Three Chicago-area buildings made a local nonprofit’s list of 2024’s most dangerous landmarks. illinois landmarks on tuesday.
This list highlights 10 culturally and architecturally significant sites in the state that are in need of support.
“Despite current circumstances, these places tell important stories of our past,” Bonnie MacDonald, CEO of Landmarks Illinois, said in a news release. “These are stories that should not be erased because of this or the general disregard for our collective history.”
The Portage Theater in Chicago’s Portage Park neighborhood was also one of the sites on the list. This theater, completed in 1920, has been closed since 2018 and is in need of updates and repairs.
“As Six Corners real estate makes a comeback, the restoration of the historic Portage Theater will be a bonus,” said John C., managing director of the Six Corners Association, an economic development organization focused on the area. Director Amy Zander said.
Also on the list is the Sears Administration Building, part of the former Sears, Roebuck & Co. global headquarters complex in the Westside’s North Lawndale neighborhood.
Completed in 1914, the building is a National Historic Landmark. There are other buildings on the Sears campus as well. Sunken garden as wellhas been reused and the administration building remains unused and will be put up for sale from spring 2023.
The Libby, McNeil and Libby Building, a former canning and bottling factory, is also listed as a hazardous landmark.
Built in 1918 on the southern outskirts of Blue Island, the plant became a major employer for Libby, McNeil & Libby, the nation’s second-largest canned food producer at the time. The building has been closed since 2018, when it was donated to the Affordable Recovery Housing nonprofit, but has remained vacant while the organization is in litigation with the city over code issues. The building is currently aging.
“The presence of unique heritage sites such as the Libby, McNeil and Libbey Buildings connect communities like Blue Island to their past and create attractive centers of community and economic development that can be repurposed for the future. “We’re going to show you the ground,” Kevin Brown said. , vice president of the Calumet Heritage Partnership, which aims to preserve the area’s cultural heritage.
