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News Update
Reese Hospital
on Life Support
Despite a last-minute attempt to
list this Near South Side Chicago medical campus on the National Register of
Historic Places, the City of Chicago is continuing with its demolition
plans. As of January 2010, half of the eight hospital buildings co-designed
by mid-20th century architect Walter Gropius had been demolished—an action
that prompted the National Trust for Historic Preservation to call this one
of the “worst” preservation stories of 2009.
In December 2009, the Illinois Sites Advisory Council (IHSAC) had voted
unanimously to forward a National Register nomination for the hospital
campus to the National Park Service (NPS). However, even if the campus is
listed, this will not prevent the city from continuing demolition, since no
federal funding is involved.
The only buildings scheduled to
be spared are the Prairie School-style Old
Main Hospital Building (1907; Schmidt, Garden & Martin) and the Singer
Pavilion (1948; Walter Gropius et al.).
Landmarks Illinois in August had
released an alternative site plan for the campus, which called for retention
of at least six of the site’s most viable historic buildings for reuse, as
well as significant landscaped areas designed by Hideo Sasaki in the 1950s
and ‘60s.
The reuse plan had been prompted by the city’s proposal to construct an
Olympic Village on the site for the 2016 Summer Olympics. After Rio de
Janeiro was announced as the Olympic host city on October 3rd, Landmarks
Illinois and other preservation groups continued to press for a
redevelopment plan that would preserve the site’s most significant
structures, which had been listed as one of our 2009 “Ten
Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois.” A request for
redevelopment proposals for the site is expected early next year.
“With the loss of the Olympics, we believe—more than ever—that the reuse
of some of the Reese Hospital buildings is key for the sustainable
redevelopment of this area,” said Peters. “Although our Olympic Village
reuse plan focused on just six of the 29 hospital structures scheduled
for demolition, it may now be practical to save and rehabilitate even
more of these buildings,” Peters added.
The main features that had
been presented in Landmarks Illinois’ alternative plan for the Reese
Hospital site on August 13th are:
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Saving and reusing a core of four buildings, three of which were co-designed
by Walter Gropius, who—along with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe—is
considered to be one of the most influential architects of the mid-20th
century. These buildings are grouped around a pair of open spaces by the
renowned landscape designers Hideo Sasaki and Reginald Isaacs. Because all
of these properties are eligible for the National Register of Historic
Places, their reuse would qualify for federal rehabilitation tax incentives.
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Preserving two additional iconic buildings—one, a modernist Power Plant
(also by Gropius) that is visible from Lake Shore Drive, which would become
the focus of a public plaza connecting to the lakefront; the other, the
Prairie-style Michael Reese Building and its gateway bridge across 29th
Street.
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Re-introducing the historic street grid back into the 37-acre site, which
will provide sorely-needed connections to the surrounding neighborhood and
the lakefront.
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Construction of Olympic housing
that, while conforming to IOC standards, could better accommodate its
transition from an Olympic Village into a residential, urban neighborhood
after 2016. This would include future development of more than 3,000 parking
spaces, a connection to the existing 27th Street Metra line station, retail
spaces in strategic locations, and three pedestrian connections to the
lakefront.
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The Michael Reese Hospital
complex, which is currently listed on Landmarks Illinois’ “10
Most Endangered Historic Places” list, contains 29 buildings. The
main hospital building was designed by Schmidt, Garden & Martin in 1907
and is one of the city’s most significant early hospital designs,
combining what were modern design concepts with rich architectural
details. Recent research has revealed the design role and influence of
architect and Bauhaus School founder Walter Gropius on the post-World
War II expansion of the hospital campus.
In April 2009, city officials
released a Request for Qualifications to award demolition contracts. $11
million worth of demolition contracts were awarded in July 2009.
“The purpose of our efforts
behind this alternative plan is to show how the most viable historic
buildings on this campus can be saved and integrated into a successful
Olympic Village—before it’s too late,” said Peters.
This project has been funded
in part by a grant from the
National Trust
for Historic Preservation.
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