Demolition on Homer Street clears the way for Enclave Bucktown

Posted on August 10, 2016 by danieldschell

The front door is open, but I’m pretty sure Phoenix Fastener is closed.

There are 50 row homes coming to the Bucktown neighborhood in the very near future. We know this because A. There’s a website for the upcoming Enclave Bucktown, and B. the former Phoenix Fastener building at 2501 West Homer Street is being demolished to make room for it.

Designed by Pappageorge Haymes Architects, Enclave will have 49 “upscale” row homes on the 2-acre site wedged between Homer and Cortland Streets at North Campbell Avenue. The 3- and 4-bedroom homes, being developed in a joint effort by Guardian Properties with Harlem Irving Companies, have no building permits yet, but there’s a sales trailer on the Cortland side of the project, even as KLF Excavating continues to tear down the Homer Street side.

You can learn more than you’ll ever need to know about Enclave Bucktown by downloading the pdf brochure here.

: A rendering of Enclave Bucktown from the Guardian Properties website.

: The on-site sales trailer.

: The on-site sales brochure.

: Demolition Permit.

: Sale Trailer Permit.

Demolition Update: Even Oprah’s watching the Harpo Studios demo

Posted on August 6, 2016 by danieldschell

https://twitter.com/Oprah/status/758416437375492096

She reached countless millions of people through the work she did here. It’s no wonder Oprah Winfrey feels the sadness of watching Harpo Studios torn to the ground.

Heneghan Wrecking has been on the job for a couple weeks now, and more of the old studio disappears every day. The portion being leveled now looks like it could have been the main studio. The sign says Studio 2. Being completely unfamiliar with the layout, I have no idea. I just know it’s television history being canceled.

: We’re just starting to see signs of the demolition from the BuildingUpChicago office.

: Studio 2

Demolition Update: 921 South Jefferson still stands

Posted on August 3, 2016 by danieldschell

921 South Jefferson looks nothing like you’d expect a building with a 2-month-old demolition permit to look.

Just yesterday, I mentioned the urgency of most Chicago demolition permits, and the developers eager to execute them so they can get on with the business of developing.

But there are exceptions to every rule. 921 South Jefferson got its death warrant on June 2nd. Yet there is sits, untouched. And not because anyone’s chained themselves to the foundation in protest of its demise. No, there doesn’t appear to be any good reason to save this dilapidated one-story structure. I’m left to guess no one’s in any particular hurry to get at this piece of property, despite the sign promising the opening of a new “Retail Mall in Spring of 2017.”

I suppose there’s still time. If it’s a small mall, y’all.

From what I’ve seen of this building, leave it alone for a couple more months and it might demolish itself. Have a look:

: About that Spring of 2017 mall opening…

: Granted, this building does have a nice open floor plan…

: …with a nice open roof…

: …and lots of open windows…

: “Charming and well-ventilated” in broker-speak.

: A little paint, some Spackle…

: And it has a yard.

: The Jefferson Street facing.

: I’m operating on the assumption that the old Graf Air Freight space at 550 West Taylor goes too.

Demolition Update: 1411 South Michigan is pretty much demolished

Posted on August 2, 2016 by danieldschell

It’s all over but the hauling away for 1411 South Michigan.

A demolition permit was filed for the old National Association of Letter Carriers building at 1411 South Michigan Avenue on July 7th. My bad for not checking back with it sooner, because a visit Sunday produced multiple angles of nothing but rubble shots. And that’s no surprise. Demolitions this close to downtown usually mean someone’s salivating over the future empty lot said demo will produce.

Such is the case at 1411 South Michigan, where Russland Capital Group is developing a 15-story apartment tower. The Boarman Kroos Vogel Group design will have 199 rental units ranging from studios to 3-bedroom apartments, with 40,000 square feet of commercial space. Lendlease will serve as the general contractor.

: Scrap lies in a pit of despair.

: A render of what’s to come for 1411 South Michigan from Russland Capital Group.

Demolition Update: Malcolm X College

Posted on July 28, 2016 by danieldschell

OM NOM NOM NOM

There’s a lot going on at the lot Malcolm X College used to occupy. As Heneghan Wrecking continues to tear down the old facility, McHugh Construction is equally busy doing foundation work for the new Chicago Blackhawks Community Training Center.

Hopefully, those two companies are doing a good job of remembering which equipment should be ripping things to shreds, and which machines should be laying foundation work. Things are pretty well divided between a west end of the site and an east end, so they likely know what they’re doing.

