woman who was the first published Black poet in the United States — operated a settlement home there. Up to 22 young Black women lived there at a time as they sought employment in Chicago and got acquainted with their new city.

"The 125-year-old structure must have its roof and rear wall replaced, owner Ariajo 'JoAnn' Tate said. She’s owned the home for three decades, raising her family there while running the nonprofit Training and Educational Resources for Children, which she founded in the ’90s.

"Though the facade and the first floor are salvageable — along with its cherry wood paneling and wall-mounted buffet chests dating to the Wheatley Home’s operation — the basement and top floors must be gutted and rehabbed.

"Tate estimates it will cost $700,000-$1 million to make the necessary repairs. It will take another $2 million or so to execute Tate’s vision for the space, she said. She would move back into the home, which would also host her rebooted nonprofit with programs for Black economic empowerment and community-building.

"As she lives with one of her children in the suburbs, she’s working with local preservation organizations to secure grant funding. She plans to roll out a fundraiser on social media in early February.

"But a Circuit Court hearing for the vacant building is scheduled for March 16. At that, a judge may issue a demolition order, said Mimi Simon, a Department of Buildings spokesperson.

"With the court hearing just weeks away, there’s a lot of heavy lifting to be done to ensure the building will escape the bulldozer — let alone transform it into a community center honoring the work of the women who ran the settlement home.

"Joi Weathers is a third-generation Bronzeville resident, currently receiving medical treatment in Baltimore. After visiting the Wheatley Home for her blog and connecting with Tate in late 2019, Weathers began raising awareness about the site’s significance.

"About a month ago, she organized a petition to save the home. It’s since gained more than 700 signatures, but 'a petition is not going to sway the city,' Weathers said.

"Preserving 'a tangible place that holds the heritage and spirit of Black women' is a must, Weathers said — particularly as a hot housing market stokes fears of gentrification and the erasure of Black history in the former Black Belt.

"'Hearing Dr. Tate and her story, I remembered how emotional my father was when the Palm Tavern closed, the Checkerboard Lounge — you just get tired of seeing everybody so lost and not understanding what is at stake,' Weathers said.

"What’s at stake is an opportunity for Chicagoans to continue learning from a place where Black women invested in each other for decades, researchers said.

“'People viscerally respond to being in the place, or touching the thing that somebody else touched,' she said. 'When that’s gone, sometimes you can feel like that connection is broken.'"(Evans, Block Club Chicago, 1/29/21)

Preservation Chicago has been working with urgency to generate stakeholder support and emergency funding prior to the March 16 Building Court date. Additionally, Preservation Chicago recommended the Phyllis Wheatley Home as a suggestion for Chicago Landmark Designation on January 26 at the Program Committee hearing of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks.

"A West Ridge building that preservationists say is historically significant is set to be razed after a demolition permit was issued December 16, but preservationists are arguing it would have been protected — at least for 90 days — if Chicago had an updated Historic Resources Survey.

"The building, known as the Sapphire Building at 2800 W. Peterson Ave., was purchased by RefugeeOne, a refugee resettlement agency, in August. The group, at 5705 N. Lincoln Ave., plans on raising $5 million to build new offices, a sewing workshop and child care center on the site, and hopes to begin construction in the spring.

"The building was built in 1960 and designed by architect Henry L. Newhouse II. In its early years, the building was called the 'Business House' and is a fine example of mid-century modernist architecture, according to Preservation Chicago executive director Ward Miller.

"In 1966, the building housed the North Side headquarters for real estate developer Arthur Rubloff, who had previously developed North Michigan Avenue and coined the name 'Magnificent Mile.'

"Miller explained that the building likely would have been protected, at least for 90 days, if Chicago had an updated Historic Resources Survey.

"The last survey, started in 1983 and published in 1996, identified and color-coded buildings more than 50 years old, with red being used for the most important for world-renowned buildings like the Tribune Tower and Auditorium Theater, and orange being used to label significant churches, synagogues and other buildings important to Chicago history.

"The color coding did not offer protection by itself, but in 2003 the city passed a demolition delay ordinance that says no demolitions can take place for 90 days once a permit is issued for red- or orange-rated buildings. This came after the original Chicago Mercantile Exchange Building, built in 1927 at Franklin and Washington, which had been coded orange, was demolished. To this day, the site remains an empty lot.

"Miller said Chicago is lagging behind other cities when it comes to protecting buildings.

"'In Miami, Florida, there is a district of buildings that are similar to this that are landmarked because they are nicely crafted, mid-century buildings,' Miller said. 'The reason Chicago isn’t leading the pack on this is because we don’t have the most updated survey. Our city really does need to invest more time and money in protecting its built environment.'

"He added that Preservation Chicago is currently advocating for more staff to be added to the Department of Planning and Development’s historic Preservation Division but knows it’s a tough sell, given COVID and the city’s finances.

"'This is not really a time to discuss that with COVID, but before this it was because of city budget issues and before that it was because of the national financial crisis in 2008,' Miller said. 'It’s always something that keeps more staff from being hired. We should be looking at several landmarks and districts every month with the development pressure we have. There is so much need but so little capacity to do that. We need aldermen, city officials, planning officials to really look at protections for buildings like this and others across the city.'" (Chiarito, Chicago Sun-Times, 12/24/20)

"INVEST South/West proposals presented for Austin, Englewood and Auburn Gresham

"Key steps in the INVEST South/West RFP process took place this month, when DPD staff, aldermen, and neighborhood roundtable groups reviewed developer presentations for three key opportunity sites:

• Chicago and Laramie in Austin

• 838-58 W. 79th St. in Auburn Gresham

• Englewood Square Phase II in Englewood

In addition to asking questions and providing feedback, webinar participants were invited to respond to comprehensive surveys about each proposal, which will help inform the City’s evaluation of each RFP response."

