Great photos, Craig. Thanks for documenting this travesty. The fact is that even given the demolition of the building the issue continues since there are unanswered questions about the procedures and whether laws/ordinances were skirted in the process...
1. Does demolition of a building require notification of neighbors? If so, none appear to have been notified as documented by Lorraine Swanson of our local Chicago Journal publication.
2. Who owns the building, since it appears that ownership records are not clear. This is important because if there hasn't been a transfer and the property is continuing to hide behind the exemption of the school then revenue is being lost.
3. Given the very clear wording of the Lakefront Protection Ordinance: It shall be unlawful for any physical change, whether temporary or permanent, public or private, to be undertaken... within the Lake Michigan and Chicago Lakefront Protection District... without first having secured the approval therefore from the Chicago Plan Commission as provided in Sections 16-4-100 through 16-4-140.
Are the owners, whoever they are, in violation of the LPO for not submitting an application for this work and should they not be assessed fines?
4. Finally, given the imminent destruction of the building, does the community really want to see yet ANOTHER parking lot on our lakefront? Nearly a 1/4 of the acreage of Loyola Park is actually parking lot. Lends a whole new meaning to the word "Park". Here we have an opportunity for gaining park space and possible expansion of the Leone Field House and we're getting stuck with another parking lot.
Don Gordon
19 comments:
I just received this email from Mr. Green Jeans Office:
Update on the Demolition of 1217 W. Chase (former North Shore School Building)
Dear Neighbor,
I am writing to bring you up to date on the status of the old North Shore School building at 1217 W. Chase. As you may recall, I hosted a community meeting on this issue last July.
The current owner of the property, Swanette Triem, began to demolish the building yesterday. She intends to replace it with a landscaped parking lot, with permeable pavement, for use of the tenants of an adjacent apartment building she owns.
The previous owners of North Shore School announced in early 2006 that they were closing the school and putting the building up for sale. Several parents and school alumni made efforts to raise the money necessary to keep the school open, but to no avail. Ms. Triem purchased the building after the school closed in June 2006.
According to the City of Chicago Department of Planning and the Department of Zoning, the demolition of the building and the construction of the parking lot are permitted as a matter of right. The current zoning allows for a parking lot, and the Lakefront Protection Ordinance does not prohibit the demolition of buildings or the construction of parking lots within the Lakefront Protection Zone. According to Brian Goeken of the Chicago Landmarks Commission, the building is not architecturally significant and does not qualify for landmark status.
Even though the Lakefront Protection was not implicated and no zoning change was required, I asked Ms Triem to appear at a public meeting last July to share her plans with the community. I posted fliers announcing the meeting in the immediate neighborhood and sent an e-mail alert to over 4,000 49th Ward residents.
Approximately 30 people attended the meeting, and a number of the attendees expressed a desire to have the building saved. While she was under no legal obligation to do so, Ms. Triems agreed to my request to put the demolition on hold while the community and I searched for a new user. I extended an invitation to the community members to assist me in the search.
In the last eight months, my office staff and I have met with and talked to a number of prospective users of the building. Regretfully, we were not able to identify anyone who wished to make use of the building.
The building required a complete gutting to remediate pervasive mold damage, and also required a new roof. A contractor hired by Ms. Triem estimated it would cost at least $1 million to bring the building up to code.
We reached out to Roycemore School, Waldorf School and the Pro-Logue Alternative High School, all of whom have been searching for new locations. None of the schools expressed any sustained interest in the site.
My office and I also spoke with a number of organizations who were looking for new locations in our neighborhood, including the Shambala Buddhist Temple, the Japanese American Service Committee and Links Hall, a dance theater in Lakeview. Many of them toured the site, but none of them felt it met their needs.
A number of community residents suggested selling the building to the Chicago Park District. The Park District expressed no interest in the site, citing scores of unfunded capital projects that are already on their list. Rather, than fight a nearly impossible battle to secure millions of dollars from the Park District to acquire, repair and maintain the old North Shore School building, I have used my energy to secure commitments from the Park District to repair the foot path in Loyola Park (which will be completed this spring), resurface the tennis courts in Loyola Park, Touhy Park, and Rogers Beach (which will be completed this summer), and make additional repairs to Leone Park Fieldhouse.
After waiting for more than eight months, Ms Triem has asked that she be allowed to move ahead with the demolition, as is her legal right.
I regret the building couldn't be saved despite our best efforts. Fortunately, however, the existing greenspace surrounding the building will be preserved. The parking lot will cover only the footprint of the existing building. Ms. Triem also intends to use permeable pavement for the parking lot, which will prevent water run-off and is a much more environmentally friendly material than traditional asphalt.
If you have any questions about the demolition or our efforts to preserve the building, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Joe Moore
Blognotes: Damn, Joe's been fighting for US all along. And I thought Joe was too busy carrying Barack's jock-strap around the country.
"According to Brian Goeken of the Chicago Landmarks Commission, the building is not architecturally significant and does not qualify for landmark status."
