Latest news with #LandmarksIllinois
CBS News
02-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Chicago Vocational Career Academy, West Side Frank Lloyd Wright House make Landmarks Illinois endangered list
Landmarks Illinois has released its annual lost of the 10 Most Endangered Landmarks — which includes a sprawling high school and an outdoor theater on Chicago's South Side, and a Frank Lloyd Wright house on Chicago's West. Chicago Vocational Career Academy, Chicago Paul Morgan Chicago Vocational Career Academy — originally called Chicago Vocational High School and known as CVS for short — is at the top of the list this year. The school is a complex of four buildings — a main school building constructed between 1938 and 1940, an aircraft hangar built in 1941, and two outbuildings of the World War II era. When the school was completed in August 1940, the Chicago Tribune called it "the most modern and best equipped trade school in the United States." Chicago Vocational opened in 1941. The U.S. Navy used the school as a training facility for aircraft repair between 1941 and 1946, and afterward, the school resumed civilian training and operated up to 30 programs, Landmarks Illinois said. Famous alumni of Chicago vocational include Chicago Bears great Dick Butkus and comedy legend Bernie Mac. Landmarks Illinois warned that while CVS was constructed to serve up to 6,000 students, fewer than 900 attend the school now. The 2018 Chicago Public Schools Educational Facilities Master Plan calls the school underutilized. Paul Morgan A wing of the school along Anthony Avenue that was completed in 1943 to house heavy industry vocational programs, is now completely unused, Landmarks Illinois said. But a previous proposal to have this wing torn down has never gone ahead due to lack of funds, Landmarks Illinois said. CPS invested $56 million in CVS in 2015, and the school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2022, Landmarks Illinois noted. But the organization said low enrollment continues to raise concerns about its future. Landmarks Illinois would like to see CVS declared a Chicago landmark, and thus protected from being torn down in the future. The organization noted that the CVS main building is the largest non-skyscraper example of Art Deco design in the city. John Jacob Walser House, Chicago Paul Morgan Also on the list is the Joseph Jacob Walser Jr. House, a Frank Lloyd Wright house in the South Austin neighborhood on Chicago's West Side. The house also made the Preservation Chicago seven most endangered list this year. The house, at 42 N. Central Ave., is one of only five standing Prairie School structures designed by Frank Lloyd Wright within the city — a list that also includes the Frederick C. Robie House in Hyde Park and the Emil Bach House in Rogers Park. The Walser House is also the only single-family Frank Lloyd Wright house on the West Side. J.J. Walser and his wife, Grace, bought the property in 1903 and commissioned Wright for the house, Preservation Chicago noted earlier this year. The Walser house is not as well-known as some Wright structures such as the Robie or the Wright home and studio not far away in Oak Park, but Preservation Chicago noted that it still incorporates the aesthetic beauty of the Prairie Style. The Walsers sold the house in 1910, and it was sold 11 different times over the next 60 years, Preservation Chicago said. Hurley and Anne Teague bought it in 1970, and their stewardship ensured it remained standing, according to Landmarks Illinois. Hurley Teague kept the house in good repair until he died in 1997, Landmarks Illinois said. After that, Anne Teague obtained a reverse mortgage for the house to cover maintenance. Anne Teague died in 2019, and the interest on the reverse mortgage became unaffordable for her heirs, Landmarks Illinois said. The house is now vacant and facing foreclosure, and photos shared by Landmarks Illinois show the interior in horrible shape. Paul Morgan Holes in the foundation and roof have led to deterioration and water damage, and trespassers have made a mess of the interior, Landmarks Illinois noted. "When my grandparents purchased the Walser home, it represented upwardly mobile Black people establishing legacies for their families and creating a blueprint for home ownership in the Black community. My grandfather was a builder. He made sure he maintained our home as well as our neighbors' [homes] if they needed assistance, taking pride in how he could serve this community better," Teague heirs Charisse J. Grossley and Johnny Teague said in a statement published by Landmarks Illinois. "This home serves as a tangible link to our past, offering insight into the lives of those who came before us and the events that shaped our community. The preservation of this landmark is essential not only for its historical value to the community but also for its potential to educate future generations." Landmarks Illinois called for a resolution of concerns about property control for the reverse mortgage, and noted that the community group Austin Coming Together would like to see the Walser House as part of a revitalized Central Avenue corridor. South Shore Country Club outdoor theater, Chicago Paul Morgan Landmarks Illinois also listed the outdoor theater at the South Shore Cultural Center, at 7059 S. South Shore Dr. The South Shore Cultural Center itself is thriving, but the theater is not. The South Shore Country Club was founded in 1905, when Chicago Athletic Club president Lawrence Heyworth envisioned an exclusive club in a "country setting." The land he picked had been used for fishing and duck hunting, the Chicago Park District said. Architects Marshall and Fox, who designed the Drake Hotel and other luxurious buildings, were brought on as architects for the country club. The club quickly outgrew its first facility, and Marshall and Fox were also the architects behind the second clubhouse, which was built in 1916 and incorporated the ballroom from the original facility, the Park District said. Both the original and the second and current clubhouses were constructed in the Mediterranean Revival style. The club's membership peaked in the 1950s, only to fall as many African Americans moved to South Shore while the club went on excluding Black members, the Park District said. This policy led to the closure of the club in 1973, the Park District said. The Park District bought the property in 1974. It had planned