Winning projects could be announced winter, 2021."

"An old Englewood firehouse is at the center of proposals aimed at transforming a section of the West 63rd Street corridor into a destination that will attract Englewood families, artists and entrepreneurs.

"Four developer teams shared their vision for the 98-year-old firehouse and an adjacent area during two community meetings as part of the city’s INVEST South/West initiative. Now, the city is calling on Englewood residents for input on what should be built during the second phase of the Englewood Square project.

"DL3 Realty, the firm behind the first phase of Englewood Square, which is anchored by Whole Foods Market, is behind two separate proposals focusing on the firehouse site, one of which would see affordable housing developed. Other ideas include creating a neighborhood “living room” and business incubator, a mixed-use indoor/outdoor space, and a complex with housing, retail and the converted firehouse as a culinary incubator.

"All the proposals have community wealth-building in mind and would support local business owners while fostering a new generation of Black entrepreneurs.

"Two online surveys about all four proposals will be available until Thursday. An evaluation discussion is scheduled for Feb. 18 and the winning development will be announced shortly after." (Golden, Block Club Chicago, 2/1/21)

Business Hubs, Housing And Public Plazas: Developers Make Their Pitches For 2nd Phase Of Englewood Square; Four proposals center around repurposing the former firehouse near 63rd and Halsted. Residents can share feedback on the proposals through online surveys until Thursday, Jamie Nesbitt Golden, Block Club Chicago, 2/1/21

"Lake Effect Brewing Company is moving forward with plans to build its first taproom after the city approved the sale of a more-than-century-old vacant firehouse in Jefferson Park.

"Developer Ambrosia Homes has been working with the brewery since 2016 to acquire the firehouse at 4841 N. Lipps Ave. so it can open a brewery and restaurant in the first floor. Nine rental loft apartments are planned on the floors above.

"The City Council agreed Wednesday to sell the firehouse to Ambrosia for $1. The firehouse was originally built in 1906 but has long sat vacant.

"Tim Pomaville, Ambrosia’s president, has been navigating the city’s various city departments for years to acquire the city-owned property. He said he’s excited the sale finally went through and is eager to get started. The first step is cleaning up lead paint on the property, a project Pomaville estimates will cost $200,000.

"Lake Effect began selling beer in 2011 and is currently nestled between two underpasses and behind a costume shop at 4727 W. Montrose Ave. Owner Clint Bautz previously told Block Club opening a taproom and restaurant is the next step to grow his business.

"'We are done with this phase. Now it’s time to execute the plan and start making beer,' Bautz said, in a Facebook post after the sale was approved.

"The sale of the property to Ambrose almost hit a snag last year when the nonprofit Copernicus Center, which is down the block from the firehouse, launched an unsuccessful bid to buy the property.

"Now that the city has signed off, Pomaville said there are plans to host a grand opening party at the completion of the $2.4 million project." (Hernandez, Block Club Chicago, 1/28/21)

The current revised redevelopment plans for the historic Jefferson Park Firehouse embrace the building’s history, character and authenticity. Preservation Chicago believes that embracing the historic character will contribute significantly to the success of the micro-brewery.

The Northwest Chicago Historical Society and Preservation Chicago encourages ownership and City of Chicago to seek a Chicago Landmark Designation for the building. This could be considered as an individual landmark or as an extension of the thematic Chicago Fire House Landmark District.

Preservation Chicago applauds Ambrosia Homes and Lake Effect Brewing for listening to the community, integrating the comments and adjusting the development plans to make the preservation-sensitive. We also applaud 45th Ward Alderman James M. Gardiner for his support. A special thanks to the dedicated and outstanding advocacy of the Northwest Chicago Historical Society, Susanna Ernst, Frank Suerth, and Jacob Kaplan.

"A century-old Near West Side church that has served as home to a number of congregations over the years is slated to be demolished. The old church at 1319 S. Ashland Ave. near Addams/Medill Park was most recently home to the St. Stephenson Missionary Baptist Church. A demolition permit was issued to raze the three-story building on Jan. 6, city records show.

"4S Bay Partners, managed by billionaires Steve and Jessica Sarowitz, aims to level the church and replace it with a four- or five-story building, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. The building would house community service businesses and nonprofit collaboration space. The couple recently helped buy a building for the Chatham Workforce Center to open in.

"Steve Sarowitz made his fortune as founder of software company Paylocity, and the couple founded Highland Park-based Julian Grace Foundation.The Sarowitzes’ attorney, Rolando Acosta, declined to comment on the demolition or project. Calls and emails to the Julian Grace Foundation seeking information on the project were not returned.

"The church was built in 1905, according to the city and Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago. Miller, a preservation activist, said he hoped the developer would’ve worked to at least preserve the Ashland-facing facade of the church as part of the site’s redevelopment.

"'We are at a tipping point here in Chicago,' Miller said. 'We really need some radical reform to preserve the historic environment and some new ordinances to protect our historic buildings, neighborhoods and our residents from these terrible developments.'

"During and after the demo-hold period, city officials discussed reusing parts of the historic church with the developer, said Peter Strazzabosco, Department of Planning and Development spokesman. Officials pointed to the Epiphany Center for the Arts and St. Boniface Church as examples of adaptive reuse, according to city records. While demolition is imminent, developers have yet to formally submit a zoning application for the future building, Strazzabosco said.

"Last fall, the Maxwell Street Foundation urged city officials to 'broker an agreement with the developer' to at least save the facades for preservation and reuse before a demolition permit be granted. The church built by Theodore Duesing was previously home to the Second German Evangelical Zion Church, according to the Maxwell Street Foundation.

“This building has significance for our group because this was the church built by a German congregation when they vacated a German Church and school in the old Maxwell Street area, the history of which we protect and interpret,” the foundation’s secretary Laura Kamedulski wrote in a letter to the city. 'This is a time-sensitive matter as demolition is imminent.'

