(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Two early skyscrapers, a Southeast Side theater building, and one of the places where House music was developed are among the latest “Most Endangered" buildings identified by Preservation Chicago.
For a fourth year, the Consumers and Century in the 200 block of South State Street downtown are on the demolition block and have made the list of the "Chicago 7."
They were built in 1913 and 1915. The federal government owns them and wants to raze them to reduce the risk of any security threats to the nearby Dirksen Federal Courthouse.
“They are wonderful, wonderful examples of the Chicago School of Architecture. They are the last of the steel frame buildings built as part of the Chicago School,” Miller said.
Also on the list is Taft Hall on the University of Illinois-Chicago campus. There are plans to replace the concrete façade on that and two similar lecture halls, but Miller believes there would be better ways to renovate the buildings without wiping away the work of architect Walter Netsch.
“These buildings are Brutalist structures, as we call them in architecture, and Brutalism is one of those styles that you either love or you don’t,” Miller said.
Terra cotta buildings throughout the city are on the Seven Most Endangered Buildings list this year. Miller says Chicago was a terra cotta center at one time, and the decorative material makes people smile.
“There’s one at 61st and King Dr. that’s got this sort of Egyptoid ornament on it, and it’s completely abandoned,” he said.
Also on the list:
--The Jeffery Theater Building and Spencer Arms Hotel at 71st and Jeffery in the South Shore neighborhood. Miller says there are plans to demolish the buildings and construct an entertainment complex. He believes the buildings could still be saved.
--The Warehouse at 206 S. Jefferson Street, which was one of the birthplaces of House music.
“It was a place where the LBGTQ community and, especially, the Black community in the 70s and 80s could go and enjoy amazing House music,” Miller said.
--three Southwest Side industrial buildings: 3815 S. Ashland Ave.; 1111 W. Cermak Rd. in Pilsen; and the old Fisk electric-generating station and grain silos at 2860 S. Damen.
--The Werner Brothers Storage building at 7613 N. Paulina in the Rogers Park neighborhood. Miller says there are plans to demolish the building and construct affordable housing. Preservation Chicago suggests using the current building for that.
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