A plan to preserve one of Chicago’s most rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods ended in failure when it could not generate community support.
The Pilsen neighborhood, home to Eastern European immigrants in the 19th century and later to newcomers from Mexico, includes ornate “Bohemian Baroque” buildings with brilliant murals expressing the area’s Mexican heritage. The city proposed establishing a historic district to protect more than 850 buildings in Pilsen, but was not able to assuage concerns from neighborhood residents.
The historic district was a part of a larger preservation strategy that included housing supports, economic development measures, park space, and more. Other than some financial support, though, the other measures stalled, prompting suspicion in the neighborhood.
Residents strongly opposed the strategy, fearing that landmarking would not provide relief from displacement and gentrification. Part of the problem: design guidelines on how historic building elements had to be maintained according to the district’s standards were never completed and the city could not present a good estimation on the costs of building repairs nor on the value of incentives that would be available to make repairs.
An important lesson for preservationists is the need to partner with more community development organizations, social justice organizations, housing developers, and planners.
Related Stories
| Apr 13, 2012
New York City’s building department investigating structural collapse that killed worker
Following a worker’s death, the collapse of a century-old, two-story warehouse under demolition as part of Columbia University’s expansion is under investigation by the city’s Building Department.
| Apr 13, 2012
Federal court reduces statute of limitations for OSHA action on record-keeping violations
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit sharply curtailed the period of time that companies can be cited for Occupational Safety and Health reporting violations, reversing the decision of an administrative panel and longstanding agency precedent.
| Apr 13, 2012
CSI webinar: Green Construction Codes Are Here -- Now What?
This seminar will trace the origins of green codes, how they compare and differ from the rating systems that have been used, and examine some of their main features.
| Apr 5, 2012
Retailers, banks among most affected by new ADA rules
On March 15, the most significant changes to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) since it became law in 1991 went into effect.
| Apr 5, 2012
Florida ranks first in hurricane building codes and enforcement
Florida ranks highest among 18 hurricane-region states for building codes and their enforcement, according to the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety.
| Apr 5, 2012
New IgCC green building code is a ‘game changer,’ AIA official says
An AIA official calls the new International Green Construction Code (IgCC) a “game changer” for sustainable construction.
| Apr 5, 2012
Model energy codes add thousands to cost of new apartment construction, study says
New energy codes could add thousands of dollars to the construction costs of each individual apartment residence in a multifamily building, according to new research commissioned by the National Multi-Housing Council and the National Apartment Association.
| Apr 5, 2012
LEED 2012 will include new requirements for data centers
The U.S. Green Building Council’s updated LEED 2012 standards will require two systems to be modeled for each project in order to show power utilization effectiveness.
