Ad agency Schafer Condon Carter (SCC) purchased 1027 W Madison Street in foreclosure at the end of 2010 with the vision to make the abandoned structure their new headquarters. Built in 1872, just a year after The Fire, the four-story Italianate loft building with a delicate sandstone facade and patterned window ornament was rescued from 20 years of vacancy with the help of Chicago historic landmark tax credits. Known as the Holden Block, after Charles C.P. Holden, 19th century real estate developer and City Council President, the speculative development brought major post-fire commercial space to the "hobohemian" district (known as such for the high number of transient workers that converged on the rail lines).
According to SCC, the structure drew them in partly because it has the height of a seven-story building with just four stories. The rows of slender windows alone reach heights of up to 10'. As you can see, that asset was in sorry shape when work began. The company's 30,000-square-foot space maintains open floors in deference to the company's relatively 'flat' organization. "We aren't into pecking order", proclaims SCC President David Selby. The planning and rehab took over a year, and is just about finished. Enough to allow for this dramatic before-and-after pairing. A tip of the hat to reader and Skyscraper Page denizen Buckman821 and regular Curbed flickr pool contributor Seth Anderson for the photos.
·Holden Block [City of Chicago]
·Holden Block designated a Chicago landmark [UrbDeZine]
·Official Site: Schafer Condon Carter
Loading comments...