Little remains of the W. C. Reebie & Brother storage building in Uptown

Posted on November 25, 2024 by danieldschell

Demolition of the W. C. Reebie & Brother storage building in Uptown, Chicago Nov 20, 2024.

Demolition of the former W. C. Reebie & Brother storage building has left little remaining of the Uptown structure, save for the rearmost shell of the five stories that stood on the site for 100+ years. The George Kingsley-designed building at 5035 North Broadway was purchased in 2018 by TimeLine Theatre; they’ll soon begin turning the property into their new home, once demo contractor Milburn Demolition has wrapped up work.

The first iteration of the new theatre would have saved the building’s façade, but TimeLine deemed that plan unfeasible due to a number of factors, including further evaluation of the structural integrity of the existing edifice. Architecture firm HGA then drew up new designs to completely redo the front portions of the building for performance spaces, while integrating the rear levels for office use.

TimeLine Theatre’s new venue is set to include a range of features aimed at enhancing both visitor and artist experiences. Plans highlight a lobby café and bar alongside a 250-seat black box theatre designed for flexibility and transformation. The space will also house exhibit galleries to complement TimeLine’s immersive and interactive lobby experiences. Behind the scenes, the facility will offer dedicated areas for collaboration, including a rehearsal room, production and design studios, and staff offices. Additionally, their Living History program will have its own dedicated space, which will also serve as a resource for community meetings and events.

TimeLine has raised nearly $40 million toward toward the new facility. They expect to begin putting on shows here early in 2026.

W. C. Reebie & Brother storage building demolition — The W. C. Reebie & Brother storage building, pre-demolition.

Glass panels hit a high note at DePaul School of Music

Posted on May 30, 2017 by danieldschell

The barrel vault on the roof of the DePaul School of Music.

A couple features of the new DePaul School of Music are standing out amidst the Lincoln Park construction site. One is the red steel forming the barrel vault atop the three-story facility. The other is glass panels on the north elevation. The black-tar wall is kinda cool, too.

: The glass.

: The vault.

Instruments of construction keeping good time at the DePaul School of Music

Posted on March 23, 2017 by danieldschell

Rendering of the DePaul School of Music from Antunovich Associates.

Construction of the new DePaul School of Music continues in earnest on DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus. Bulley & Andrews and their ridiculously long tower crane have been going vertical on the site since Spring of 2016. Antunovich Associates has designed a three-story structure that includes two recital halls, a concert hall, student practice and classrooms, and more than 100 below-grade parking spaces. DePaul plans to have the facility open for student use in Spring 2018.

Composition of DePaul School of Music continues in Lincoln Park

Posted on December 15, 2016 by danieldschell

McGaw Hall is a distant memory, and the new DePaul School of Music is getting closer to completion. (I used up all my music puns in a previous post, so just know Bulley + Andrews is still hard at work building the 3-story, 185,000-square-foot facility.)

Excavation complete, DePaul School of Music has begun composing its new facility

Posted on October 4, 2016 by danieldschell

The bass-ment has been dug, and now tuba-fours are being hammered into place, as the DePaul School of Music begins to take shape in Lincoln Park. Though the new facility will crescendo to just three stories in height, “sprawling” would be a good word to describe the footprint of this construction site. Hence the extra-long tower crane. It’s no reach to say reach is critical on this project.

Construction Update: McCormick Place Event Center

Posted on July 21, 2016 by danieldschell

The McCormick Place Event Center and the Marriott Marquis Chicago.

Yes, DePaul University will play its basketball games here. But it will be much more than a basketball arena.

The new McCormick Place Event Center is being constructed in the Prairie District of the South Loop. In addition to being a 10,000-seat arena, the Event Center is also expected to host concerts, conventions, business meetings, and other sporting events not featuring the Blue Demons.

The architect of record for the McCormick Place Event Center is Curtis Moody, of Moody Nolan, while Pelli Clarke Pelli and Goettsch Partners lead a who’s-who of architecture firms also involved in the project. Similarly, Clark Construction is the general contractor, but you’ll find a number of other companies involved in construction, including Bulley & Andrews.

They hoop (see what I did there?) to have the court open in time for the 2017-18 NCAA basketball seasons.

: Soldier Field keeps a watchful eye on the new kid.

: Even the cheap seats get special attention to detail.

: There’s more of that blue steel waiting to be put into the game.

Tower Crane Update: DePaul School of Music

Posted on July 18, 2016 by danieldschell

In the first week of July, three tower cranes were planted around Chicago. My job was to go find them. Then, it was my duty to follow up on them. Because no one wants part of the story. Or part of the tower crane, for that matter.

Our first update is at the DePaul School of Music. Warning: Don’t get too close to this one, or it won’t fit in your photo. This won’t be a tall undertaking, but it’s a big lot. And a tower crane needs to reach every corner of that lot. So this one is as long as any I’ve seen.

: I thought the best way to get the whole thing into one shot was an iPhone panorama. I was mistaken. If your tower crane looks like this, start over.

: July 14th was the big day, when tower crane assembly began.

: None of these people are in any danger of losing their jobs to me.

: Evening of July 14th. Taken from a moving train. Cut me some slack.

: Monday morning shot from the Fullerton L platform.

The Day The Tower Cranes Took Over

Posted on July 7, 2016 by danieldschell

For many, the appeal of living in Chicago is the change of seasons. But what we should be promoting is the change of tower cranes. For just when one comes down, another (or three) goes up.

With lots of new construction comes lots of tower cranes. There isn’t much that can be built around town without the use of one (or two – looking at you, Sinclair.) A long walk on my regular rounds turned up no fewer than three seedlings being planted for future tower cranes.

Up in Lincoln Park, DePaul is building a new facility for music education. The DePaul School of Music won’t be a very tall structure, but it will be spread out over a large lot. Bulley & Andrews is erecting its tower crane near the middle of the lot, so it’ll reach 360 degrees around the site.

At 822 North Clark Street in the Near North neighborhood, McHugh Construction is setting up a tower crane to erect a 7-story Mormon church. I’ll have more about this project once I know for sure what I’m talking about.

Finally, at 8 East Huron in River North, Clark Construction has begun putting up a tower crane for the 26-story residential tower from CA Ventures. Designed by Valerio Dewalt Train Associates, 8 East Huron has been sitting on its tower crane permit since May 24. I was getting a little antsy waiting for this one.

: Way over there is the tower crane seedling for the DePaul School of Music.

: Another shot of the starter kit for the tower crane at the new Mormon church at 822 North Clark Street.

: A profile photo of the tower crane at 8 East Huron.

DePaul Tuning Up for New School of Music

Posted on June 21, 2016 by danieldschell

There’s no tower crane yet, but THEY’RE MAKING SQUARE REBAR TUBES!!

Chicago construction company Bulley & Andrews is erecting a new DePaul School of Music out in Lincoln Park. Designed by Antunovich Associates, the new facility will be on the site previously occupied by McGaw Hall, which was demolished early this year.

You can learn all you need to know about the new School of Music by going to DePaul’s site. As for me, I’ll skip the words and share a few photos instead.