11 Most Endangered

Michigan Avenue Streetwall

Year Listed: 2008
Location: Chicago , Illinois
Current Status: Endangered
Threat: Development

Michigan Avenue Streetwall

Michigan Avenue from Millenium Park, Chicago, IL. Photo by Landmarks Illinois. Learn More

Michigan Avenue Streetwall

Chicago Cultural Center across from Millenium Park. Photo by Landmarks Illinois.

Michigan Avenue Streetwall

71-story residential tower currently under construction behind the Michigan Avenue landmark district. Photo by Landmarks Illinois.

Michigan Avenue Streetwall

South Michigan Avenue, as viewed from Grant Park. Sante Fe building designed by Daniel H. Burnham in 1903. Photo by Landmarks Illinois.

Significance

An enduring image of the Chicago skyline, Michigan Avenue stands as one of the world's most-recognized streets. Its 12-block stretch of historic buildings—dating back to the 1880s—is a virtual encyclopedia of the work of the city's best architects including Daniel Burnham and Louis Sullivan. Although this "streetwall" was designated a Chicago Landmark in 2002, its historic character is now being threatened by the inappropriate addition of large-scale towers that retain only small portions of the original buildings or their facades. Should these development projects gain approval, they will render the local landmark ordinance ineffective as a tool for preservation of the district.

At present, the 1893 Chicago Athletic Association, designed by Henry Ives Cobb is slated for a rooftop addition. These plans propose to demolish a significant portion of the vacant building's structure and several elaborate interior spaces to accommodate a multi-story, stepped, glass hotel tower. While the building is protected by landmark designation and a preservation ordinance, the project has been justified on the basis that the new construction will not be visible from across the street. However, because of the one-sided nature of the street, the mass of the tower would greatly disrupt the historic skyline as viewed from Grant Park, Millennium Park, and the lakefront.

If approved, preservation advocates fear that this project will set a precedent for similar proposals within the historic district, creating a domino effect of high-rise development on a street where landmark designation was established to prevent such a situation. Chicago's preservation ordinance currently allows construction proposals to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, which has prevented a clear set of standards from being established. Consequently, an increasing number of projects in which only the façade of an historic building is preserved have been permitted.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has included the Michigan Avenue Streetwall on this year's 11 Most Endangered list as a way of adding a national voice to the listing of the Streetwall on Landmarks Illinois' Ten Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois, announced in April, 2008. The National Trust for Historic Preservation is working with Landmarks Illinois and other groups to encourage strict adherence to, and enforcement of, Chicago's historic preservation ordinance. The campaign is seeking to persuade the city to issue appropriate design guidelines for this unique district, requiring all development projects to be held to the same standards. Inappropriate additions also would have a negative impact on properties adjacent to the district.

Updates

The recent economic downturn and the slump in real estate prices has helped to cool the rampant pace of downtown development in Chicago, and the Michigan Avenue Streetwall is no exception. The proposed rooftop additions for two prominent buildings-- the YWCA and the Chicago Athletic Club--would have been highly visible from one of the most public spaces in the City. Chicago's Millennium Park sits directly across Michigan Avenue and defines the edge of the Streetwall, drawing millions of visitors and residents every year. But lack of financing has put one of these projects on hold indefinitely, and the publicity and public outcry generated from the listing of the Streetwall as an Endangered Historic Place by both the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Landmarks Illinois has caused a rethinking of the addition proposed for the Chicago Athletic Club. The developer is considering a revision of its original design, which would move the stepped glass addition away from the Michigan Avenue façade and relocate it to the rear of lot, where it will be an extension of the adjacent building on Monroe Street. This change to the design would make the addition more appropriate and much less visible to the public from Millennium Park.

The proposed addition for the Henry Ives Cobb-designed Chicago Athletic Club is being revised in response to requests from City officials. The new design has not yet been released, but is expected to be more sensitive to the historic character of the Athletic Club and the Streetwall as a direct result of publicity generated from 2008 “Endangered Places” listings. While the immediate future of the Athletic Club seems more bright, there is still a fear that inappropriate additions will reappear as a threat to the Streetwall when the economy and real estate prices begin to recover. The City has yet to address the issue of formal design guidelines for the Streetwall district, and there is a distinct possibility that future projects will continue to be handled on a “case-by-case” basis. Landmarks Illinois, the statewide preservation non-profit, plans to have its East Loop Task Force press the issue with City staff, requesting that the Commission on Chicago Landmarks adopt design guidelines that will apply to all proposed projects in the Streetwall and protect one of Chicago’s most prominent historic districts.