The Chicago Preservation Society (CPS) released its annual list of the buildings at high risk for demolition. The 2013 list includes the AllState Building (1949), a rare example of immediate postwar modern high-rise construction, and the Lathrop Homes (1938), considered by many to be the best public housing development the city has ever built, according to CPS.
The Chicago 7, as the list is called, was established in 2003 as a way to raise public awareness about the danger facing some of the city's architectural icons. The list includes both single buildings and entire neighborhoods.
The 2013 Chicago 7 list includes (summaries and images provided by CPS):
1. St. James Church
Although the demolition of St. James Church appears to some to be the political will of the Archdiocese of Chicago, a coalition of St. James parishioners, preservationists and the faithful of many area Roman Catholic churches have formed “Friends of Historic St. James” and this new coalition is determined to save it from the wrecker’s ball. With services moved into the adjoining church hall for the past few years because of deferred maintenance and the ongoing repairs to address code violations, coalition members have been reaching out to city officials to save the building, envisioning that preservation presents a new opportunity to reoccupy the church and grow the parish.
2. Hotel Guyon
Originally part of an architecturally and culturally booming West Garfield Park community, the long and steady decline of the neighborhood has only further made the rehabilitation of this rare and magnificent Moorish Revival hotel more challenging. Beautifully constructed of red and cream brick with deep red terra cotta detailing, the Guyon Hotel’s interior is in various states of decay, in contrast to the richness of its once-magnificent grand ballrooms and other interior spaces. Vacant until recently, the site has had multiple owners over the years.
3. State Bank of Clearing
Standing as an important early work of world-renowned Chicago architect Harry Weese, the State Bank of Clearing is unique in the realm of bank building design. Featuring a stunning banking lobby with angled columns and a distinctive drive-up window configuration, the State Bank of Clearing is an important example of Mid-Century Modern bank architecture. Vacant for years, the building is currently for sale and awaiting a reuse. However, demolition is a possibility for the site.
4. Century & Consumers Building
Commanding an imposing presence on the 200 block of South State Street, two historic terra cotta buildings, located at 202 and 220 South State Street respectively, could be lost to future redevelopment by the Federal Government. Listed on the Chicago’s Most Threatened list only 2 years ago, these two buildings remain vacant and no reuse plans for either structure have been proposed. In 2012, unsecured terra cotta detached from the building, reigniting concern about the future of these properties.
5. AllState Building
Designed by the noteworthy architectural firm of Carr and Wright, The Allstate Headquarters Building is a rare example of immediate postwar modern high-rise construction in the city of Chicago. It was the first multi-story building constructed in Chicago since the beginning of WW II and its unique elements make it a clear candidate for reuse and preservation. Completed in 1949 as the national headquarters for the Allstate Insurance Company, it is an important contributing structure and respectfully compliments the noteworthy collection of other buildings on the Sears campus.
6. Medic Building
The Medic building, situated at the corner of Melrose and Ashland, is an extremely intact example of a Chicago building with art deco detailing. This intersection, in conjunction with Belmont and Ashland, was an important commercial hub when the building was constructed in 1929. Many of the structures from this time have already been lost to new development and these losses have erased much of this retail and commercial history. The Medic Building is a reminder of this time and provides much needed architectural interest in the area.
7. Lathrop Homes
Lathrop Homes returns to Preservation Chicago’s 7 Most Threatened list after first appearing in 2007. Arguably, Julia Lathrop Homes is the best public housing development Chicago has ever built, representing a racially mixed, remarkably stable community for generations of Chicagoans. Beautifully sited along the Chicago River with a magnificent and mature landscape, the buildings are low-rise and gently ornamented, creating an intimate, humane atmosphere.
For more, visit: http://www.preservationchicago.org/chicago-seven/2013.
Related Stories
| Oct 12, 2010
Owen Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Officials at Michigan State University’s East Lansing Campus were concerned that Owen Hall, a mid-20th-century residence facility, was no longer attracting much interest from its target audience, graduate and international students.
| Oct 12, 2010
Gartner Auditorium, Cleveland Museum of Art
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Gartner Auditorium was originally designed by Marcel Breuer and completed, in 1971, as part of his Education Wing at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Despite that lofty provenance, the Gartner was never a perfect music venue.
| Oct 12, 2010
Cell and Genome Sciences Building, Farmington, Conn.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Administrators at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington didn’t think much of the 1970s building they planned to turn into the school’s Cell and Genome Sciences Building. It’s not that the former toxicology research facility was in such terrible shape, but the 117,800-sf structure had almost no windows and its interior was dark and chopped up.
| Oct 12, 2010
The Watch Factory, Waltham, Mass.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards — Gold Award. When the Boston Watch Company opened its factory in 1854 on the banks of the Charles River in Waltham, Mass., the area was far enough away from the dust, dirt, and grime of Boston to safely assemble delicate watch parts.
| Oct 12, 2010
Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, Cleveland, Ohio
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Gold Award. The Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument was dedicated on the Fourth of July, 1894, to honor the memory of the more than 9,000 Cuyahoga County veterans of the Civil War.
| Oct 12, 2010
Building 13 Naval Station, Great Lakes, Ill.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Gold Award. Designed by Chicago architect Jarvis Hunt and constructed in 1903, Building 13 is one of 39 structures within the Great Lakes Historic District at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill.
| Oct 12, 2010
Full Steam Ahead for Sustainable Power Plant
An innovative restoration turns a historic but inoperable coal-burning steam plant into a modern, energy-efficient marvel at Duke University.
| Oct 12, 2010
From ‘Plain Box’ to Community Asset
The Mid-Ohio Foodbank helps provide 55,000 meals a day to the hungry. Who would guess that it was once a nondescript mattress factory?
| Oct 11, 2010
HGA wins 25-Year Award from AIA Minnesota
HGA Architects and Engineers won a 25-Year Award from AIA Minnesota for the Willow Lake Laboratory.
| Oct 11, 2010
MBMA Releases Fire Resistance Design Guide for metal building systems
The Metal Building Manufacturers Association (MBMA) announces the release of the 2010 Fire Resistance Design Guide for Metal Building Systems. The guide provides building owners, architects, engineers, specifiers, fire marshals, building code officials, contractors, product vendors, builders and metal building manufacturers information on how to effectively meet fire resistance requirements of a project with metal building systems.