Remember the flap about the Lake Shore Athletic Club? Fifield Companies‘ proposal to tear it down and build luxury condos on the site sparked protests, including one last June in which preservationists dressed up like Olympic athletes. Now fans of the 1920s-era structure, designed by Jarvis Hunt, can breathe a sigh of relief. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Northbrook-based Integrated Development Group LLC is in a deal to buy the building and convert it to upscale senior housing.
Lucien Lagrange, who was slated to design Fifield’s condo project, can’t be pleased. In a conversation with Yo back in July, he gave his views on the Lake Shore Athletic Club, located at 850 N Lake Shore Dr. He didn’t mince words:
“I think it’s the ugliest building on the street…it has small windows. It’s not elegant. The façade is not elegant. It looks like a prison. You drive by and say, ‘what’s going on in there?’
“There’s nothing you can do with this building. You know, racquetball, swimming pool, gymnasium, you know, it’s a health club. Nothing you can do with it…tear it down and put something beautiful there.”
Booth Hansen Associates will oversee the renovation of the new senior building and reportedly won’t make any major changes to the facade. It appears as though the swimming pool won’t make it – too bad. Given some careful restoration, it might turn out almost as cool as the pool in the InterContinental Chicago.
Ah yes, tear down that “ugly” historic building and replace it with another overpriced, under-designed monstrosity.
Sometimes there’s God so quickly.
Happy Holidays, everyone!
LaGrange calling a building ugly is akin to Daley calling a politico corrupt. It’s not the best example of preservation in action, but as long as Euro – Trash Boy doesn’t get his meaty hands on it, fine by me.
And Lucien will be remembered in Chicago for what? Oh, that’s right, he won’t be remembered. The day he retires will be a good day for Chicago’s architecture community.
Lucien is correct, IT IS UGLY!!!!!! Almost anything would look better than whats there now. Its simply not worth saving. We must applaud our new NIMBY alderman for his work on this one! I am sure our frineds in Streeterville are on there knees bowing in front of the alderman.
P.S. id rather be Euro trash than white trash! They still have better taste!!!
I dislike the architecture of Lucien LaGrange more than the average person… But to be fair, Lucien is not “Euro-trash”. He’s French Canadian, afterall
Anon I like to think Lucien will be remembered for 65 E. Goethe, perhaps XO. The day Lucien retires will be a sad day for Chicago, because then we will get more crap from firms like SCB, Joel Carlins, etc. LUCIEN I LOVE YOU DUDE!!!
Interesting Ryan; Democracy at work, yet only you and Lucien are correct. What next, you are going to tell us tearing down a building, and putting up a new one in it’s place is ‘Green’? French Canadian’s, is that like “Illinois Nazi’s”?
L.L. is also responsible for the forthcoming upscale project to be built on the old Columbus Hospital site. I attended a brokers’ preview and was rather impressed…what about the rest of you?
I normally stay out of discussions on architecture, but am jumping into this one because I can’t make any sense out of the venom that some people direct toward Lucien Lagrange.
LL’s Erie on the Park, down the street from our office, is a great-looking modernist building. Ditto for X/O.
I’d agree with Local Realtor that the design for 2520 Lincoln Park West is exactly the right one for that site.
I don’t believe Lagrange actually designed Erie on the Park – one of his employees did.
Another thing about Erie on the Park is that it’s steel framed which is rare these days. LL was directed by the developer to make it steel because he had a deal lined up to buy it cheap. So the developer dictated the material, an employee did the entire design work, and LL gets to pretend that he’s versatile.
Get real, Joe. XO hasn’t even broken ground and Eerie on the Park is the black sheep in a portfolio of Elysians and Park Towers. The sheer volume and scale of those projects deserve all the venom that can be thrown their way.
And 2520 Lincoln Park West? You can’t be serious.
CG,
If, in saying I can’t be serious, you’re calling attention to my misstatement of the address, then I agree with you. I meant 2520 Lakeview.
If you’re telling me I can’t like what I like, then you can’t be serious. But you are serious, and apparently find Lagrange’s success very grating.
The only reason LaGrange has in justifying the Athletic Club as “the ugliest building on the street” is because one of his buildings is not on that same sreet.
LaGrange is a very negative force in Chicago architecture. Until he starts producing real work, he honestly doesn’t have the right to criticise even Chicago’s ugliest buildings. Quite frankly, many projects form his portfolio fall into that category.