Veteran Chicago architect Pat FitzGerald, whose company, FitzGerald Associates Architects, has converted numerous industrial buildings into lofts, urges any prospective loft buyer to rent a unit before diving into the market. See if you like partial-height bedroom walls or if you think they don’t offer you enough privacy, he says. See if you are prepared to put up with some of the quirks that come with living in an old building, he adds.
FitzGerald says some loft buyers are quick to point the finger at developers when they notice problems in their buildings, but forget that no matter how much the structure has been rehabbed, it’s not new construction. It’s essentially an old building and things will go wrong. Old masonry and timber buildings move more than newer construction, so cracks are more likely to develop in the drywall, FitzGerald says. The brick walls of loft buildings are more likely than new construction to retain moisture which can turn into a white powdery substance, he says. (FitzGerald suggests spraying the walls with white vinegar then washing them.) The aisles between the parking spaces and the ramps of the parking lot may be smaller than what you might like, because the developer has to work with the space he has, he notes.
The good news? The quality of loft conversions in Chicago has improved dramatically since the 1980s, according to FitzGerald, who is currently converting a warehouse into a loft building at 2100, a South Loop development that combines a loft building with an adjacent new-construction high-rise. “When we first started lofts, they were done on small budgets, and old roofs, old elevators were retained. Now they are routinely replaced. Fire- control systems are more sophisticated. Buyers have become more demanding, developers have become more attuned to the risks and architects have become more insightful about what methods of construction resolve problems.”