As we reported in September, a long-vacant building designed by Holabird and Roche in Bronzeville is facing imminent demolition. On Tuesday night, a group of stakeholders and neighbors gathered to discuss the history of the building and chart out a vision for its rehabilitation.

The permit was issued in late October; time is quickly running out. But with the help of Preservation Chicago and Landmarks Illinois, the ad-hoc group has a plan and an online petition to save it.

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UPDATE November 13th

The Boston Store stable building in Bronzeville is facing imminent demolition.

Neighbors are convening today at 6PM at 4245 King Dr to explore last minute options for preservation and learn about the history of the building. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Original article below.

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A pending demolition permit indicates the last remaining Boston Store Stable building won’t get a chance for reuse. This building at 4340 S. Vernon in Bronzeville served as a horse stable and parcel station for the Boston Store, constructed around the same time (1906) as the company’s massive massive new department store at State and Madison.

Designed by the firm of Holabird and Roche, this unique historic structure is a link to another era.

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The smell of smoke was heavy on the air for miles around on the morning of October 7, 2015. Neighbors awoke to the news that the Shrine of Christ the King, 6401 S. Woodlawn Ave., had suffered a devastating fire – the second in the history of the building. When the hoses were packed up, the walls were still standing, but this pillar of the Woodlawn community faced an uncertain future. Members and neighbors are now fighting for its future. Learn why the building is worth saving, and what you can do to help.

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Within Chicago’s Loop neighborhood, among the urban canyons of soaring glass & steel office buildings, there is a unique and rare collection of architecture: the commercial buildings erected in the aftermath of the Great Chicago Fire. These are commonly referred to as the “Post-Fire” era buildings, built from 1872 up until the advent of modern building materials and advanced construction techniques. These unprecedented approaches to commercial architecture facilitated the birth of the multi-story “skyscraper” in the early-mid 1880s, notably William Le Baron Jenney’s Home Insurance Building erected in 1883.

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