"The loss of another century-old building underscores the need for an ordinance to better protect buildings more than 50 years old, Miller said.

'We are falling behind to protect a city known for architecture,' Miller said. 'If we aren’t careful, we may just sink what’s important to our city if we don’t get serious about protecting these historic structures that are so unique to the city of Chicago.'" (Pena, Block Club Chicago, 1/26/21)

Preservation Chicago has advocated for a preservation-sensitive outcome for St. Stephenson for many years. We had actively outreached to the development team to encourage retention of the exterior walls and adaptive reuse of the interior space. Previously, we found multiple developers interested in adaptively reusing this historic building for a residential use. Multiple offers for purchase that were presented, but the former church ownership declined all offers.

Century-Old St. Stephenson Church Slated To Be Demolished On Near West Side; Preservationists fought to save the church. A company managed by billionaire Steve Sarowitz aims to level it and replace it with a four- or five-story building, according to city documents, Mauricio Pena, Block Club Chicago, 1/26/21

"Plans are underway to convert a closed West Englewood elementary school into a multi-unit affordable housing development.

"Charles Earle Elementary, 6121 S. Hermitage, was one of 50 CPS schools permanently closed in 2013, and it has been dormant since. When Wisconsin-based Gorman and Co. bought the building for $200,000 in 2017, there was talk of turning the old school into senior housing, but those plans were later scrapped.

"Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) and two groups partnering to convert the closed school shared their plans for the building at a virtual meeting Monday. They said the development, Earl School Residences, would have affordable housing and other amenities, like a fitness room.

"Lopez held several community engagement sessions with the help of Beehyyve, an architecture and engineering design collaborative led by E.G. Woode’s Deon Lucas, to get an idea of what residents wanted in the building. Residents said they wanted housing, an event space and a project that would create jobs for the community.

"A sample layout of a 2 bedroom unit, which will also include loft-style apartments.

The school’s structure will remain intact with 63 units of affordable housing built. Gorman and Phoenix Recovery Support Services will share ownership of the site.

"The development will also have an outdoor community space, a fitness station, a wellness trail and a playground. A combination of low-income housing tax credits and historic tax credits may be used to finance the $22.5 million project.

"Gorman submitted its financial applications for Earle at the beginning of January, with one part having been already approved by the National Park Service’s State Historic Preservation office. Part two of its application needs approval from the same office. Clewer said that they hope to hear “good news” regarding their low-income housing tax credit application by June.

'This is a very important project for West Englewood and Englewood as a whole,' Lopez said. 'The last time we saw a major project of this magnitude was 2010, and we’re setting high standards.'" (Nesbitt Golden, Block Club Chicago, 2/2/21)

"The Double Door is one step closer to reopening after City Council approved plans Wednesday for the club’s eventual move to Uptown — and for an apartment complex to rise on a nearby parking lot.

"Development firm Cedar Street won support from the City Council Wednesday for its mixed-use development at Wilson and Kenmore avenues. Included in the development is the Wilson Theater, 1050 W. Wilson Ave., which has been eyed as the new home to beloved rock club Double Door.

"Cedar Street’s plans call for redeveloping the historic building back into a theater after years of being used as a commercial space. The theater’s parking lot will be replaced by a 62-unit apartment building.

"After being evicted from its longtime Wicker Park location in 2017, it was rumored that Double Door would relocate to Uptown. The move was confirmed by the club’s owner in July 2019.

"Formal plans for the new Double Door site were introduced to the city in February 2020. The planning documents do not mention Double Door by name, but Ald. James Cappleman (46th) at this week’s Zoning Committee meeting said 'we all know' who it is.

“It’s nice to have the opportunity to turn this building back to its roots,” said Cappleman at December’s commission meeting.

"The Wilson Theater, built in 1908, was the longtime home to vaudeville performers. Most recently, it was a TCF bank until 2011.

"In 2013, Cedar Street bought the theater building at 1050 W. Wilson Ave. for $625,000. At the time, the firm said it was seeking 'a unique tenant that not only respects the grandeur of the space, but also adds value to the Uptown community.'" (Ward & Laurence, Block Club Chicago, 1/27/21)

Preservation Chicago played an important role in the designation of this building and approximately 49 others as part of the Uptown Square Historic Landmark District.

"The first condos are for sale in a long-vacant pillared building on Fullerton Avenue building that began life in the 1920s as a bank and later housed a company that made clothes for burying the dead.

"For just under $2 million, a buyer will get a five-bedroom, 4,475-square-foot condo where on the main floor is a row of tall arched windows facing west, and on the lower floor there’s a hefty, steel-framed bank vault door repurposed as the entry to a wine room.

"That condo and a three-bedroom, 1,700-square-footer priced at just under $1 million came on the market Jan. 27. They’re the first of a planned eight units in a Classical Revival building familiar to people who traverse Fullerton for the word “Perfection” carved over the front door.

"RD Precision launched the empty building’s rehab in early 2019. a little over two years after buying it for $3 million from a developer whose 2014 plan to redevelop it failed. The purchase included pieces of empty land immediately east of the building, where RD put up an addition, and south, where RD built garages.

"Completed in 1923 as Fullerton State Bank, it was designed by Karl Vitzthum, the architect of at least 50 Midwestern bank buildings, according to the city’s landmarks department. Vitzthum also designed tall buildings in the Loop, including the Old Republic on Michigan Avenue and the Art Deco skyscraper One North La Salle.

"After the bank closed during the Great Depression, Perfection Burial Garments, moved in and put its name above the door. During the Depression, when burying a family member in useful clothes seemed wasteful, entrepreneur Harry Eckhardt launched Perfection to make inexpensive clothing that could be draped over a corpse and buried with it, according to a memoir by Eckhardt’s daughter Agnes Nixon. Nixon worked for her father in the building and went on to create the soap operas 'One Life to Live' and 'All My Children.'

