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Old 11-30-2007, 01:17 PM
 
Location: Oak Park, IL
5,523 posts, read 13,891,437 times
Reputation: 3906

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I'm curious about the experiences and opinions of other suburbanites regarding changes in their historic downtown areas.

In Oak Park we've had a few years of bruising battles over the future of our downtown area. After much controversy, Marion St, was reconverted to auto traffic from the pedestrial mall it has been for about 30 years. New construction, both completed and proposed, have been criticized as out of character with existing structures. Proposals to tear down old, arguably obsolete buildings and replace with modern offices/retail are attacked as the "Schaumburgization" of Oak Park.

I've only lived here for 2 years, so I don't have a good sense exactly what things were like years ago, but it seems that the desire to preserve has gotten out of control.

Are other towns fighting over these same issues?
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Old 11-30-2007, 06:22 PM
 
Location: Chicago, Tri-Taylor
5,014 posts, read 9,396,381 times
Reputation: 3987
Berwyn recently had a big brawl over the fate of the First National Bank building at the corner of Oak Park and Cermak, which the City has owned for many years. The development corporation proposed to accept all bidders, including those who would take it down. The Historical Society took exception and insisted that the City condition any redevelopment agreement on the restoration of the Bank structure. Such a developer ultimately bid and was selected but it was a difficult process because of the huge expense which will be associated with its restoration, the question marks surrounding its condition (it’s been vacant for decades), and its somewhat limited uses.

A lot of good development opportunities were probably passed up in order to save the Bank. It will be nice if the present developer comes through but who knows? A lot of cynics are waiting for the other shoe to drop once everyone learns what it will actually take to save the thing.

If it can be saved, great. It'll be a gold star for the City. But if that’s unfeasible, a project of some kind has to move forward. I generally believe that attracting a higher income demographic will lead to most efficient restoration and preservation of an inner-ring suburb’s most important historical assets – its homes. So I’d sacrifice a building like the Bank for a really good development because I know I’d be saving more historic assets than I’d be losing at the end of the day, if that makes sense. If it stays vacant, it simply becomes blight (a line that this building probably crossed about 20 years ago). That doesn’t help anyone.

It has to be a balance. Preservationists have to see the big picture and developers have to understand that a community’s historic assets have value which may not necessarily be reflected on a balance sheet. It’s a hard line to walk.

And don’t even get me started on the Spindle…..
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Old 11-30-2007, 08:22 PM
 
2,329 posts, read 6,608,012 times
Reputation: 1811
Quote:
Originally Posted by BRU67 View Post
Berwyn recently had a big brawl over the fate of the First National Bank building at the corner of Oak Park and Cermak, which the City has owned for many years. The development corporation proposed to accept all bidders, including those who would take it down. The Historical Society took exception and insisted that the City condition any redevelopment agreement on the restoration of the Bank structure. Such a developer ultimately bid and was selected but it was a difficult process because of the huge expense which will be associated with its restoration, the question marks surrounding its condition (it’s been vacant for decades), and its somewhat limited uses.

A lot of good development opportunities were probably passed up in order to save the Bank. It will be nice if the present developer comes through but who knows? A lot of cynics are waiting for the other shoe to drop once everyone learns what it will actually take to save the thing.

If it can be saved, great. It'll be a gold star for the City. But if that’s unfeasible, a project of some kind has to move forward. I generally believe that attracting a higher income demographic will lead to most efficient restoration and preservation of an inner-ring suburb’s most important historical assets – its homes. So I’d sacrifice a building like the Bank for a really good development because I know I’d be saving more historic assets than I’d be losing at the end of the day, if that makes sense. If it stays vacant, it simply becomes blight (a line that this building probably crossed about 20 years ago). That doesn’t help anyone.

It has to be a balance. Preservationists have to see the big picture and developers have to understand that a community’s historic assets have value which may not necessarily be reflected on a balance sheet. It’s a hard line to walk.

And don’t even get me started on the Spindle…..
that buildings been vacant since I was a kid. theres a good blog that was written about the that building a few years back here
Gapers Block : Detour : Berwyn's Bank Building Battle

I know the city held a competition for the redevelopment, and the architect who oversaw the restoration of the Carson Pirie Scott building downtown was chosen. But I havent really heard anything since then...
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Old 12-01-2007, 10:17 PM
 
Location: Oak Park, IL
5,523 posts, read 13,891,437 times
Reputation: 3906
Sounds like the story of the Colt building on Lake St in downtown Oak Park. Arguably historic, but definitely run down and in need of significant ($$$) renovation, there was/is a vocal group of Oak Parkers in favor of preservation of this building regardless of the expense. The village board requested proposals from developers (stipulating building preservation) and all the proposals submitted required a subsidy from the village to be economically viable. Luckily, a new village board came to power and requested new proposals (building preservation not mandatory) and all the new proposals submitted involve teardown of the Colt building with mixed-used new construction in its place. Thus, the complaints about "Schaumburgization".

From what I've see of Schaumburg, unless the entire Oak Park downtown is leveled and turned into a parking lot, there's not going to be much resemblance, even with a few shiny new buildings.
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