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.
Permit Description: Emergency wreck and removal of a two-story, multiple-unit, masonry building per an Administrative Order dated October 20, 2021, deemed to be imminently dangerous to the public and in hazardous condition.
Status: Released 3/17/22
344-346 W. 65th St., Englewood. Photo credit: Google Maps
Address: 3920-3922 N. Lincoln Ave., Lake View
#100944882
Date Received: 02/23/2022
Ward: 47th Ald. Matt Martin
Applicant: Longford Design, Development + Construction C/O Brian Connolly
Owner: 3914 N. Lincoln
Permit Description: Demolition of a three-story masonry building.
Status: Under Review
3920-3922 N. Lincoln Ave., Lake View. Photo credit: Google Maps
Address: 2127-2129 W. Crystal St., Wicker Park
#100937432
Date Received: 01/13/2022
Ward: 2nd Ald. Brian Hopkins
Applicant: 2300 Crystal Development
Owner: Luba Mjkhaylova
Permit Description: Demolition of a 3-story masonry church building.
Status: Under Review
2127-2129 W. Crystal St., Wicker Park. Photo credit: Google Maps
Address: New Devon Theater / Assyrian American, 1618 W. Devon Ave., Rogers Park
#100946230
Date Received: 12/3/2021
Ward: 40th Ald. Andre Vasquez
Applicant: Alpine Demolition Services, LLC
Owner: Doris Eneamokwu
Permit Description: Opening of closed existing windows, install new window frame and glazing, repair existing glazed brick as needed (tuckpointing) [removal of ornamental masonry panel]
Status: Under review
Decorative Terra Cotta Ornament Stripped from New Devon Theater / Assyrian American Association on September 2, 2021. New Devon Theater, 1912, Henry J. Ross, 1618 W. Devon Avenue. Photo Credit: Photo Credit: Belli @bellisaurius
“As of September 2, 2021 it seems that the beautiful terra cotta face that has looked down over Devon Avenue for more than 100 years is no more. No one is quite sure what happened, but there was scaffolding on the building and someone was chipping away at it in the morning, and it was gone by the afternoon. And the Assyrian American Association name is no longer on the building either.
“The New Devon Theater, with its distinctively austere glazed block façade featuring a large arch and a large bust of a woman’s face, was built in 1912, and was quickly eclipsed by the nearby Ellantee Theater. It disappears from news listings after October, 1917.
“By 1923 it had been converted to a Ford dealership. By 1936 it had become an American Legion hall. In the 1950s it operated as a radio and TV store. Since 1963, it has served Chicago’s Assyrian community as the home of the Assyrian American Association of Chicago.” Cinema Treasures.org
Permit Description: Wreck and removal of the existing roof structure on a two-story, masonry residential building, to accommodate the construction of a new rooftop addition
Status: Under Review
17 S. Oakley Boulevard, Near West Side. Photo Credit: Google Maps
