“An 1890s apartment building the CTA moved out of the way as part of the expansion of the Red Line tracks is up for sale now that major work on the Lakeview project is complete.
“The Vautravers was the only building the CTA saved in the construction zone around Newport Avenue and Clark Street. In 2021, Wolfe House & Building Movers lifted the three-story, 850-ton building onto a raft and slid it 29 feet and 6 inches west of the Newport Avenue site where it had stood since 1894.
“The CTA now has a request for proposals out, with a Feb. 25, 2026 submission deadline for offers to buy and revive the building and a small parcel of land adjacent to it. Also up for sale are two other small pieces of empty land on Clark Street.
“‘It’s a wonderful outcome for the Vautravers building and the neighborhood,’ said Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago. Miller’s group led efforts to save the building from being demolished along with about a dozen others to make way for straightening a curve in the elevated tracks that dated to the early 1900s.
“The demolitions ‘really impacted the look and the character of Clark Street,’ Miller said, but having this one remnant on the corner of Clark and Newport will serve as a reminder ‘of how a valuable historical asset can be saved.’
“The RFP does not include an asking price for the property. The CTA paid $1.75 million for the Vautravers and reportedly spent an equal amount on moving and stabilizing the structure after shifting it west. A CTA representative told Crain’s the interior is ‘partially gutted,’ and that after the move, the exterior got a new roof, parapets, tuckpointing and other details, along with the new reinforced concrete foundation that was built to place the building on top of.
“A three-story limestone structure, the Vautravers has hammered copper window bays and a copper cornice as well as a carved ‘slot’ window in a projection off one corner and entry stairs set into a limestone frame with the building’s name carved into it. It’s part of the Newport Avenue Historic District, declared by the city in 2005 for its ‘high-quality working-class residential architecture constructed in Chicago’s neighborhoods during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.’
“The architects who designed the Vautravers, Emil H. Frommann and Ernst Jebsen, were also behind the fanciful Humboldt Park Receptory & Stables, now the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture, and more than two dozen commercial buildings for Edward Uihlein and the Schlitz Brewing Company.
“The name of the building comes from the husband of the original owner. On January 24, 1894, the Chicago Tribune reported Ida Cardy took out a building permit at that address. Cardy’s husband was Arthur Fulsome Vautravers Cardy, according to research by Preservation Chicago’s Yuke Li.
“Ads for apartments in the Vautravers when it was new describe them as having “mosaic floor, marble wainscoting, hot water all the year.” (Rodkin, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2/28/26)
“Scoot over, Vautravers Building. The 127-year-old Lake View structure on Monday started its very short trip to get out of the way of a Chicago Transit Authority track rebuilding project. The move 30 feet west and four feet south — as part of the CTA’s Red and Purple modernization — should wrap up by Tuesday.
“Preservation Chicago pushed for the Vautravers Building to be landmarked as a part of the Newport Avenue District, a series of homes built between 1891 and 1928. Its landmark status protected the building from being demolished.
“‘Unfortunately, we don’t appreciate these buildings as we should,’ said Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago. ‘We should be using every tool possible to save these buildings as other cities do.’
“The Vautravers Building final preparation for relocation on August 2, 2021. The historic three-story Lakeview apartment building will be moved about 26 feet to the west to avoid the new elevated rail line.
“Though the neighborhood was excited for this rare event, moving well-known buildings out of the way of construction is not unprecedented in Chicago, according to Miller.
“Case in point: The Briggs House, a downtown hotel, was famously moved in 1857 while people were still inside. ‘They had such a celebration that they filled The Briggs House with a party of 1,000 people, supposedly attending the event as the Briggs house was raised. So, we should all be inside, right?’ Miller joked Monday.
“‘The more of these we move out of harm’s away, the better,’ Miller said.” (Molina, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/2/21)
Read the full story at Crain’s Chicago Business and Chicago Sun-Times
- CTA selling 1890s Lakeview apartment building moved to make way for new tracks, Dennis Rodkin, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2/28/26
- Historic Lake View building moving westward — literally — so Red Line tracks can be straightened; The entire Vautravers Building will be moved about about 30 feet west and four feet south by the end of Tuesday, Nina Molina, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/2/21
- CTA Request for Proposals for Sale of Surplus Property for a Transit-Oriented Development at 3401 to 3427 N Clark and 947 to 949 W Newport (Vautravers Building)
- Historic Vautravers Building Relocation, Chicago, IL / August 2021 Wolfe House & Building Movers
- WATCH CTA moving historic Lakeview building for work on Red and Purple Modernization Project, Jessica D’Onofrio, ABC News 7, Monday, 8/2/21
- WATCH: Vautravers Building Relocation Project Recap from start in May 2021 | Plus 360̊ View of New Location, the1st MikeC on YouTube (16.58 min)
- Time-Lapse Video: CTA Moves 1,000-Ton Historic Building 30 Feet, Patty Wetli WTTW Chicago, 8/4/21
- CTA begins moving historic Lakeview house 30 feet west as part of Brown Line flyover project, Jade Yan, Chicago Tribune, 8/2/21
- CTA moving 127-year-old Lakeview apartment building away from ‘L’ tracks as part of Brown Line flyover project, Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 6/9/21
- CTA moving 127-year-old Lakeview apartment building away from ‘L’ tracks as part of Brown Line flyover project, Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 6/9/21