to have the deteriorating clubhouse torn down, but community members rallied to save and restore it. However, the outdoor theater adjacent to the clubhouse has not fared so well. The theater opened in 1920, and features a small stage and terrazzo dance floor with the logo for the old country club on it, Landmarks Illinois said. While the rest of what is now the South Shore Cultural Center has undergone several renovation projects since the Park District took over, the theater was only stabilized and was never fully restored, Landmarks Illinois said. Today, the outdoor theater is deteriorated with broken concrete to the point where it cannot be used. It does not have the needed lighting and sound systems, and does not meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards, Landmarks Illinois said. The 2018 Chicago Park District South Lakefront Framework called for restoring the outdoor theater, but this never happened due to a lack of funds, Landmarks Illinois said. Fordon Horse Barn, Oak Brook Paul Morgan In the suburbs, the list includes the historic Fordon Horse Barn in Oak Brook — built when the western suburb was the polo capital of the United States. The Oak Brook Polo Club was founded in 1922, and club member and competitive polo player Jerry Fordon bought the barn for his polo ponies in 1941, Landmarks Illinois said. The Saddle Brook Development Company gave the barn and the nearby park land to the Oak Brook Park District in 1975. The polo club itself closed just this past March, Landmarks Illinois said. As for the barn, Landmarks Illinois said the Oak Brook Park District is planning to have it torn down. It was used for storage, but is no longer needed for that purpose, and the park district wanted it torn down by the end of April, Landmarks Illinois said. Landmarks Illinois said the Oak Brook Park District could renovate the barn as a programmable space, and the Saddle Brook Community Association has expressed interest in taking it over. Pushback from the community has delayed demolition, but the Park District 2025-2026 budget still identifies demolition of the barn as a capital project for the fiscal year to come, Landmarks Illinois said. William A. McConnell farmstead, Richmond, Illinois Paul Morgan In the McHenry County community of Richmond, Landmarks Illinois lists the William A. McConnell Farmstead, at 6102 Broadway Rd. McConnell was the first non-Indigenous settler in present-day Richmond, Illinois, Landmarks Illinois said. The Pennsylvania carpenter arrived in 1837 — the same year Chicago to the southeast was incorporated as a city. McConnell first built a log cabin, and when other families came to the site, his farmstead became home to the first school of the area. McConnell built a Greek Revival-style house on the property in 1852, and another in 1868, Landmarks Illinois said. Meanwhile, he became county postmaster, commissioner, and judge. The Farmstead and its eight structures — a house, a granary, and several barns — are owned by the McHenry County Conservation District, Landmarks Illinois said. The 1852 house is privately owned and occupied, but the 1868 house, barn, and outbuildings are not in such good shape, Landmarks Illinois said. The barn roofs are "in dire need of repair," and funding has not been allocated to protect the structures. Judge William D. Barry House, St. Charles Paul Morgan In St. Charles, the Judge William D. Barry House at 217 Cedar Ave., dating back to 1844, is on the list. The Green Revival-style house was built by Barry, who was an accomplished attorney before being elected judge in 1851, according to Landmarks Illinois. Barry managed Union Civil War Gen. John F. Farnsworth's successful runs for Congress, Landmarks Illinois said. The house is now owned by the Baker Memorial United Methodist Church, which plans it to have it torn down for a parking lot, Landmarks Illinois said. The church bought the house in 1993 to provide housing for those in need, but has not used if for anything since at least 2017, Landmarks Illinois said. The church's most recent request for demolition, filed this past October
Axios
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Axios
How DOGE could affect one of the oldest and largest art collections
Arts and culture advocates are sounding the alarm on the Trump administration's reported staff reductions at the department that oversees the country's public art and architecture, including well-known landmarks in Chicago. Driving the news: The Washington Post reports that the Trump administration has closed at least five General Services Administration regional offices and put dozens of workers on leave from the agency's Fine Arts and Art in Architecture divisions. Why it matters: These offices manage one of the country's oldest and largest public art collections, including more than 1,400 works in Illinois, and commission public art for federally owned buildings. Advocates say removing historians and preservationists puts these valuable assets at risk of being sold or demolished. Flashback: One of the county's most notable public art works — Alexander Calder's "Flamingo" — was the first piece of art commissioned by the Art in Architecture Program in 1974. Zoom in: The "Flamingo" stands in front of the John C. Kluczynski Federal Building, which is included on the Trump administration's list of government buildings that are potentially for sale. State of play: Historic preservation agency Landmarks Illinois regularly works with the GSA on efforts to protect federal buildings that are architecturally and historically significant, most recently with the Century and Consumers Buildings on South State Street, which were at risk of being demolished. "There were a lot of voices from the preservation community here in Chicago, not just ours, calling for the adaptive reuse of those buildings instead of demolition," Landmarks Illinois advocacy manager Kendra Parzen tells Axios. "It was through ongoing consultation with GSA that they arrived at the decision that it would be better to adaptively reuse rather than go right to demolition." Between the lines: That decision was made before the Trump administration took office. Parzen says the current status of GSA preservationists in Chicago is unclear. What they're saying: "Our most recent information is that those efforts to adaptively reuse the Century and Consumers Buildings are still going forward. I am concerned that that may change," Parzen says.