"In later decades of the 20th century, the building went through various uses. It has been vacant since at least 2013."

Preservation Chicago suggested the Fullerton State Bank be added to the Neighborhoods Banks Historic Landmark District. This designation prevented its demolition during its long period of vacancy and facilitated its current preservation-oriented adaptive reuse.

"The Lincoln Park mansion built for a wealthy Chicagoan who survived the sinking of the Titanic has been extensively rehabbed and now is being offered as a pair of condos. The first of the two was listed yesterday at $5.65 million.

"When developer Bob Berg’s firm, Foster Design Build, bought the dilapidated 16,000-square-foot former Emily Ryerson mansion in 2017, he said the rehab would wind up as either a single-family home or three condos. No single-family buyer materialized, so the rehab proceeded as condos.

"Wendy Berg, the Baird & Warner agent who represents the condos, said making three turned out not to be appealing, as the third would have no view of Lincoln Park and few historical details, so they revised the plan to make two condos. Now on the market is the upper condo, on the home’s third and fourth floors. The lower condo, which will be larger and have the most historical details, will be completed in the spring and likely priced at about $7.6 million, she said.

"Because the condo begins on the third floor, its east-facing rooms and some that face south have views over the trees into the park.

"The mansion was built in 1917 for Emily Ryerson and her three children, five years after they escaped the sinking Titanic in lifeboats. Her husband, Arthur, a member of the Ryerson steel family, went down with the ship.

"Society architects David Adler and Henry Dangler designed Ryerson’s house and an attached row of townhouses that stretched north from it along Lakeview Avenue. Some of their original details still intact on the lower floors are carved plaster busts over door frames and ornamental columns in the foyer.

"When Berg’s firm bought the mansion, it hadn’t been used as a residence since 1946, and most of its interior had been chopped up, the original features replaced or allowed to deteriorate. Thresholds, an addiction recovery and mental health facility, was housed in the building from 1975 until 2015, when Thresholds sold it to a developer for $2.8 million. That developer did not undertake a rehab and sold the building to Foster Design Build’s investors." (Rodkin, Crain's Chicago Business, 1/6/21)

In 2015 and 2016, the Ryerson Mansion was threatened with an uncertain future when the building was sold to a different developer. Preservation Chicago worked with neighboring residents, community organizations, and 43rd Ward Alderman Michele Smith towards a landmark designation for this house and the three adjoining townhouses. Designed by David Adler and Henry Dangler in 1917, these four buildings are now part of the Lakeview Avenue Row House Landmark District. Preservation Chicago applauds developer Bob Berg and Foster Design Build for an outstanding, preservation-oriented development.

"The home of late spoken word artist Ken Nordine was made a Chicago landmark Wednesday, one year after it faced demolition and a community effort was started to save the mansion.

"City Council voted Wednesday to grant historical landmark designation to the stately Edgewater mansion, successfully ending the effort to save the home from redevelopment.

"Nordine, a celebrated jazz poet and voice actor, lived in the corner lot house at 6106 N. Kenmore Ave. until his death in 2019 at the age of 98. The last single-family home on a block of mid-rises, Nordine’s estate listed the mansion for sale and in early 2020 sought to demolish the house.

"Because the house was listed as 'potentially significant' in the city’s historical survey, the demolition permit application set off a 90-day delay to see if demolishing it would be appropriate. The action also caused Edgewater neighbors to rally to the home’s preservation.

"The city extended the home’s preliminary landmark status in March, stymying moves to tear it down. In July, the home was sold for $1.375 million to Richard Logan and Angela Spinazze.

"The Logan family foundation is a supporter of jazz, the arts and preservation efforts. The owners have signaled their intent to preserve the Edgewater home, Block Club previously reported.

"'We are over the moon,' Bob Remer, president of the Edgewater Historical Society, said when the home was sold. 'The community really came together to make this happen.'

"The home was built in 1902 by the architecture firm Pond and Pond, home some of the most notable architects in Chicago history. It was built for the industrialist Herbert Farrington Perkins.

"Constructed in the arts and crafts style, the home is one of the last surviving first-generation mansions built in Edgewater’s early years, according to a city assessment of the home.

"Though it is said to have maintenance issues, the home is a remnant of the bedroom community of lakeside mansions Edgewater once exemplified, preservationists have said.

"'This building helped me understand what this neighborhood was before its rapid change,' Maurice Cox, commissioner of the city’s Department of Planning and Development, said at a committee meeting over the fate of the home." (Ward & Laurence, Block Club Chicago, 1/27/21)

Preservation Chicago applauds the new owners for saving this important historic building. The Edgewater Historical Society and Preservation Chicago worked tirelessly to bring about a successful preservation outcome. We also applaud Landmarks Illinois, 48th Ward Alderman Harry Osterman, the City of Chicago Commission on Chicago Landmarks, Landmarks Staff, and Commissioner of Department of Planning and Development Maurice D. Cox for their support of this designation. This Landmark Designation protected the historic building against demolition and enabled the preservation-oriented outcome.

"A 19th century mansion on Prairie Avenue whose zoning allows commercial use has been sold to users who plan to keep it as a single-family home. The house, a mansard-roofed remnant of Prairie Avenue’s heyday as a fashionable mansion district, sold Jan. 22 for $2.3 million.

"Paul Gorney, the eXp Realty agent who represented the buyers, said they plan to renovate the eight-bedroom, 10,600-square-footer, which had been in one family’s hands since 1978. While the house and its coach house were not threatened with demolition, their zoning classification would have allowed a buyer to put them into commercial use.

