The monthly Landmarks Illinois News Roundup keeps you in the loop on the latest preservation news stories from the month as well as Landmarks Illinois’ main advocacy efforts, projects and announcements. You can also receive these monthly news roundups directly in your inbox by signing up for our newsletters at the bottom of the page.
August 2024 Preservation News Roundup
Meet the 2024 Preservation Award Winners
Landmarks Illinois has announced the winners of the 2024 Landmarks Illinois Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Preservation Awards, our annual program honoring exceptional preservation efforts across Illinois. This year, the program calls attention to rehabilitation and adaptive reuse projects in Alto Pass, Carterville, Chicago, Elgin, Rockford and Woodstock (all pictured above). The people behind these remarkable preservation projects will be honored at a public ceremony on October 18, 2024, in Chicago.
Learn more
GSA plans to reuse, not demolish, iconic Chicago skyscrapers
Landmarks Illinois issued a statement in response to the General Services Administration (GSA) selecting “Viable Adaptive Reuse” as the preferred path forward for the historically and architecturally significant Century and Consumers Buildings in Chicago. The positive news was widely reported. Landmarks Illinois has been a steadfast advocate for the reuse of the long-endangered buildings, at 202-220 S. State Street. Read about our years-long advocacy for the iconic skyscrapers and our thoughts on what this major decision means for Chicago.
Read our statement
Grant application deadline: October 1
Apply for a grant through Landmarks Illinois’ Preservation Heritage Fund and the Barbara C. and Thomas E. Donnelley II Preservation Fund for Illinois by October 1!
Each fund provides financial assistance to preserve or protect significant structures and sites in Illinois. Visit our website to learn more about qualifying projects for each grant fund and to submit an application.
(Pictured: The Project XV Museum in El Paso, Illinois, a 2023 and 2024 Preservation Heritage Fund grant recipient)
Apply for a grant
WE'RE HIRING!
Easement & Advocacy Associate
Landmarks Illinois seeks a communicative, organized and self-motivated individual to serve as Easement and Advocacy Associate. The objectives of this position are to administer Landmarks Illinois’ easement program and to provide frontline support to community advocates to save and reuse historic resources across Illinois.
Learn how to apply
LI brings together preservation partners in Shawnee National Forest
On August 22, Landmarks Illinois Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski and President & CEO Bonnie McDonald visited the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois to connect our partners Historicorps and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Historicorps is a national nonprofit that provides volunteers of all skill levels with hands-on experience preserving historic structures on public lands across America. In the Shawnee National Forest, Historicorps was repairing the 1930s-era Goose Bay Shelter on Lake Glendale near Dixon Springs, Illinois, on behalf of the U.S. Forest Service. Illinois Department of Natural Resources Assistant Director Todd Strole joined the group to see Historicorps’ hands-on work and learn more about how the nonprofit might assist with state-owned historic structures.
(Pictured clockwise from top: Representatives from Historicorps, U.S. Forest Service, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Landmarks Illinois outside the Goose Bay Shelter. A Historicorps volunteer works on removing historic mortar from the Goose Bay Shelter fireplace. Landmarks Illinois Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski reviews drawings of the restoration work on the shelter with (L-R) Camden Baker, U.S. Forest Service Archaeologist; Todd Strole, Illinois Department of Natural Resources Assistant Director; and Daniel Ensalaco, Historicorps Project Supervisor.)
Learn more about the Goose Bay ShelterMore from around the state...
Golconda
After visiting with DNR and Historicorps, Landmarks Illinois Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski traveled to downtown Golconda to meet with representatives of Main Street Golconda and the Pope County Historical Society. Adamowski consulted on ongoing efforts to preserve buildings Golconda’s historic downtown as well as the Buel House (pictured), a State Historic Site included on Landmarks Illinois’ 2024 Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois.
Albion
Landmarks Illinois Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski met with local advocates, officials and staff from the Greater Wabash Regional Planning Commission to discuss redevelopment plans for the historic Edwards County Jail and Sherriff’s residence in Albion. Though it has been vacant for decades, the 1859 structure is a mainstay of the town square adjacent to the Edwards County Courthouse. The redevelopment vision for the site includes community meeting space, offices for the Chamber of Commerce, a visitors center and exhibit space to interpret the history of the site.
Oak Park
Oak Park will not demolish its architecturally and historically significant Village Hall. Designed by famed Chicago architect Harry Weese and listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the village has decided it will restore and reuse the building. The move comes more than a year after the Oak Park Village Board proposed demolishing and rebuilding Village Hall. Landmarks Illinois joined Oak Park residents is voicing strong opposition to potential demolition. Read more here.