Chicago Tribune
26-02-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Glenview OKs 60-home development aimed at empty nesters
A proposed development of single-family homes on the site of the former Scott Foresman textbook publishing headquarters in Glenview has received approval from village elected officials. The Glenview Board of Trustees on Feb. 18 voted 5-1 in favor of the plan, which calls for the construction of 60 homes in four different model styles on the 19-acre property at 1900 East Lake Avenue. The board agreed to waive a required second vote on the proposal, which would have taken place March 4. Built in 1966, the Scott Foresman property has been vacant since June 2020. Landmarks Illinois in 2021 identified the mid-century modern campus, designed by Perkins and Will architects, as one of the state's most endangered historic places. In January, Kendra Parzen, advocacy manager for Landmarks Illinois, had asked if a portion of the existing complex that once housed the campus' library, cafe and community space could be retained, but Jeff Brady, director of community development for the village of Glenview, said the approved housing plan does not call for retention of any buildings. Under the plan, at least nine of the constructed homes will be single-story ranches, while the remainder will be two-story—a majority of which will have a primary bedroom on the first floor. This, representatives of the developer say, will make the three-bedroom homes palatable to Baby Boomers and so-called 'empty-nesters,' which are the target market for the new development. Real estate broker Grace Kaage, speaking on behalf of the developer, 1900 Glenview Partners, LLC, told the board that families of school-age children would be less likely to purchase the homes with the primary bedroom on the first floor because, in general, they prefer for all bedrooms to be on the same level. Home prices will range from $900,000 to $1.3 million, Brady said. 'There is an opportunity here to build inventory that caters to empty nesters—specifically because there is such a shortage of housing in that market,' Kaage said. Trustee Mary Cooper, who cast the only 'no' vote on the plan, suggested that the best way to address such shortages would be to build more single-story ranch homes instead. She also objected to the higher density allowed under village's R6 zoning designation that the developer was seeking for the property. 'I am really leaning toward wanting this to be R4 (lower density) with more ranches and focused more on the empty-nester product than we're seeing,' Cooper said. The projected number of new students that could enroll in Glenview schools as a result of the development differed among estimates by the developer, the village and Glenview School District 34. While the developer has projected 21 new elementary school students, the village, using a formula based on numbers of bedrooms per residence, calculated the number at 25. District 34 projects 32 additional students will result. Under the village's model, the development would generate eight students attending Glenbrook High School District 225. A Jan. 17 email to the village from R.J. Gravel, superintendent of Glenbrook High School District 225, stated that the district does not have concerns regarding the property's redevelopment. While not opposing the new housing, the board of education and administration of Glenview School District 34 did question the accuracy of the developer's projected student count and the development's financial impacts, according to an email from Eric Miller, assistant superintendent of business services. Trustee Adam Sidoti noted that other recent residential developments have not had a significant impact on school enrollment. Examples shared with the board included Haverford, which contains 51 residences with nine school-age children. 'While I do know we have a current operational funding issue with District 34 and we do have a space issue, I also understand that is not the sole problem of this developer or the sole problem of our board,' said Trustee Katie Jones, urging taxpayers to support the school district's needs. Voters rejected a tax-rate increase for District 34 in the November 2024 election. The village will require the developer to pay impact fees to the local school and park districts due to the additional population that is added. The Village Board is expected to discuss potential changes to these fees, but as they are calculated today, the developer's cost would be approximately $393,000 to the two school districts serving the area, and approximately $395,000 to the Glenview Park District, Brady said. Impact on schools as well as traffic and concerns about stormwater detention were issues raised by several neighbors in the adjacent Tall Trees neighborhood. Glenview Village President Michael Jenny said he would like to see the village continue to invest in stormwater mitigation for this area. In 2023, a proposal for the construction of 140 apartments on the site was withdrawn after the developers were unable to convince Glenview's development commission to recommend the plan to the Village Board.