"'It’s an incredible place,' Gorney said. 'As a Chicagoan, you love to see a house like that still standing and being used as a house.'

"Because of 'the vast size of the house,' said Hadley Rue, the Dream Town agent who represented the property, it would have been possible to divide the mansion for multiple uses—whether for commercial use or as condos or apartments.

"Rue represented the 27-room home for two sisters, Tracy and Marcy Baim, whose late mother, Joy Darrow, and her husband, Steve Pratt, bought it in 1978. Marcy Baim operated a gallery on the first floor and rented out the coach house.

"Built in 1870 or 1871, the mansion was originally the home of Elbridge Keith, a banker and civic leader, and Harriet Hall Keith, according to an article on the Glessner House blog. The Keith house is one of only seven that remain from the Gilded Age days when Pullmans, Fields and Armours built some of the neighborhood’s 50 or more grand mansions, according to the Encyclopedia of Chicago.

"The Keith house spent a few decades in the 20th century as publishing companies’ offices but returned to partial residential use in 1974 when Wilbert and Marilyn Hasbrouck moved in. Wilbert Hasbrouck was the Chicago architect who in the mid-1960s spearheaded efforts to prevent demolition of the now-treasured Glessner House half a block north.

"The Hasbroucks operated an architecture bookstore on the Keith House's first floor. At the time, the house was surrounded by parking lots and storage buildings, as Prairie Avenue and its environs had become an industrial district.

"In 1978 the Hasbroucks sold the house to Darrow and Pratt, without putting it on the market and only after Darrow and Pratt vowed to preserve and restore it, Tracy Baim said in 2019. Darrow and Pratt paid less than $200,000 for the house, but in the ensuing decades the family spent at least $2 million on restoration and preservation, according to Baim.

"'This house matters in so many ways,' Tracy Baim said then." (Rodkin, Crain's, 1/25/21)

"During Wednesday’s monthly meeting of the Chicago Park District Board, commissioners unanimously agreed to lease property within Riis Park to Chicago Public Schools for the construction of a new elementary school in Belmont Cragin.

"Per the intergovernmental agreement, already approved by the Chicago Board of Education, the lease is good for 40 years, with an option to renew. CPS will pay for the school, which will be connected to the park’s existing field house. The Park District will receive Tax Increment Financing dollars to spruce up the field house and the park’s playground.

"The agreement still has a few hurdles to clear, including signoff from the Chicago Plan Commission, officials said.

"It was a deal several years in the making, as the two agencies hammered out a compromise. Though this won’t be the first CPS school situated within a park, such arrangements are rare.

"Mike Kelly, Park District CEO and general superintendent, said he was originally on the record as being opposed to the project. 'I thought, ‘Why take up park space with a school?’'

"The school’s footprint within the park was scaled back from initial renderings, which paved the way for the final agreement. Kelly told commissioners he now supports the school.

"Ald. Ariel Reboyras (30th Ward) has been a longtime advocate for a new school in Belmont Cragin, and spoke in favor of the proposal at the board meeting.

"Friends of the Parks issued a statement following the board's decision, expressing its 'deep concern about the erosion of park space in Chicago.' The organization said it will hold the school's boosters to their promise of identifying 3.3 acres of replacement parkland nearby.

"'There are those among us who have been strategizing about how to strengthen protections for Chicago’s parkland from those who see them as a site just waiting for a new building to be built,' the group said in its statement."

Chicago parks and greenspaces are not vacant sites ripe for redevelopment. Preservation Chicago strongly disagrees with the construction of new buildings in Chicago parks that are unrelated to the park use. While we support continued investment in the Chicago Public School system, there are multiple vacant nearby sites that would have been a much more appropriate alternative location for this school development project.

"Last week, the Tribune’s architecture critic, Blair Kamin, stepped down after 28 years in the role, preceded by a stint as a news reporter for the paper, two books, and a Pulitzer Prize.

"Kamin’s beat is one that evolves slowly, because building things takes a long time, and the ramifications of our built environment take even more time to become apparent. So Chicago has been lucky to have Kamin in his job for this long (as well as his predecessor, Pulitzer-winner Paul Gapp, the newspaper’s first architecture critic, who was there for 18 years). For nearly three decades, Kamin has been able to absorb and influence the changes to our buildings, parks, transportation, and policy. That’s important in every city — but especially in Chicago.

"[Whet Moser] spoke with Kamin about his time covering our built environment.

"Your Pulitzer was based in part on a series about the lakefront and how it could be improved. What’s your impression of how things have changed since?

"I’m really gratified at the changes that have occurred since the series appeared in 1998. The most important changes have to do with Burnham Park, which is south of Roosevelt Road and encompasses the Museum Campus and McCormick Place and the parkland to the south of it. In 1998 that area was separate and unequal. Compared to Lincoln Park in the north, it had less parkland, it had less amenities, it had worse access. Everything about it was worse than the comparable stretch of Lincoln Park to the north. And that was clearly a matter of race. The Chicago Park District followed a policy of so-called benign neglect, because the neighborhoods to the west of Burnham Park were largely poor and Black. And it was an outrageous situation.

"Since then, it’s really been corrected. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent to expand the parkland and add new features: fishing piers, a marina, beaches. There are new pedestrian bridges over Lake Shore Drive, replacing the rickety outdated bridges that had been there. Another one is going to start construction this year, I believe at 43rd Street. That’s a really dramatic change. It’s taken 22 years to achieve and the project is still ongoing.

"But that’s not the only change that’s occurred as a result of the series. It also looked at Grant Park and its split personality: how it was jammed and vibrant during the summer festivals and pretty much dead otherwise. And since, with the idea of improving daily use as our mantra, there’s been an enormous change within Grant Park. That’s been fueled in large part by Millennium Park and now Maggie Daley Park, but other parts of Grant Park have come alive as well. In those years [since 1998], you think of Lollapalooza — I mean, I’m not taking credit for Lollapalooza, but Grant Park is a much more vibrant place than it was 20 years ago. And that was a key part of the series.

