December 2021 Newsletter
WIN: Restoration Nearly Complete for Louis Sullivan Designed Holy Trinity Church
"One of the few houses of worship designed by famed Chicago architect Louis Sullivan is wrapping up a months-long exterior restoration this week."Since May,...
WIN: Little Village Arch Receives Preliminary Landmark Status
"The Little Village Arch, a gateway into the predominantly Latino Southwest Side neighborhood, has received a preliminary landmark designation — the first time an...
LOSS: Lake View Bank/Belmont National Bank Demolished Despite 2,000+ Petition Signatures to Save It
"Preservationists are trying to stop a developer from tearing down an old bank building in Lakeview to make way for a massive commercial project."Crews...
THREATENED: Chicago Residents Fighting To Save Navy Pier’s Crystal Gardens
"Celine Wysgalla remembers the first time she stepped foot into Crystal Gardens as a 5-year-old, her tiny body overshadowed by ancient trees that towered...
WIN: Guinness Chicago Taproom to Renovate Fulton Market Vintage Industrial Building
"The bottle is out of the six pack. Guinness has tapped the West Loop to be the home of its second U.S. brewery."Guinness Chicago...
LOSS: Bulldozers Clear 20 Acres of Jackson Park for OPC Construction, including the Woman’s Garden and 800 Old-Growth Trees, (Chicago 7 2017, 2018, 2019,...
"Months before the official groundbreaking of the Obama Presidential Center (OPC), residents and commuters were already noticing changes to the landscape near the lakefront."Yet,...
IN MEMORIAM: Robert Meers; Chicago Real Estate Developer
"Robert Meers, a real estate developer whose historic preservation projects included Chicago's Monadnock Building and Lake Forest's Market Square, died June 26, according to...
LOSS: Iconic Art Deco R.V. Kunka Drug Store Sign Destroyed
After being overpainted with black paint in October 2020, the iconic and beloved R.V. Kunka Pharmacy art deco storefront has been fully removed.While the...
WIN: Kay Shoes Building Will Be Adaptively Reused for Residential, Not Demolished for New Construction
"About two years after dwindling sales shut down longtime family business Kay Shoes, the shoe store’s owner is reviving the Avondale building."Owner Monyca Price...
WIN: Preservation-Oriented Buyer Outbids Developers for Fannie May House
"The Uptown home of the woman who co-founded the Fannie May candy stores sold for slightly over $1 million, with the buyers planning to...