Goeken is a Daley appointment to the Chicago Landmarks Commission.
Goeken is also a paid Daley employee, a Deputy Commissioner in the Department of Planning and Development.
" ... the Lakefront Protection Ordinance does not prohibit the demolition of buildings or the construction of parking lots within the Lakefront Protection Zone."
Moore speaks for the Lakefront Protection Ordinance.
citation please, counselor
"A contractor hired by Ms. Triem estimated it would cost at least $1 million to bring the building up to code."
A contractor hired by the "buyer" found 7 figures of mold in a building that had housed school children months before. Well whadda ya know.
does anyone Moore included doubt that in Chicago you can hire a contractor to say anything you want?
"None of the schools expressed any sustained interest in the site."
after which I made no attempt to communicate such with my constituents
"Many of them toured the site, but none of them felt it met their needs."
after which I did nothing
"Rather, than fight a nearly impossible battle to secure millions of dollars from the Park District to acquire, repair and maintain the old North Shore School building ... "
funny, Triem picked it up, 19,100 square feet of land, east of Sheridan, steps from Chicago's lakefront, zoned RT4, eligible for 19 luxury condos by rights, for $240K, $12/sq ft
"Ms Triem has asked that she be allowed to move ahead with the demolition, as is her legal right."
Joe Moore, champion of civil rights.
The same Joe Moore who famously said "There will be no WalMart in Rogers Park as long as I am alderman."
The same alderman who told us which animals' livers we can eat.
The same alderman who uses his control of zoning to extort price controls on condos.
The North Shore School is a civil rights issue.
Mr. Free Market.
remember the Adelphi
Remember the Affiliated Bank
Our weakest point is that we have no committed plan for our lakefront. Sure, a study was done, and suggestions were noted, but that’s where it ended. It shouldn’t have. We were fortunate this time that we caught them and hit them unexpectedly (with this blog, no less) and that Don Gordon and others marshaled old contacts so adroitly.
I cannot imagine undertaking a long-range park design without the assistance of Mr. Gordon’s Conservancy.
Jim Ginderski.
I asked Ms Triem to appear at a public meeting last July to share her plans with the community.
I immediately returned all previous campaign contributions from Ms. Triem in order to avoid any appearance of impropriety, as you know is famously my want.
I further enjoined Ms. Triem to refrain from additional contributions until this matter was fully resolved.
More recently it has come to light that she did not comply with my request, and in her enthusiasm for my special brand of faux progressive politics, made several campaign contributions prior to my recent historic re-election, which we were not aware of at the time due to the fog of war. While I regret this oversight, please rest assured the campaign contributions had no influence whatsoever on Ms. Triem's application for a demolition permit.
Joe Moore said...> "In the last eight months, my office staff and I have met with and talked to a number of prospective users of the building."
Translation: No one was willing to pony up more than $1,250 to my campaign coffers.
Joe Moore said...> "The building required a complete gutting to remediate pervasive mold damage."
Did you check for the cancer-causing substance called asbestos too?
You two should take this show on the road.
So what is the answer to the question? Any laws broken here?
Please educate me.
I would like to hear the Alderman's office respond to this. Joe's email says the LPO didn't apply here. I would like an explanation from them to the points mentioned here.
I think they need to specifially address what's being said, or else it looks like a whitewash.
were laws broken? no. but craig likes to leave a question hanging out there even when he knows the answer. this is called a smear.
Well, let's see, you're supporting Don "no dong" Gordon again here - when earlier (during the 49th ward's pre- run off race) you more or less hated Don " No Dong" gordon - what gives?
Hypocrite - that's what
This is not a response to what you’ve written. I don’t know how else to get information out. I’ve never contacted blogs before, so please forgive if the protocol is incorrect.
Good Sunday Morning!
I live next to the old North Shore School that was demolished this Spring. As I was going through my morning routine, I heard buzz saws out side my window and I thought that they were here to clean up the mess from yesterdays windstorm. Since it sounded so close I went out onto my porch to get a better look only to see that there were some work men with chain saws taking down the trees on the property line (right next to my building). My neighbor who also came out to see, said “They’re taking down the trees.” We went down to talk to them and they said they were hired to take down all the trees along the property line on that side of the fence. We’ve made a big stink, two middle aged ladies, and for right now they are pre occupied with the equipment getting stuck in the soft dirt. I’ve left a message with the alderman's office and the contractor’s office to register my protest.
I was at the meeting where in front of the Alderman and community in attendance, Ms. Swanett Triem said many times to concerns about the trees that they would not be touched. And now on a beautiful summer Sunday morning, when the community has no recourse, she has hired contractors to take them down. So while I do realize that it is her private property and she can do what she wants, as a member of this community I feel that I should say something about the action and her deception.
I don’t know what else to do but stand in front of the trees and insist that they not be taken down!
Thought someone might want to know and maybe register a complaint to the Alderman or the the owner of the property at 1217 North Chase.
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