Chicago Tribune
14-02-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Midcentury church in Hometown in line for Landmarks Illinois grant for repairs
Built in 1953 along what is now a busy stretch of 87th Street, Hometown Christian Church is starting to reveal its age, especially in portions of its roof. 'The roof needs to be replaced,' said congregation member Shuron Waller, who was tasked by the church's leader with helping to find grant funding for repairs. 'Because we have leaking into our fellowship hall, which caused damage to our floor, we have floor tiling that needs to be replaced as well as ceiling tile.' Recently, the congregation learned that their prayers had been answered in the form of a $5,000 Preservation Heritage Fund grant from Landmarks Illinois, one of nine projects awarded by the nonprofit organization. 'When we (learned) we got it, there was a burst of excitement,' Waller said. Hometown Christian Church received the news from Suzanne Germann, director of reinvestment at Landmarks Illinois. The building's iconic look is one reason Landmarks Illinois decided to present it with a grant, said Germann, who's been director of reinvestment for four years but worked for the organization for almost 21 years, always in grants. 'It was built in the middle of the century, but this one does have the iconic mid-century modern church (look) with that huge room and that A frame. It's a beautiful building,' she said. 'The sanctuary is really cool. I've only seen pictures. It's beautiful.' The other reason Hometown Christian received a grant is the congregation itself. 'From the staff perspective, the congregation was very involved,' Germann said. 'They really are committed to repairing this church and have a really good congregation that they're working with and they need this building to complete their mission. That's why the staff approved it.' Bishop Mansa Kenyatta assigned Waller the task of looking for grants to fix the roof and said the problems with it began at least five or six years earlier, before he became pastor at Hometown Christian. Kenyatta, who was pastor of City of Refuge International Ministries before being hired four years ago to lead Hometown Christian Church, said the two ministries merged following the pandemic. Hometown Christian now has about 25 active members. It was previously made up of mainly older adults on fixed income, and City of Refuge had members in their 30s and mid-40s. Although the merger blended two different types of denominations – conservative Protestant and Pentecostal – Kenyatta said it's going well so far. 'I think we arranged the service where everyone is being ministered to,' such as one group used to singing hymns and the other more accustomed to praise music. The grant is a matching one, and Kenyatta said the congregation is close to coming up with its $5,000. 'We're having a roofer come out and see if we can take the grant money with the matching funds and use it as a down payment to get the roof repair started,' he said. 'We definitely need to get the roof fixed first before we repair the fellowship hall.' Landmarks Illinois awards Preservation Heritage Fund grants to 'significant structures or sites in Illinois that are under threat of demolition, in imminent deterioration, in need of stabilization, in need of structural or reuse evaluation or need to be evaluated for landmark eligibility,' its website states. When considering an application, the reinvestment committee – made up of planners, developers, architects and contractors – looks at the building itself as well as 'the commitment by the owners to do the rehabilitation and repairs necessary. We look at the mission of the organization,' Germann explained. 'The way we evaluate the significance of a building is how significant it is to its owners and community. Obviously, this building is very important to this congregation and the community with the mission they have,' she added. Germann said the organization receives lots of applications from churches. Since 2005, the Preservation Heritage Fund has awarded about 40 grants to churches. 'A lot of congregations come up against the cost of repairs, masonry. This is not uncommon for us to hear,' she shared. 'What really came through for me is the commitment of this congregation. They really stayed in touch with me.' Once a grant is awarded, the church has one year to get the work done. The money is sent once they show they have the matching funds and a plan in place. 'They'll get there. I'm not worried,' Germann said. In addition to grant programs, Landmarks Illinois also acts as 'a resource to them in guiding them through their rehabilitation, restoration and repairs. So reaching out to us for resources and not just money is an option,' Germann explained. The church had created a GoFundMe page, but it has only raised a few hundred dollars. 'When I heard we received a grant, that was very, very encouraging,' Kenyatta said In the meantime, Waller is continuing to look for other grants to apply to roof-related repairs and to allow other things to get done, and she's optimistic about her chances of success. 'This has become something I'm good at and something our body as a church needs, and the fact that the bishop trusts me with it and I trust myself is making a difference,' she shared. Waller said her favorite part of the building is the sanctuary 'because when you come in, the entire place is beautiful. It reminds me of a cathedral. It's a reminder of the leadership the bishop and his wife had put down in that place. It reminds me of a family, like a home. We depend on each other.' The bishop said the church is 'well-kept in most cases' and he would like to use the rooms downstairs once roof repairs are finished. 'It's my vision in the future to have a women's support group, women who have dealt with domestic violence. A drug (addiction) program and possibly a day care facility. So the fact that we have these rooms downstairs, they'll play a role in that,' he said.