Heneghan has been at it since the demo permit was filed back in April. It’s a huge site, so sorting and hauling debris away eats up big chunks of time.

I stood and watched for awhile. Wanna see the pics? Well of course you do.

: The beast must be fed.

: Take human bites, beast. You’re getting crumbs everywhere.

: Tear the roof off the sucker.

: This look familiar to anyone? Auditorium seating? or just a large classroom with risers?

: Caissons to the east, demo to the west.

: In case you mist it, this is how you keep demolition dust from getting out of hand.

: Heneghan doing what they do, making space.

Quick Look: Is it demolition? Is it construction? Well, yes it is.

Posted on July 27, 2016 by danieldschell

Chicago Blackhawks Community Training Center

CAISSONS. DEMOLITION. BLOWN MIND.

Now there’s something you don’t see every day.

Even as demolition crews are tearing apart the old Malcolm X College, construction crews are busy doing caisson work for the Chicago Blackhawks Community Training Center. And they don’t appear to be getting in each other’s way.

Malcolm X College is being destroyed because a new campus was just completed on the other side of Jackson Boulevard. In July of last year, the Blackhawks announced they’d be using the same site for their new training digs, which they broke ground on in June of this year. McHugh Construction is the general contractor for the HOK design.

It’s two job sites in one.

Demolition Update: The Shows No Longer Go On At Harpo Studios

Posted on July 27, 2016 by danieldschell

Let’s be honest. You know when Heneghan Wrecking shows up at the studio, your show has been canceled.

Heneghan Wrecking is making more space in the West Loop. This time, it’s for McDonald’s.

Harpo Studios, former television home of Oprah Winfrey, was issued a demolition permit last week, and this week, the carnage has begun. Starting with the north wall, the building is being knocked down, scooped up, and dumped into waiting haulers. In its place, the new McDonald’s corporate office that was approved by the Chicago Plan Commission the day after the demo permit was filed. Ah, synergy.

https://twitter.com/ChicagoDPD/status/756198487595819008

There is no truth to the rumor that someone on site is handing out bits of rubble to demolition spectators, yelling “YOU get a brick, YOU get a brick, EVERYBODY gets a brick!”

: The staircase inside the North Carpenter Street entrance.

: The beast must be fed.

: A service entrance off North Aberdeen, no longer accepting deliveries.

: The Demo Permit.

Saint Boniface Catholic Church Gets a Demolition Permit

Posted on July 23, 2016 by danieldschell

Saint Boniface Catholic Church in Noble Square.

Sadly, we saw this coming, didn’t we.

Saint Boniface Catholic Church, at 905 North Noble Street in Noble Square, was issued a demolition permit by the City of Chicago yesterday. The church was built in 1904, and has been empty since 1990.

The demo permit lists “Saint Boniface Senior Living” of Oak Park as the property owner. That might give us some insight as to what to look for next on the site once demolition is complete.

Crunch Incorporated will perform demo work. That almost sounds cruel.

: The Demo Permit.

Demolition Permit Filed for Harpo Studios

Posted on July 21, 2016 by danieldschell

WRECK AND REMOVE A 1 TO 3 STORY CONCRETE COMMERCIAL BUILDING

That’s not just any commercial building. That’s Harpo Studios, the former home of Oprah Winfrey’s television empire. By now, everyone knows McDonald’s will be making its new home on this site, And yesterday, the City of Chicago filed the official demolition permit to knock down what should have been called “StudiOprah.” But no one asked me.

Heneghan Wrecking will do the dirty work of tearing down the building.

Harpo Studios, 110 North Carpenter Street.

Harpo Studios was doomed the moment the soil sampling rig stepped foot on the lot.

When they get around to demolishing this, the southeast corner of Harpo Studios, I’ll have the best seat in the house.

The Demolition Permit

Demolition Permit Filed for Another Chicago Water Tank

Posted on July 21, 2016 by danieldschell

Say goodbye to the Chicago Water Tank atop 2210 South Grove Street. Of course, the bridge house stays.

Chicago Water Tanks are a vanishing breed. It had been a while since a demolition permit has come through — in fact, the permit filed in March for 2515 South Wabash was the only one so far in 2016 — but ever since the city made it much easier to destroy them, rather than keep them, they’ve been removed from the skyline a lot lately.

And now another. The water tank atop the much-graffiti’d 2210 South Grove Street was given last rites yesterday. Bummer. It had been tagged often, giving it a very distinct, colorful presence, especially if you’re walking across the 18th Street Bridge, where you can get a great shot of it along with the bridge house over top of the South Branch.

The Demolition Permit.

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