Richard Nickel

It was my turn for jury duty today. I headed down to 26th & California with my summons and a big bag of library books to help pass time. The one I really wanted to read was Richard Nickel's Chicago: Photographs of a Lost City by Richard Cahan and West Ridge resident Michael Williams.

If you have any interest in Chicago architecture and / or preservation, you've probably already read this book. I'm about a year behind due to the activities around the past election here in the 50th Ward. If you haven't read it, put it on your list.

It's maddening in 2007 to continue to see our history being torn down around us. I can only begin to imagine what it was like for Nickel - one man trying to save the masterpieces of Adler & Sullivan.

"From one of the most distinguished cities architecturally we are rapidly moving toward anonymity, or, what is worse, a city of contrast: the superficial glitter of the new mixed with the slum of the old." - Richard Nickel

He's my hero.

Going...going...

...and very soon to be gone. After years of neglect and decay, a permit for demolition of the Nortown Theater was issued on June 7. Driving by this morning, it appeared that work has already begun.

The developer's plans call for construction of a five story condo and commercial building in its place. Unlike the high quality brick masonry construction going up throughout the city, this project will be primarily painted cast-in-place concrete.

Although the development will include parking for the condos (just under one space per unit), it will not provide any parking for the commercial space due to a generous manipulation of the zoning requirements by Alderman Stone.

Another sad day in the 50th Ward, and another piece of West Ridge history headed to the landfill.

June 12th Meeting - Goats and Gods

Greetings, Bungalow Neighbors!

Reminder that our June 12 meeting, 7 pm at the Northtown Library, will feature architect Chris Turley on ways to add living space to your bungalow.

Chris' presentation, entitled Goats & Gods: A Study of Bungalow Additions Done Wrong & Right, was given at the Sulzer Library in April as part of the HCBA seminar series. It's full of great information, and is extremely entertaining at the same time. Chris includes West Ridge examples of bungalow additions in his slide show; some that maintain the character of the bungalow, as well as some that do not.

See you Tuesday!

Maribeth and Jo

The next Chicago teardown - Saturday June 9th

I look at this place and just have to ask "why?". It seems fine and in fact was newly rehabbed. The up side is that the entire house is potentially being recycled. Visit http://www.murco.dreamhosters.com/ for more information and to find out how you can literally have a piece of it.

Gallup, New Mexico

Last week I spent 4 days in Gallup, NM and the surrounding area. I wasn't exepecting bungalows in this little town, but there they were. This was a business trip focused on buying Native American jewelry and visiting with an Antelope Chief in Hopi Land ( I love my job!). Next time I'll check out more of this part of Gallup as well as a bungalow neighborhood I spotted on the way to the airport in Albuquerque.

June 3rd Protest Rally to Save Lake Shore Athletic Club!

Only in Chicago do we strut our architectural prowess in front of the 2016 Olympic Committee...then allow the wrecking ball to deliver a sucker punch to an Orange-rated architectural heavyweight - and one that's an Olympic legacy, at that!*

A demolition permit has been applied for. Time to send a message to the Powers That Be: The Lake Shore Athletic Club must be landmarked, not only to save the building...but to show the world we're a city that reveres its formidable historic architecture. Not pummels it into oblivion.

COME ONE, COME ALL!
Date: Sunday, June 3, 2007
Time: 1:00 pm
Where: 850 North Lake Shore Drive at Chestnut Street
(in front of the Lake Shore Athletic Club)
Dress in your favorite athletic gear:
running shorts, sweats, swimsuit, tennis outfit, whatever - or come as you are. Your fighting spirit is what counts!

* Find out more about the Lake Shore Athletic Club at
http://www.preservationchicago.org/risk/lakeshore.h

Can't make it to the rally?
Voice your concern to Alderman Brendan Reilly (42nd Ward)
Please contact him at
brendan@reillyforchicago.com
312-642-4242
312-277-1009 fax

Jonathan Fine,
Preservation Chicago
email: info@preservationchicago.org

A great Arts and Crafts home in Rogers Park

Here's a photo from the Tribune of our friend Ellen in her wonderful A&C living room.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/realestate/yourplace/chi-eslinger-pix,1,2070110.photo

Neighbors in the news

Click here to read the Sun-Times article about Beth and Ken Martin and their place on Coyle along with several other Chicago Bungalow owners:
http://www.suntimes.com/news/neighborhoods/391847,CST-NWS-bungalownew18.article

Shingles & Skylights & Boilers & Bricks - Oh My!

