CHICAGO | General Developments

[george]

Good point. Granted the existing brick BOA corner structure is nothing special but it would retain more variety of shop fronts to the strip, old & new.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by streetline

The renders look nice enough, but it seems like an odd and backwards thing to do in terms of design philosophy.
Do we really want to make our street wall look more monolithic and less fine grained? When some buildings try to make one structure look like many, why try to make two structures built decades apart look like one (especially when the existing structure has a new-ish facade already)?

Here's the story.

Freed, who built the shopping center, acquired these properties over the years.
He treated them like a slumlord and ran them into the ground. When he went into foreclosure these were picked up by Centrum along with the center.
Centrum sold them to LG, but they sold them a pig in a poke.
The problem was that the bank had a very long term lease at low money and they were a very recalcitrant tenant.

LG bought a large contiguous parcel of B1-3 in the transit zone but half of it was in the control of a tenant who will not move or allow any disruption of service.

What LG wanted to do was to treat it all as one zoning lot and use the excess development rights above the bank building in a new "addition" on the adjacent parcels.

This is perfectly legal and could have been done as of right.

Unfortunately it would leave us with that hideous bank building on that corner forever (because all that parcel's development rights were used up).

LG wanted an upzone to -5 (under -3 with a bonus and full density avg apt size would be about 650). They would get approx 20000 sqft extra and would keep the height and density close to what they already were allowed)

We said we could go along with that, but we need the bank building to be fully incorporated into the design and wanted the corner to have more visual appeal and increased verticality.

With structural limitations and stubborn tenants in the mix, this is what they came up with.

It is still a pair of Groucho glasses, but it's a lot easier on the eyes than having that ugly bank hanging off the front like a hotel canopy.

It still has to go before the general membership for a vote.

[BWChicago]

http://chuckmanchicagonostalgia.file...tcar-c1920.jpg Interesting that it's kinda closer to the original design than the panelbrick hideosity of a facade it has now

[untitledreality]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Looks like the renders are out for that proposed Polish Triangle building at 1237-53 N Milwaukee.

http://chicago.curbed.com/archives/2...s-rendered.php

Someone needs to tell LG's in-house architect to lay off the vines.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by BWChicago

http://chuckmanchicagonostalgia.file...tcar-c1920.jpg Interesting that it's kinda closer to the original design than the panelbrick hideosity of a facade it has now

I am not sure if the existing BofA building has any part of the old Continental Clothing building, (it's possible, the construction is wacky) but a large chunk, if not all, of the building you see in that postcard was torn down a few years later when they widened Ashland.

[BWChicago]

Originally Posted by PKDickman

I am not sure if the existing BofA building has any part of the old Continental Clothing building, (it's possible, the construction is wacky) but a large chunk, if not all, of the building you see in that postcard was torn down a few years later when they widened Ashland.

Seems unlikely that they would tear it down and replace it with a building of the same height.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by BWChicago

Seems unlikely that they would tear it down and replace it with a building of the same height.

LG said it had some castiron and some wooden columns.
A check of the Sanborn maps from 1914 &1950 show several interior features in the same place. But all of the Ashland facade & about a third of the Milw facade were taken down.

[ChiTownWonder]

I feel like this site could contain something with a little more height but its development nonetheless right?

[Chi-Sky21]

Makes me wonder when they will get a project going on the south east corner of Ashland & Division. EvilOlive and the car dealership behind it seem like a no brainer for something. Wasn't there something planned for there awhile back?

[Chicago Shawn]

Originally Posted by BWChicago

http://chuckmanchicagonostalgia.file...tcar-c1920.jpg Interesting that it's kinda closer to the original design than the panelbrick hideosity of a facade it has now

Thanks for the postcard link, interesting to see the triangle was indeed occupied with a building before Ashland was widened. I also took note of the 5 story second empire styled building on the NW corner of Milwaukee/Ashland. This is the point I try to hammer home with some about our city neighborhoods being more densely built up and populated places than they often are currently. 5 stories standing on the lot line and wall to wall with neighbors on the arterial streets is not out of context, its restoring context. Additionally, as was typical of buildings from that era, the floor to floor heights appear to be very tall. If the scale is depicted accurately, I wouldn't be surprised if that structure stood 70 feet high to the ornamental ironwork topping the roof.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by Chicago Shawn

Thanks for the postcard link, interesting to see the triangle was indeed occupied with a building before Ashland was widened. I also took note of the 5 story second empire styled building on the NW corner of Milwaukee/Ashland. This is the point I try to hammer home with some about our city neighborhoods being more densely built up and populated places than they often are currently. 5 stories standing on the lot line and wall to wall with neighbors on the arterial streets is not out of context, its restoring context. Additionally, as was typical of buildings from that era, the floor to floor heights appear to be very tall. If the scale is depicted accurately, I wouldn't be surprised if that structure stood 70 feet high to the ornamental ironwork topping the roof.

That was the Schoenhofen Hall and it was only 4 stories. The stacked windows were on one floor (although there was a balcony). It was the meeting hall and stage. There was a bowling alley in the basement.

It was torn down for widening Ashland and was supposed to be replaced by a 4 story office, but it never seemed to get past 2 stories. The owner/developer, Louis Greenblatt, died while it was in construction.

[Chi-Sky21]

Originally Posted by PKDickman

That was the Schoenhofen Hall and it was only 4 stories.

As in Schoenhofen Brewery? Thought that was south.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by Chi-Sky21

As in Schoenhofen Brewery? Thought that was south.

Same guy, but you were expected to drink the beer there not brew it.

[george]

Recreate the BOA corner building in the style of the classic old facades. Let the new development stand on its own. That would be the hippest. Just me, IMO.

[marothisu]

Looks like this may happen on a vacant/parking lot just south of Division on Halsted? Building permit issued on Friday for it:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/reale...plate=printart

[ardecila]

That's West Marine.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Looks like this may happen on a vacant/parking lot just south of Division on Halsted? Building permit issued on Friday for it:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/reale...plate=printart

Yikes, sounds like a strip mall...

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by ardecila

That's West Marine.

You're right. I got confused with that other plan (http://www.chicagobusiness.com/reale...ors-mojo-south) but that is across the street. The good news is that another lot bites the dust

[george]

8/2

Steger Building restoration

[ardecila]

Plus, like any other riverfront development, we get one more block of riverwalk.