“Another church redevelopment proposal in Logan Square could bring more modern apartments to the neighborhood.

“Developers with property management company Mo2 Properties want to convert a 100-year-old church into 16 luxury loft apartments at 2625 N. Talman Ave., which was most recently the Bethel International Full Gospel Korean Church.

“The project is tentatively called Talman Lofts. An additional floor would be built to create duplex lofts on the second floor, said Jay Keller, a Logan Square-based architect with SPACE Architects + Planners who has designed other church conversions in the neighborhood.

“Michael Motew, co-founder of Mo2 Properties, said the project aims to maintain as much of the building’s character as possible. New windows would be added for units on the side and back of the building.

“The adaptive reuse project would save the church from demolition, which Ald. Daniel La Spata’s (1st) and the development team called a win. The parcel is also part of the Northwest Side Preservation Ordinance, which states that any redevelopment of the building would need to be at least a two-flat property with multi-family residences because most of the block is already multi-family buildings.

“Under a previous proposal floated before the ordinance went into effect in October, a developer wanted to demolish the church and build three single-family homes, according to the First Ward office.

“Empty churches have been converted into homes in the neighborhood and all over the city amid dwindling congregation numbers. In Logan Square, several churches have been razed for new homes, converted into luxury apartments or turned into art venues.

“The Talman building was constructed in 1925 and was most recently home to the Bethel International Full Gospel Korean Church, which bought the building in 2010 and still owns the property, according to property records

“The building was previously home to the Fourth Congregational Church of Chicago, which began in 1867 out of a Sunday school group comprised of three nearby churches, Grace Church, Cortland Street Church and Maplewood Church, according to church records from the Congregational Library and Archives. (Parrella-Aureli, Block Club Chicago, 1/28/25)

This is a great outcome for this church. Members of the community and Preservation Chicago have been concerned about the future of this church a number of times over that past few decades. Preservation Chicago fully supports this adaptive reuse of a former religious building into residential housing. We’re thrilled that this trend seems to gaining momentum in Logan Square and we hope to see it throughout the city.

Read the full story at Block Club Chicago

• 16 Luxury Apartments Proposed For 1920s Logan Square Church; The proposal, which would have three below-market units, joins a growing number of empty church buildings that have been demolished or redeveloped in the neighborhood and citywide, Ariel Parrella-Aureli, Block Club Chicago, 1/28/25
• Plans Revealed For Residential Conversion Of Church In Logan Square, Ian Achong, Chicago YIMBY, 1/29/25