The “Up Top” Commercial Building at Altgeld Gardens received a Preliminary Landmark Designation recommendation at the June 4, 2026 Commission on Chicago Landmarks meeting.
Preservation Chicago was thrilled to be able to testify in strong support of ‘By the Hand Club for Kids’ restoration and reactivation of this important midcentury modern building designed by Keck & Keck in 1946.
“A 79-year-old Altgeld Gardens commercial building that has spent years in disrepair despite being designed by noted Chicago architects Keck & Keck could soon begin a new life housing after-school programs and social services.
“The nonprofit ‘By the Hand Club for Kids’ has signed an agreement to buy the privately owned former Altgeld Gardens Commercial Center — residents call it the Up Top building — at 13100 S. Ellis Ave. for $450,000, according to Andraya Yousfi, the group’s chief of partnerships and development.
“Helping make the acquisition easier: The Chicago Housing Authority on May 27 agreed to sell 1.24 acres of CHA land surrounding the building — mostly a parking lot that landlocks the structure — to the club for $27,600. By the Hand Club has been operating in an Altgeld Gardens church since 2005 and has served young people from kindergarten through high school in the Cabrini-Green area since 2001.
“Built in 1946, the single-story curvilinear brick structure, designed by George Keck and his brother William, was conceived as a mini shopping center for residents of the then-new and remotely located public housing development.
“At Altgeld Gardens, the Kecks designed a brick building that looked lighter than air, thanks to its gracefully curved profile, an abundance of glass shop windows and a stylish overhanging roof.
“The center originally had a grocery store, a doctor’s office, beauty and barber shops, a laundry and a delicatessen. But shops and services left as the years passed, and its owners removed and sealed up most of the center’s visually striking glass facade while letting the building empty out and rot.
“According to renderings from By the Hand Club, much of Keck & Keck’s glass would return. A breezeway within the structure was turned into a memorial wall that Yousfi said will be preserved as part of the renovation.
“‘Here’s to hoping this amazing building can be restored and reused,’ said Preservation Chicago Executive Director Ward Miller, whose organization placed the structure on its most endangered buildings list in 2011 and 2013.
“‘Ideally, this building would even qualify for Chicago landmark designation, which would be marvelous and well deserved,’ he said. (Bey, Chicago Sun-Times, 6/3/25)
“The City of Chicago will request, on behalf of the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), the release of HUD funds to support the rehabilitation and expansion of the historic Up‑Top building located at 13100–13130 S. Ellis Ave. in Altgeld Gardens. The project involves the transfer of adjacent CHA‑owned land to By the Hand Club for Kids (BTHCFK), which would acquire the building, complete full interior and exterior rehabilitation, and construct an 8,000‑square‑foot addition to house a new gymnasium. These improvements would allow BTHCFK to expand its after‑school programming capacity.” (City of Chicago Press Release)
Read the full story at Chicago Sun-Times
- A neglected Altgeld Gardens building, designed by 1933 World’s Fair architect, is slated for rebirth; Once renovated, the 79-year-old former Altgeld Gardens Commercial Center designed by noted architects Keck & Keck will house after-school programs and social services, Lee Bey, Chicago Sun-Times, 6/3/25
- Altgeld Gardens Up-Top Building Rehabilitation and Land Disposition Project, City of Chicago Press Release
- Altgeld Gardens Memorial Wall’s place in Chicago history is clear, its future less so; “The wall is kind of like a historic monument for everybody who used to live or still lives in Altgeld Gardens,” a former resident says. But it’s in danger of being demolished, Linda Paul, WBEZ, 1/31/23
- THREATENED: Public Housing Sites; Altgeld Gardens Commercial, Cabrini Rowhouses, Lathrop Homes South Campus A 2022 Chicago 7 Most Endangered