I was going through some older email and thought I'd share this with you - the story of a remodel that took place last spring, written by a WRBN member. Enjoy...
MB

I am sending this update to all of you because you have all influenced where we are in our Bungalow Extravaganza ... and we sincerely thank you for your involvement. Please feel free to weigh in on any of the following.

SHINGLES I think we have a roofer! Tim Costello of Albany Improvements - a HCBA resource. He comes highly recommended and I was very impressed with his estimate process. Marty Ostrowski of Connoisseur was also very impressive and highly recommended but more expensive than we can afford given the scope of our Extravaganza. Lindholm Roofing, very nice and informative, was an in-between bid. Allendorfer did not return my call for over 10 days. Jack Taff Roofing called back and said they'd look at the roof sometime last week. Never heard from them again. We will evaluate whether to go with the original wood soffits (as opposed to aluminum) after the tear-off.

SKYLIGHTS Our plan right now is to put in 3 (15 1/4 x 46 1/4) Velux skylights. These will fit within our 18" rafters without need to alter the rafters. However this size only comes in the fixed form - meaning they can't be opened. I thought this might be a mistake until I looked again at the brochure. The photos of opened windows looked like open doorways for squirrels and birds to me. I think we'll put in a couple of ceiling fans (along with the power vent) instead. One skylight will go in the front room and two skylights will be close together (18 inches apart ?) in the darkest part of the back room.

BOILERS Cahill never showed up for our appointment. When I called, my contact sounded a little out-of-it. I decided not to reschedule. Horst of William Stoker came out last week and we spent over an hour exploring the possibilities. He's very nice and this was very informtive. Al from A&M called and left a message. I returned his call that night and left a message with his answering service. I never heard from him again. An estimate arrived from Stoker yesterday, but after having just met with Crafton, I could not bring myself to open it until this morning. We will need to get a couple more bids. I have not yet contacted A1 Peerless - recommended by a neighbor. Another possibility is Chicago Unique Indoor Comfort - listed in the HCBA resource guide. Also listed HVAC & Geotech Systems. This looks like an electric system that I know nothing about.

BRICKS Spent over an hour with Jack Tomcyzk of Crafton yesterday evaluating our masonry. LOTS need to be done here. The front (wall-banister - what is the name of this part of the house ?) needs to be rebuilt with many bricks to be replaced. We need to work with original facing brick in order to maintain the beauty of our bungalow ... according to Jack - and we agree. That means using brick from the chimney (if the bricks can be properly cleaned) and possibly even the garage! :- [ Lot's of other work needs to be in other areas, too. But for now, the chimney is step number one - before roofing work can be done. Jack is supposed to call with numbers on the chimney and present a written proposal for the rest of the work. Will we get competitive bids ? What are our other options ?

Oh, My! I woke up today at 3:45 AM and was not very successful at getting back to sleep - HIGH ANXIETY ! At times I feel fairly excited about how great things will be when work is finished - and at other times I feel so overwhelmed ... how will we ever manage to get these things finished AND pay for them ?!?

More, Oh, My! The squirrels seemed to be having a family reunion in our home for Mother's day and the little piles of 'dirt' along the wall in the basement are not related to bricks ... Jack suspects insects !!! - enough of urban wildlife. Okay, that's it. I still haven't begun our income taxes and we really do need the refund.

Third Annual Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Awards - June 8th deadline

Each year, the Historic Chicago Bungalow Association and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation honor homeowners whose work demonstrates the best bungalow landscaping, rehabilitation and restoration projects.

It is a juried competition with the panel of judges composed of neighborhood development community members, architects, horticulturalists and representatives of the local media. Nominees are judged on the overall visual impression, the creative design solution, and how well the project maintains the integrity of the Historic Chicago Bungalow.

Each year we've had winners from West Ridge (does that garden photo look familiar?)
Nominate your Chicago Bungalow today - Deadline is Friday, June 8. If selected, site visits will be scheduled on Friday, June 29 and Saturday, June 30 2007. Go to http://www.chicagobungalow.org/owners/driehaus.shtml for an application. Good luck!