“Two Chicago real estate companies’ plan to demolish the former Torstenson Glass building and build luxury apartments is moving forward.
“North Park Ventures and SNS Realty Group first announced their redevelopment project for the Lake View site last summer. The companies purchased the property at 3233 N. Sheffield Ave. in July for $6.3 million, according to CBRE, who represented Torstenson Glass Co. in the sale.
“The sale, and subsequent zoning change approved by the City Council in February, clears the way for the companies to turn the site into a new apartment building. Demolition permits were issued in mid-July, city records show.
“Torstenson, a family-owned glass manufacturer, left the building after more than 100 years at the location. The company moved to Morton Grove in February 2025, after announcing the departure in late 2024.
“CBRE’s Land Services Group said there were more than 12 offers on the building.
“The project, dubbed Sheffield Apartments, will become a five-story, wood-framed apartment building with 99 units. Plans submitted to the city show the building will have studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments. It will also include 25 parking spaces, a fitness room, club room and roof deck.” (Miller, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/7/26)
Tim Warren of Torstenson Glass Co. shared the company’s history in a message announcing the move:
“To think that Torstenson Glass has been in continuous operation in Chicago for 135 years is quite remarkable. There are not many companies that can point to a history like that.
“I often get the question where the name ‘Torstenson’ comes from. The company was started by Elmer Torstenson in 1889 on Fletcher St in the Lakeview neighborhood. In 1910, the business was moved to 3233 N. Sheffield which is where it would remain for 114 years. Beginning in the early 1900s and to this day, the operational success of Torstenson Glass has been spearheaded by multiple generations of the Studt family. Alfred Studt was the first to begin working at TG in 1912. His son, Don Studt, began working there and eventually purchased the company outright from the Torstenson family in 1963. Following in his footsteps were Don’s sons Doug and Brad, and then eventually Doug’s son Drew who carries on the tradition. Four generations of Studt’s ensuring the success of Torstenson Glass.
“So, as we leave our home of 114 years on Sheffield Ave, I am eager to reveal the next home of TG at 8270 Austin Ave in Morton Grove.” (Warren, Torstenson Glass Co.)
Preservation Chicago is disappointed that Torstenson Glass Co has relocated out of Chicago and their the longtime home is scheduled for demolition. Founded in 1889 and located at 3233 N. Sheffield since 1910, Torstenson Glass is a Chicago Legacy Business, family-owned and family-operated across four generations of the Studt family, and one of a small number of Chicago companies that can claim 135 years of continuous operation. Torstenson glass and glazing work is found throughout Chicago’s building stock.
The building tells that story on its exterior. The painted signage on the east elevation, visible from the street and from the CTA Brown Line, is a surviving example of the hand-painted industrial signs that once identified working buildings across the city. Vintage industrial buildings like this one are increasingly rare on the North Side commercial corridors, where they anchor the streetwall and carry the record of the neighborhood’s manufacturing past.
Read the full story at Chicago Sun-Times
- Lake View’s former Torstenson Glass building will be demolished, replaced by luxury apartments; A pair of Chicago real estate companies will transform the former manufacturing site into 99 luxury apartments, Abby Miller, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/7/26
- Three Demolition Permits For Torstenson Glass Buildings Signal Start Of Residential Redevelopment In Lake View, Daniel Schell, Chicago YIMBY, 8/3/26
- A Message From Tim Warren, Torstenson Glass Co.
- Developers propose luxury apartments at former Torstenson Glass building in Lake View, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/28/25