Real Estate
Renovations Likely for Former Milwaukee Avenue Department Store
A proposed renovation along the Milwaukee Avenue Landmark District could draw more retail businesses to the area.
Wicker Park's retail landscape is slated to get a major face lift if everything goes according to plan.
Centrum Partners LLC plans to renovate the exterior of the former Wieboldt's Department Store building, 1275 N. Milwaukee Ave., in an attempt to draw more retail leasing to the area, according to a Chicago Real Estate Daily report.
The Commission on Chicago Landmarks reviewed a proposal for the renovations and approved the work at a Jan. 10 meeting, according to Peter Strazzabosco, deputy commissioner of the city's Department of Housing and Economic Development.
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In the agenda for that meeting, the staff recommendation stated that "the project will not have an adverse effect on the significant historical and architectural features of the landmark district."
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While the building itself is not designated or protected as a city landmark, the developers still had to get city approval for the work because of its location in the Milwaukee Avenue Landmark District.
The conditions for the approval laid out in the Landmark Commission meeting agenda stipulated that the building's brick exterior could be stripped and repainted to match its original color and that the terra cotta ornamentation could be repaired as needed and left exposed. The agenda also specified that all storefront windows must have clear vision glass.
Other planned renovations include the removal of synthetic and metal cladding along the building's base, according to the Chicago Real Estate Daily report. Seventeen-foot ground-floor storefronts designed to resemble the department store's original look are also planned.
According to the report, Centrum acquired the building in December 2011 when it purchased the West Town Shopping Center as part of a $33 million deal.
The acquisition also included the nearby space currently leased to Kmart and Jewel-Osco, as well as the parking lot those businesses share, which includes 624 spaces.