"In Lincoln Park, and on other parts of the lakefront, I was really glad to see Ken Griffin spend [what] I believe was $50 million for separating the bike paths and walking paths. That’s a change that I’ve experienced personally, since I ride on the lakefront all the time. The biggest disappointment has been southward. There have been wonderful plans sketched for South Works, but nothing has come of them. And it remains this huge site of huge potential but unrealized visions. I very much hope that in the next 20 years, that will change and that part of the south lakefront will really see the same kind of transformation that Burnham Park has witnessed." Moser, Chicago Magazine, 1/22/21)

Preservation Chicago wishes to extend our very best wishes to Blair Kamin and thank him for all of his many articles relating to historic preservation and the Chicago Lakefront. He was strong and respected voice and his column will be greatly missed.

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.

Address: Second Church of Christ Scientist 2700 N. Pine Grove Avenue, Lincoln Park

#100903102

Date Received: 01/07/2021

Ward: 43rd Ward Alderman Michele Smith

Applicant: Second Church of Christ Scientist c/o Fenton Booth

Owner: Second Church of Christ Scientist

Permit Description: Alterations to the interior of the existing masonry church building, including seven-story and basement additions containing 26 residential units, and 30 basement-level parking spaces. Work includes the demolition of the interior structure, the roof and the north wall of the existing church, exterior east, west and south walls to remain on the building.

Status: Under Review

Preservation Chicago has been advocating to save the Second Church of Christ Scientist for many years and it was a Chicago 7 Most Endangered in 2019. Second Church of Christ was designed by Solon S. Beman in 1901. By any measure, it should be a Designated Chicago Landmark.

Preservation Chicago was able to secure the interest of a major philanthropic foundation with plans to restore the magnificent church building and convert it into a cultural arts center. The congregation would have continued to have access for religious services. The congregation flatly rejected the offer preferring to monetize the value of the land. The decision of the development team to save the exterior walls is an improvement over the initial plans, but the building, including its magnificent dome, should be preserved in its entirety.

Address: 1399 W. Lake Street, West Loop (Lake Street Schlitz Tied House / La Lucé)

#100901650

Date Received: 12/02/2020

Ward: 27th Ward Alderman Walter Burnett

Applicant: Spirit Wrecking and Excavation, Inc.

Owner: Veritas Chicago, LLC C/O Anthony Giannini

Permit Description: Demolition of a 4-story, multi-family, mixed-use masonry building.

Status: 90-day hold extended to 03/31/2021 by mutual agreement.

Address: Address: 7443 S. Kimbark Avenue, Near West Side

#100907049

Date Received: 01/28/2021

Ward: 8th Ward Alderman Michelle Harris

Applicant: KLF Enterprises

Owner: VILA CO. c/o Vitalija Sileikyte

Permit Description: The demolition of a 3-story frame residential building.

Status: Under Review

Address: 3837 N. Kenmore Avenue, Wrigleyville

#100901999

Date Received: 12/4/2020

Ward: 46th Ward Alderman James Cappleman

Applicant: Viewpoint Services, DBA Brophy Evacuation

Owner: 3837 Kenmore, LLC C/O Kevin Derrig

Permit Description: Demolition of a 2-story masonry residential building and garage

Status: Released 12/21/20 after 17 days

Address: 1932-34 N. Seminary Avenue , Old Town

#100901459

Date Received: 12/1/2020

Ward: 43rd Ward Alderman Michele Smith

Applicant: Platinum Homes Development

Owner: Seminary Trust c/o Sarah Howard, Trustee

Permit Description: Demolition of a 2-story, multi-family masonry building

Status: Under Review

Address: 116 N. Willard Court, West Loop

#100897650

Date Received: 11/04/2020

Ward: 27th Ward Alderman Walter Burnett

Applicant: PLD Holdings, LLC

Owner: Mark and Beverly Paulsey

Permit Description: Demolition of a 3-story brick building and a detached garage.

Status: Under Review

Address: 1947 N. Fremont Street, Lincoln Park

#100897264

Date Received: 11/04/2020

Ward: 43rd Ward Alderman Michele Smith

Applicant: Patrick Balthrop, Sr.

Owner: City of Chicago

Permit Description: Demolition of a 3-story, single family home and detached garage.

Status: Under Review

Address: 1319-1325 S. Ashland Avenue/1544-1554 W. Hastings Street, Near West Side

#100875210

Date Received: 05/22/2020

Ward: 28th Ward Alderman Jason Ervin

Applicant: Alpine Demolition Services, LLC

Owner: 130 Ashland Opportunity, LLC

Permit Description: The demolition of a three-story masonry church, while preserving the foundations and footings.

Status: Released 12/21/20

Preservation Chicago has advocated for St. Stephenson for many years. We are actively outreaching to the development team to encourage retention of the exterior walls and adaptive reuse of the interior space. Previously, we found multiple developers interested in adaptively reusing this historic building for a residential use. Multiple offers for purchase that were presented, but the church ownership declined all offers.

“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.

3740 W. Cortland Ave., Hermosa. Demo Jan 2021. Photo Credit: Google Maps

825 N. Lawndale Ave., Humboldt Park. Demo January 2021. Google Maps

"Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago, joins Phil Manicki for a wide-ranging look at the state of Chicago architecture. From the Emmett Till house to the Obama Presidential Library, Ward provides the latest on preserving Chicago’s legendary architecture and the important stories behind every brick." (WGN Radio 720 Chicago, 51:35)

"The proposed Pilsen Landmark District was branded as a way to keep the fabric of a historic neighborhood intact, but by the time it came up for a vote in the Chicago City Council, many believed it would only contribute to gentrification and push out longtime residents.

