“Barnes & Noble will open four new Chicago-area locations this summer, including a store in a recognizable former bank building in Wicker Park.

“The world’s largest retail bookstore chain plans to open a store in the former Walgreens flagship building at 1601 N. Milwaukee Ave. early this summer, as well as locations at 651 W. Diversey Parkway in Lincoln Park and in suburban Northbrook and Oswego.

“‘We generally want a bookstore everywhere. Every community, we think, needs a bookstore,’ Janine Flanigan, Barnes & Noble’s senior director of store planning and design, told Crain’s, adding that ‘we were really missing the Chicago market,’ with no stores within city limits for several years.

“Barnes & Noble is leasing the entire 26,133-square-foot space at the former Walgreens space in Wicker Park, though Flanigan said the store will likely take up about 16,000 square feet and that the bookseller is still determining whether it will take up all three floors.

“Walgreens closed its store at that location in January 2023. Located in the former Noel State Bank building, the store was known for historical features and Vitamin Vault in the building’s basement.

A Block Club Chicago article about the closure noted that since the building, which was constructed in 1919, is part of a city landmark district, the owners are required to preserve its historical features. The building’s owner is Convexity Properties, a subsidiary of Chicago-based trading firm DRW Holdings. The property was fully renovated in 2012.” (Herzog, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2/7/24)

Read the full story at Crain’s Chicago Business

• Barnes & Noble opening store at Walgreens’ former Wicker Park flagship, Rachel Herzog, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2/7/24
• Barnes & Noble to Open 5 Chicago-Area Stores, Including at Iconic Wicker Park Building, Eunice Alpasan, WTTW Chicago, 2/8/24
• Barnes & Noble opening in Wicker Park in former Noel State Bank building, ABC 7 News, 2/7/24
• Wicker Park’s landmark building welcomes Barnes and Noble as newest tenant, NBC 5 Chicago, 2/8/24
• Is Walgreens Closing Its Flagship Wicker Park Store Inside Old Bank? Neighbors Told Yes, But Company Says No Decision Made; A Walgreens representative said the branch was closing at a community meeting Wednesday — but the company said Thursday it has not made any decision regarding the location, Quinn Myers, Block Club Chicago, 10/7/22
• From drugs to dollars to deli: the story of Walgreens and the landmark Noel State Bank, Architecture Chicago Plus Blog, 11/27/12
• Milwaukee Avenue District Chicago Landmark Designation Report, May 3, 2007