Century Mall's Historic Facade Could Stay, Alderman Says

Neighbors spoke and Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) listened: developers behind the Century Shopping Centre might not rip down the building’s historic façade after all. 

The 170,000-square-foot shopping center at 2828 N. Clark St. was sold in 2011 for $18.5 million to Bon Aviv Investments, a venture with two Israel-based backers. Now both an overhaul of the mall and the Century Cinema are on the books.

In May, Tunney said part of that redevelopment included tearing off the intricate terracotta to make room for more windows, but now his Director of Communications Erin Duffy says that might change.

“Alderman Tunney spoke with the property manager, and at his request, they’re looking at ways to maintain the façade while also allowing for new opportunities in the building,” Duffy said. “I know they promised to get back to us in a few weeks. The alderman says he looks forward to continue to work with them.”

Duffy added that the Century Shopping Centre is not a Chicago landmarked property, nor is it categorized as “Orange,” meaning it has some sort of architectural feature or historical significance. About 9,600 properties in the city are marked as “Orange,” according to the City of Chicago. 

“It leaves the city with very few options as far as enforcing the preservation,” Duffy said.

The change of heart comes after a general backlash from neighborhood residents in an attempt to preserve the historic-looking structure. Patch readers sounded off in the comments when news broke expressing their disapproval of the developer’s plan.

“Unconscionable and truly short-sited decision by the developer,” wrote Adam Rosa. “This will be a tremendous loss for the neighborhood and the city.”

“Just a shame,” wrote reader Lollys Figlo. “If we wanted the cookie cutter look of the suburbs, we would live in the suburbs.”

What the new plans will have in store will be most likely revealed at the next South East Lake View Neighbors meeting in July.