"Weeks after the vote failed, opponents and proponents of the measure are now searching for solutions as the neighborhood’s historic buildings remain very much at risk to opportunistic developers and the wrecking ball.

"How did a proposal seeking to protect the neighborhood’s residents and its architecture go wrong? How did historic preservation get so strongly linked to gentrification when the ordinance’s proponents said that wasn’t the goal?

"The proposed Pilsen Landmark District would’ve given landmark status to more than 900 buildings primarily on 18th Street between Leavitt and Sangamon streets. It would’ve protected buildings constructed from 1875 to 1910 in a variety of architectural styles, including Queen Anne, Victorian, Second Empire, Italianate, Gothic Revival and Worker Cottages.

"Those buildings were constructed as homes and businesses for the immigrants who have long made Pilsen home. The neighborhood was settled early by Irish and German families in the 1840s who were later replaced by Czech and Slovak immigrants by 1880. For the past half-century, the neighborhood has been Latino-majority.

"Preservation Chicago, a group that has sought to save historic buildings in a city well-known for its architecture, argued that creating the city’s largest landmark district in Pilsen would’ve protected the neighborhood’s impressive buildings while slowing gentrification since old buildings couldn’t simply be torn down and replaced with high-priced, cookie-cutter condos.

"'I don’t think we have any real data on the impact of landmark districts as far as gentrification goes, but we do know it stabilizes communities,' said Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago. 'I’m not sure you can stop gentrification. But you can slow it down, which landmarking can do.”

"Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago, said his organization got involved with the idea of a Pilsen landmark process in 2006 when the neighborhood was included on a warning list compiled by his group called 'Chicago’s Most Endangered Areas.' He said the goal was encouraging a holistic approach toward preserving the spirit, look, feel and culture of the neighborhood.

"That plan ended up on the back burner until 2018 when the city resurrected the idea and wanted to make 18th Street a landmark district.

"While Preservation Chicago was an advocate for the plan, Ward admits a disconnect grew between some community members and the city. He wished there had been a 'more robust conversation,' as business owners and residents became distrustful mostly after 'the last administration' did little to engage the community. He said that’s unfortunate because everyone agrees the buildings should be saved but not in a way that harms residents.

"'Ironically, we are all on the same page, and we must bring people in to explain why landmarking is safe,' Ward said.

"Ward said the city could have done more to reduce some of the cost burdens by giving property owners in the district a $1,500 tax rebate or by waiving certain fees, but that message was drowned out by mistrust of former leaders.

"The buildings along 18th Street were protected from demolition while the proposal worked its way through City Hall. But now, the council’s failure to pass the designation or the six-month demolition moratorium means developers have no restrictions.

"'It may very well be open season on demolitions, and there isn’t protection anymore,' Miller said. 'We have to trust developers that come into Pilsen are respectful of the community, but I’m not sure we can.'

"Most people probably imagine a particular archetype when they think of a church: an imposing stone edifice or white clapboard building, a towering steeple, stained glass. But what about an old hat factory with glass block windows?

"That’s First Church of Deliverance in Bronzeville. Converted into a church in 1939 by Walter Thomas Bailey, Illinois’s first licensed African American architect, and the Black structural engineer Charles Sumner Duke, the building is clad in cream-colored terra cotta with horizontal red and green accents. Bailey and Duke doubled the width of the factory and added a second floor while remaking the interior into a stylish sanctuary, with a cross on the ceiling illuminated by colored lights and Art Deco touches. Two Art Moderne towers that flank the entrance were added in 1946 by the firm Kocher Buss & DeKlerk. Not for nothing does Open House Chicago call it 'undoubtedly one of the most unique [churches] in Chicago.'

"'This was a happening place,' says Lee Bey of First Church when it was built, pointing to its unusual-for-the-time radio ministry and pioneering use of the electric Hammond B-3 organ in its music. 'And the architecture reflects that. It’s very much a church of the now.' Bey is a photographer and writer whose book Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side includes First Church of Deliverance.

"Bey believes that part of the reason First Church is so vibrantly modern is because it was built by and for African Americans, who looked toward a brighter, more equitable future. 'I think there’s a conscious push to embrace the new,' he says. “Many architectural styles that are neoclassical come with this baggage. That modernist architecture affords the idea of the new, of the future, of throwing off the chains of the past.”

"African Americans arriving in Chicago from the South during the twentieth century’s Great Migration didn’t often have the luxury of constructing their own churches, given the speed with which they settled in neighborhoods on the South Side and the time and expense of building a new church. Instead, they often moved into existing churches or synagogues as those spaces’ white inhabitants left for other neighborhoods or the suburbs.

"Ebenezer Baptist Church and Pilgrim Baptist Church in Bronzeville were both synagogues designed by Dankmar Adler before they housed Black congregations and became integral in the development of gospel music. (Bey says gospel music informed the design of Black churches like First Church of Deliverance in that they have large choir lofts, room for the choir to progress through the aisles, and “a little elbow room. You can’t hear that music and be standing still.” (WTTW, 11/19/20)

"After years of uncertainty, transforming the home with the pink flamingoes on 43rd Street and Lake Park Avenue has finally become a reality for the family of Muddy Waters.

"'It’s our job as blues historians, but as people who love blues or are vying for the blues legacy … it’s our jobs to remind people that the blues is the root of a lot of music,' said Chandra Cooper, Waters’ great-granddaughter.

"Born McKinley Morganfield, Waters moved to Chicago in the early 1950s to pursue music full time. His electric blues style went on to heavily influence many music genres, including rock.

"'We have a huge vision,' said Cooper, who is overseeing the development of the new MOJO Museum. Her mother, Amelia 'Cookie' Cooper, was raised by her grandfather there.

