Landmarked buildings in Chicago are protected from demolition and significant alteration, with the Commission on Chicago Landmarks reviewing each proposed change to the building’s exterior.
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“That letter met with hundreds of responses in support of landmark proceedings over a one-month response period,” said his chief of staff, Madeleine Doering.
(Left) Madeline Doering (center) with 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly (right) and a constituent at the “State of the Ward” address at Palmer House in downtown Chicago on November 15, 2011. |
On August 12, 2008, Reilly again wrote to residents, telling them he has invested “a significant amount of time and effort exploring the possibility” of landmark designation for Marina City, which he called “architect Bertrand Goldberg’s world-renowned 1959 vision.”
“I am officially initiating the formal city landmark designation process in order to protect Marina City’s architectural integrity for the future and to secure its well-deserved status as an official Chicago Landmark,” wrote Reilly. “As Marina City continues to flourish as a dynamic urban center, official landmark designation will ensure that all stakeholders in the Marina City complex will be held to a common standard that will protect the architectural integrity of the complex and benefit the entire community.”
At the same time residents were getting a letter from Reilly, commercial tenants at Marina City were getting one, too. That resulted, said the alderman, in just two telephone calls – from House of Blues and Hotel Sax. Reilly explained to them that their current space is “grandfathered in” if landmark designation is granted.
“Obviously, that calmed people down,” he said on September 22.
Landmark push followed organized effort to stop Dick’s Last Resort
Following a failed attempt to block Dick’s Last Resort from moving its restaurant/bar to Marina City, a renewed effort to seek official landmark status was led by officers of Marina Towers Condominium Association, despite a 2003 agreement with commercial owners that prohibited MTCA from supporting landmark designation of Marina City.
The organization behind the drive for landmark status, Landmark Marina City Now, had a website, the domain of which had been registered by MTCA secretary Ellen Chessick. According to public records with the Secretary of State, Landmark Marina City Now was incorporated by Waveney G. Cameron, who worked in the same building and on the same floor as MTCA president Donna Leonard.
Two months before the landmarking process started, about 50 people, mostly unit owners at Marina City, gathered to hear advice from Lisa DiChiera, Advocacy Director of Landmarks Illinois, and two other experts who agreed that although the financial benefits of landmarking were dubious, it would give residents more control over how the complex looked.
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“Clearly, you have a unique building in the city of Chicago,” said T. Gunny Harboe (left), an architect whose firm specializes in historic preservation, at the June 16 meeting. “It is a landmark by the real meaning of the word. Everyone knows it’s important to the city. It’s a travesty that it’s not officially recognized as an official City of Chicago landmark.” |
DiChiera told unit owners landmark designation might even lower the value of their property but there was always going to be a buyer.
“In the case of a complex like Marina City, you’re one of the most prominent, sought-after buildings in downtown Chicago, and market values will always remain valuable,” said DiChiera.
She said to expect public hearings and then final approval by the City Council but warned landmark designation “often can be a very political process.”
On April 8, 2009, eight months after it was announced that the formal process for landmarking Marina City had started, the request was still under review by the Landmarks Division of the Department of Planning and Development. The proposal had not been before the Commission on Chicago Landmarks – on the agenda of any public hearing – and there had been no public comment.
There was no change in the proposal’s status for the next six years.
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