National News...
FORUM Conference
Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski attended the biennial conference, FORUM, developed and hosted by the National Alliance of Preservation Commission Conference in West Palm Beach, Florida. In addition to meeting with preservation advocates from around the country, Adamowski was the presenter for the session Historic Preservation Advocacy 101. Adamowski also attended the Midwest Community Development Institute training hosted by the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs. In addition to being an attendee, he was presented on the Rehabilitation of Historic Buildings, with a special focus on what communities can do to best situate themselves to leverage their historic and cultural resources.
Check out our Preservation Snapshots fall lineup!
We kick off our fall series of Preservation Snapshots presentations next month. Join us each month September-November for engaging virtual discussions with preservation thought leaders. All presentations are virtually held over Zoom. Learn more here.
"The Boss and the Bulldozer Producer Stacy Robinson"
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
12-1 P.M.
Stacy Robinson of Kartemquin Films will talk about her documentary, “The Boss and the Bulldozer,” which focuses on how Mayor Richard J. Daley’s plans for urban renewal led to the displacement of thousands of Chicagoans.
Register
"Sandra Steinbrecher and The Salt Shed"
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10
12-1 P.M.
Documentary photographer Sandra Steinbrecher shares insights about her experience documenting the rehabilitation of the historic Morton Salt Factory, detailed in her forthcoming book, The Salt Shed.
"Al Watts and the Alexander Bros. Blacksmith Shop in Geneva, IL"
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12
12-1 P.M.
Al Watts from Preservation Partners of Fox Valley will discuss ongoing preservation efforts for the historic and endangered Alexander Brothers Blacksmith Shop in Geneva.
Register
LI attends reception celebrating the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party
Landmarks Illinois President & CEO Bonnie McDonald, Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski and Board Member Sandra Rand attended an opening reception on August 7 for the exhibit, “Preserving the Heritage of the Black Panther Party in Illinois,” put on by Historical Preservation Society (HPS) of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party at Epiphany Center for the Arts in Chicago.
Leila Wills is the executive director of the Historical Preservation Society of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party and also serves as Landmarks Illinois’ Programs Manager. Wills spearheaded the multi-year effort to gain national recognition for sites associated with the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party. Last December, her efforts proved successful when the National Park Service approved a thematic listing for the Black Panther Party in Illinois in the National Register of Historic Places.
The HPS is now working to create and place historical markers at more than a dozen sites across Chicago associated with the Black Panther Party. The first plaque was unveiled at the August event. Among the sites set to receive a plaque is Epiphany Center for the Arts, formerly known as the People’s Church, where the Black Panther Party held many meetings and rallies. A grant from Landmarks Illinois’ Timuel D. Black Jr. Grant Fund for Chicago’s South Side provided funding for one of the HPS’ historical markers.
(Credit: Historical Preservation Society of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party)
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LI speaks at court hearing for endangered Portage Theatre
The Portage Park Theatre, included in the 2024 list of the Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois, had an initial hearing in the City of Chicago’s building court on August 1. The complaint cited masonry work done without a permit and failure to maintain the building in structurally sound condition. Landmarks Illinois Advocacy Manager Kendra Parzen made a statement offering Landmarks Illinois’s support to preserve the theater and navigate the historic preservation requirements that apply due to its designation as a City of Chicago Landmark. A follow-up hearing is scheduled for September 5 at 10 am.
Learn more about the Portage Theatre
Preservation-minded buyer sought for Midcentury Modern Scotts Foresman campus in Glenview
The former Scott Foresman Headquarters complex in Glenview is for sale, presenting a unique opportunity for adaptive reuse. The Midcentury Modern corporate campus, once home to the thriving publishing company, was designed by Perkins & Will and built in 1966. Since 2020, however, the property has been vacant. Despite its architectural significance, it does not have any landmark protection.
In 2021, potential foreclosure and the demolition of the existing buildings led Landmarks Illinois to list the campus on our Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois. At the time, the property was being marketed for single-family residential development. After a failed redevelopment attempt, the campus went back on the market in October 2023. Like many other suburban architecturally significant former corporate campuses, the Scott Foresman complex is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. Such a designation would provide access to the federal historic tax credit for rehabilitation and reuse — a path Landmarks Illinois continues to advocate for. If you know of a potential preservation-minded buyer for this property, please share the listing at the link below with them.
View the listing
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Top social media posts of the month
Our Instagram post on August 3 celebrated the news that the GSA would aim to reuse the Century & Consumers Buildings in Chicago, rather than demolish them. We issued a statement on this positive preservation news later this month.
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