This is an interesting stretch of Ravenswood. Many of the industrial buildings have been converted into loft spaces, yoga studios, art centers, etc. Chicago has lost quite a bit of its industry in this way, at least in the more popular neighborhoods.
Anyway, I would see this strange quarter round greenhouse-like structure from the train and wonder what the heck it was. Only recently did I discover that it's now part of the Ravenswood Event Center. Need a dramatic wedding locale for 200 of your closest friends? This would be pretty cool. It also has a narrow outdoor area with a trellis, which extends for a good 30 feet (you can see part of it to the right of the roof).
Originally this building was owned by a printing company, and they used this space to make huge billboards, which were created by painters and artists who needed the 45' high ceiling and natural light. With the improvement of printing technology it became obsolete. According to the website all of the window frames are original.
I'm very curious as what a Preservation Planner would do?
ReplyDeleteGenerally, they help to implement and administer historic preservation ordinances for a village or city. Sometimes they can be historians, but more often they work on providing support to a preservation commission which decides which buildings should be landmarked and whether certain changes to landmarked buildings are appropriate. -Larry
ReplyDeleteThis was the FJ Littell [pronounced little] Machine Co.
ReplyDeleteThey make coils straightening machines which take a coil of steel plate & flatten it out to make stuff like washing machines. They were there for decades until the 1990s or so.
They've moved to Addison.