"'Growing up in a house with musicians of all races wasn’t unusual to me. I could be woken up at 1 or 2 o’clock, and they’d be jamming out in the basement,” said Amelia 'Cookie' Cooper. 'They would come in from a gig … that’s how I learned how to cook so well … they would come in at 1 or 2 o’clock in the morning, and Geneva would wake me up, which was his wife, and we would go in the kitchen and start making eggs, frying bacon and they would eat. Then if they felt like it, at 2:30 or 3 o’clock in the morning, they would go into the basement.'

"Plans for the museum will continue that tradition with a recording studio to prepare the next generation of artists.

"'We want to really involve the community,' Chandra Cooper said. 'What that looks like is making sure we’re able to bring in children and youth in there to understand what blues is and give blues education. In addition to that, we want to work with blues musicians and give them educational resources as well. One of the things I feel strong about is empowering women in the blues space as well.'

"With a $50,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the museum could open in as little as two years.

"'We have to realize there is not any type of blues museum in the city of Chicago. So for us to pull this off would be gigantic,' Chandra Cooper said.": (WTTW, 1/19/21)

Preserving the Past, Fortifying the Future: The Economic Case for Historic Preservation presented by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation

"From enhancing real estate values, to fostering local businesses, preservation keeps historic main streets and downtowns economically viable. In places that have preserved their historic character, heritage tourism is a real and tangible economic force.

"Developers are discovering that money spent rehabilitating historic buildings is an investment in the future—these structures become showpieces of a rejuvenated city and spaces for new and existing businesses to prosper.

"Featuring preservationists, economists, businesses, and regional success stories, this virtual program will provide a deep dive into the lesser-known advantages of revitalizing and repurposing historic spaces.

Watch the panel discussion link with guests including Carolyn Cawley (US Chamber Foundation), Katherine Malone-France (National Trust), Donovan Rypkema (Place Economic), Alex Weld (Wheeling Heritage), RJ Wolney (Bedrock Detroit), Michael Carney (US Chamber Foundation)

Ever wonder what HH Richardson, Louis Sullivan, and Frank Lloyd Wright all have in common? Besides being recognized as the “trinity of American architecture” they also share Preservation Chicago.

In this episode we hear from Ward Miller, Executive Director and Co-founder of Preservation Chicago. Founded in 2001, this organization has remained committed to preserving, promoting, and protecting historic Chicago neighborhoods and buildings. Through their many partnerships, Miller discusses how, “individual citizens, when acting together, could truly make a difference”

Greater Than Zero Percent Podcast with Preservation Chicago, 1/28/21 (45 minutes)

Preservation Chicago's Ward Miller talks with Elliot and Paul about the challenges facing architectural preservation in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and 25th Ward Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez shares his thoughts on a proposed landmark district in the Pilsen neighborhood."

"In 1893, Chicago is host to one of the most recognized and internationally famous world fairs, which honors the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus arriving in America. Granted it was a year later than planned, but it became known for the advancement and development of many companies and ideas. A specially built exposition landscape was created south of the then city limits in Jackson Park in what was the neighboring township of Hyde Park, which was annexed in 1891.

"The White City as this world’s fair became know was the first major use of electricity, which lit the World’s Columbian Exposition buildings and grounds from May 1st until October 30, 1893. This Fair is legendary to Chicago history and commemorated by the third star in the Chicago Flag. With our previous episode we learned about the many things that occurred in Chicago in 1893 and here we dive into the Fair and interview historian and writer Jeff Nichols with some snippets from a future interview with historian Paul Durica. This is the first installment in a three part mini-series on the World’s Columbian Exposition and the White City. We hope you will enjoy it."

"A look at the historic Central Park Theatre, now a church in Chicago's North Lawndale neighborhood, which was recently closed after being cited for over 100 city building code violations. This influential 1917 building is said to be the first-ever air-conditioned movie theatre. The complete story at www.chicagotribune.com/centralpark."

Watch the video at Chicago Tribune (4:32)

"Roseland’s South Michigan Avenue Commercial District is the commercial center and heart of this Far South Side community, located approximately 15 miles from downtown Chicago. Situated on a hilltop ridge, the corridor extends between 100th Street and the viaduct just south of 115th Street, with the central core of the existing commercial district located between 110th and 115th Streets.

"Once referred to by local residents as 'The Avenue,' the street’s viability as a commercial corridor began to deteriorate and fade in the mid-1970s. Over the decades, some historic buildings have been remodeled and covered with new facades, and many other notable and significant commercial buildings, which further helped to define the district, have been lost to demolition.

"However, it is important to protect, restore and reuse the remaining structures, many of them noteworthy in their overall design and materials. This would honor the legacy and history of this remarkable community and encourage a holistic approach to further promote economic revitalization along the South Michigan Avenue commercial corridor." (Preservation Chicago)

Special thanks to project partners including the Greater Roseland Chamber of Commerce, the Roseland Community, Andrea Reed, Alderman Beale, Open House Chicago, Chicago Architecture Center, and Preservation Chicago staff!

Host, Ward Miller, Executive Director of Preservation Chicago guides you on a tour of one of Lincoln Park's most important historic districts.

Learn how the district developed following the 1871 Great Chicago Fire: from modest frame homes to enormous mansions built by noted architects for prominent Chicago families.

Ward meets restoration expert, Susan Hurst with Bloom Properties for an exclusive tour of the newly restored Sarah Belle Wilson House at 522 W. Deming Place.

Features special guests, historian and Preservation Chicago board member, Diane Rodriguez; and Ed Vera, Formlinea Design+Build and Vera Rice Architects.

Due to popular demand, the 2020 Thompson Center “Chicago 7 Most Endangered” poster is now available for sale on the Preservation Chicago webstore.

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

Additionally, we've begun to offer additional 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.