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A Reuse Plan for Cook County Hospital pdf |
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National Trust for Historic Preservation
PreservationNation blog
March 16, 2010 |
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Chicago Tonight March 4, 2010 |
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Chicago Journal March 3, 2010 |
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Chicago Tribune March 3, 2010 |
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Chicago Tribune Editorial
March 3, 2010 |
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Chicago Tribune
Blair Kamin blog
March 2, 2010 |
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Chicago Tribune
Clout Street blog
March 2, 2010 |
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Lee Bey’s Chicago
March 2, 2010 |
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Medill Reports
March 2, 2010 |
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Chicago
Sun-Times
March 2, 2010 |
Detail, Old Cook County Hospital. Credit:
Courtesy of Antunovich Associates
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Old Cook County
Hospital
1900 West Harrison Street, Chicago
Update
The Cook
County Office of Capital Planning and Policy released a
Request for Qualifications for architectural and
engineering services for the rehabilitation of Old Cook
County Hospital, as well as neighboring Pasteur Park in
July 2010. However, with the change in of administration
to the Cook County Board in late 2010 the contract was
never awarded.
Background
The Cook County Hospital two-block-long structure,
dating to 1913-16, was designed by Paul Gerhardt and
Richard Schmidt. In addition to its impressive Beaux
Arts-style façade, with three-story, fluted Ionic
columns, the hospital provided health care for
generations of poor and immigrant populations, while
playing a key role in the advancement of trauma and burn
units, the diagnosis of sickle cell anemia, indigent
care, AIDS treatment, and the country’s first blood
bank. A quote from Pasteur is inscribed on the
hospital's stone wall; "One doesn't ask of one who
suffers: What is your country and what is your religion?
One merely says, You suffer. That is enough for me. You
belong to me and I shall help you."
However, in 2001, as an adjacent replacement hospital
was being constructed, the future of the vacant hospital
was in doubt. To draw attention to the threat, Landmarks
Illinois (LI) placed the building on its list of the
Ten Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois.
Subsequently, it was also listed on LI’s “Ten Most” for
2003, 2004, and on its 2002 Chicagoland Watch List.
With urging from supportive County Board members, LI
released a study in 2003 that demonstrated more
cost-effective alternatives to demolition. This
reuse plan, which was developed—pro bono—by
LI board member and architect Joe Antunovich, proved
critical in helping to delay demolition. Meanwhile,
other groups joined the advocacy effort, including
Preservation Chicago and the National Trust for Historic
Preservation, which listed the building as one of
America’s 11 Most Endangered Places in 2004.
Proposed Cook County Hospital 1st Floor Site Plan, Antunovich Associates
A subsequent county-commissioned study found the
building to be structurally sound and viable for reuse,
but it concluded by recommending demolition of the old
hospital and replacement with a new medical office
building. Several county board members continued to
delay a demolition approval and the building was
successfully listed on the National Register of Historic
Places in 2006. With this designation in place,
advocates continued to press for rehabilitation,
emphasizing the potential use of federal tax credits.
Finally, in 2009, the county released a new consultant
study that demonstrated how the old hospital could be
converted into medical office space. Armed with this
study, as well as facts on other successful hospital
reuse projects, Landmarks Illinois met with the
building’s proposed tenant (the Health and Hospital
Board) and each County Board member, in order to answer
questions about the reuse scheme.
On March 2, 2010 the Cook County Board of Commissioners
voted unanimously to relocate the county’s health
system’s administrative and medical offices into the Old
Cook County Hospital building on Chicago’s Near West
Side. The County Board agreed to finance the proposed
$108 million reuse project, contingent on securing up to
$25 million from the City of Chicago through an existing
tax increment financing district.
Cook County Hospital c. 1914. Credit: Courtesy of Antunovich
Associates
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