The former Sears Administration building and the surrounding land in North Lawndale are up for sale.
The building, deemed a historic landmark by the City of Chicago, sits on the 3000 block of West Arthington Avenue. It was bought by Indiana-based developers in 2018 for $3.25 million and encompasses almost one million square feet.
The properties being sold include the Administration Building, the former Allstate Headquarters, a parking area, and vacant land. The developers, Royal Pine Properties, then hope to redevelop the buildings and convert them into housing. The buildings on the campus were built by the architecture firm Nimmons & Fellows and were designed in a classical style. Thankfully, these buildings still retain their classical design, including the windows and decorative stone detailing. Due to its designation as a historic landmark, the original facade of the buildings has to be preserved.
The History of the Property
The buildings, which were constructed between 1905 and 1907, were the original world headquarters of Sears, Roebuck, and Company. The department store conglomerate’s 55-acre property in Homan Square included the company’s former Administration Building, Printing/Merchandise Development and Laboratory Building, Merchandise Building Tower, and Power House. Moreover, this historic district also includes a park built for residents of the area and company employees.
Sears was founded in 1894 in Chicago as a mail-order company. After this, they quickly rose to be the largest retailer in the entire world during the 1960s. The campus boasted as many as 22,000 employees in its heyday, many of whom were residents of North Lawndale and the surrounding neighborhoods. Moreover, the campus even featured a “sunken garden” in front of the administration building that still exists to this day. Sears ran its mail-order business out of North Lawndale for seven decades, whose influence spanned far more than the mail-order system.
Sears’ Influence
The sheer number of orders from Sears led to the creation of the largest post office in the entire world being built in the South Loop. The Old Main Post Office, built in 1921, was reportedly able to move 19 million letters in a single day. Furthermore, the need for efficiency in mailing also led to the creation of elevator brakes that could slow elevators to a stop at faster speeds; similar brakes to what is now seen in the elevators of tall buildings today.
Reinvestment
The moving of Sears from North Lawndale to the Loop caused a loss of investment in the community. Due to this, community activists have been working since 1988, when Sears Company Chairman Ed Brennan approached developers about making new use of the campus. Due to this the creation of The Foundation for Homan Square was created. This is an organization that oversees the development of the campus for the betterment of the community.
This is not the first of the Sears buildings that has been redeveloped for use by the community. For example, a 14-story tower formerly owned by the company was turned into a community center in 2015. The tower, renamed Nicols Tower, is now home to nonprofits like The School of the Art Institute Chicago, UCAN, and the North Lawndale Employment Network.
The Chicago-based real estate company facilitating the sale of the property is SVN Chicago Property Management. They hope to bring investment into the community by developing homes and businesses on the property.
The purchase of the property will create use out of the vacant buildings lining Arthington Avenue while still maintaining the rich history of the buildings and the campus.
Written by Caroline Buehler
Sources:
Block Club Chicago: Historic Former Sears Building On West Side Is Up For Sale by Trey Arline
Chicago.gov: Sears, Roebuck & Co.’s Former West Side Headquarters Confirmed as Landmark District
HomanSquare.org: History
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of JeepersMedia Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of The West End Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
