Landmarks Illinois has released its list of most endangered historic buildings in the state, and the shuttered Foley-Rice automobile showroom building on Madison Street made the list.
The planned demolition of the building made headlines earlier this year after the Oak Park Historic Preservation Commission voted to declare the building a historic landmark to save it from demolition.
The site, located at 644 Madison St., is slated for a Pete’s Fresh Market grocery store.
Despite the commission’s unanimous vote to preserve the building, the Oak Park Board of Trustees unanimously denied the landmark designation.
They did direct the developer of the project, Jupiter Realty, to work with architects to attempt to save the façade of the building – often referred to as a façade-ectomy. But the developer is not obligated to do so.
Landmark Illinois noted in its list of 12 “endangered buildings” that the dealership “was built in 1924-27 and remains one of the best preserved and most architecturally striking examples left from the time when Oak Park’s Madison Street was an automobile sales district.”
“Despite vocal protest from the community and recommendations for local landmarking from their own Historic Preservation Commission, Oak Park officials recently agreed to allow a developer to demolish the vacant building to make way for a new grocery store,” the advocacy group noted in its press release. “Locals continue to push for the historic building to be incorporated in the development.”
The other endangered buildings include:
- James R. Thompson Center, Chicago
- Sheffield National Register Historic District, Chicago
- Washington Park National Bank, Chicago
- St. Mary’s School, Galena
- Booth Cottage, Glencoe
- Hoover Estate, Glencoe
- Millstadt Milling & Feed Company, Millstadt
- Chancery and Piety Hill properties, Rockford
- Rock Island County Courthouse, Rock Island
- Ray House, Rushville
- Greek Housing at University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
More information about the most endangered buildings is available at www.landmarks.org/preservation-programs/most-endangered-historic-places-in-illinois.
tim@oakpark.com
