Thanks
to Susan Olin for kindly contributing a great piece that places
Sheridan Road in Rogers Park in its proper historical and
architectural context.
The
Virtues of Sheridan Road and the Rogers Park Lakefront
By
Susan Olin— In 2009-2010, I was a member of the Rogers Park
Business Alliance’s “Sheridan Road Planning Committee” and
since then I have been researching and writing about Sheridan Road in
Rogers Park to raise awareness of its many virtues.
The
Rogers Park Lakefront, and its companion promenade, Sheridan Road,
make up one of the few areas on the lake in Chicago that have not
undergone major reconstruction (i.e. Lake Shore Drive landfill) or
major development (Edgewater high-rises). Thus, this area in Chicago
is still a charming, approachable, urban lakefront. Due to its
original boulevard design and later legal protections, Sheridan Road
in Rogers Park and the lakefront here are low-rise, residential and
beautiful. Every city in the world would love to have such a walkable
street and such lovely lakefront space. So why should we destroy ours
in Chicago with over-development and over-commercialization by
constructing enormous parking garages on the lake? More . . .
Sheridan
Road and the Lakefront in Rogers Park are low-rise, residential and
beautiful--
Sheridan
Road in Rogers Park was laid out over 100 years ago as a grand
lakefront boulevard and it is still just that. Anyone who walks
Sheridan Road (Devon to Evanston) can see its many beautiful
features. Sheridan Road was designed in the 1880’s in the great
tradition of other Chicago boulevards and “pleasure routes” of
that time. These wide, low-rise avenues provided air and light and
were adorned with greenery for scenic travel (before the invention of
the automobile). These gracious boulevards were an antidote to the
city’s narrow, dark, grimy streets. Also, unlike most city streets
of that era, these routes were paved, enabling optimal use by horse
carriages, pedestrians and the newly-invented bicycle.
It
is not by accident, it is due to its original boulevard design . . .
Thus,
Sheridan Road was designed to be the showcase boulevard along the
lakefront in Chicago and up to Wisconsin. When you walk Sheridan Road
in Rogers Park today you see this original design. The street is very
wide. It has tree-lined parkways next to the sidewalks. It is
primarily residential and low-rise. It has many of its original
high-quality vintage buildings from the 1910’s, 20’s and 30’s.
Because this was high-end real estate, the lots and set-backs for
these original buildings are very large and provide large green
spaces.
Many
of these vintage residential buildings have small commercial spaces
on the first floor for quaint cafes or shops, appealing for the
pedestrian. Because of the low-rise architecture, when walking down
Sheridan Road here, you have air and light and can feel a lake
breeze. You can see the lake at every street-end and you can easily
walk one block to the lakefront park. This all adds up to a
wonderful, walkable lakefront promenade and lakefront space in the
city. Indeed, this corridor is easily accessible by anyone in the
city via the Red Line “el” train and “151 Sheridan Road” bus.
A
commercial 250-car tower on the lake would destroy the green,
walkable, and residential character of Sheridan Road and the
lakefront here. Its density of traffic is not safe for pedestrians
and such a large car garage creates an enormous amount of pollution
in our protected lakefront park. Moreover, a parking garage of this
scale creates a physical and psychological barrier to the natural and
beautiful space that is the lakefront.
As
a side note about Sheridan Road, there are several large nursing
homes and “4+1” multi-unit buildings, but if you walk the length
of the street, (Devon to Evanston) you will see that many of the
buildings are lovely vintage buildings with large, green setbacks
(see my photography survey of Sheridan Road architecture).
As
often heard, it is true that Sheridan Road in Rogers Park was once
lined with mansions like the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Bach home,
the Shambala Center mansion and the Wheeler mansion on the Loyola
campus, now known as “Piper Hall”. In fact, you can see many of
these remarkable Sheridan Road luxury homes in the “must-see”
1910 “Book
of the North Shore”. Notably, the
Shambala Center building (c. 1917) is the last remaining 1900’s
mansion south of Jarvis on Sheridan Road in Rogers Park. Sadly, all
the others have been torn down over the past decades.
.
. . and due to later legal protections--
The
fact that Sheridan Road and the Lakefront here are still charming is
not by accident. On the heels of the high-rise “canyonization” of
Edgewater, the city of Chicago enacted the “Lakefront
ProtectionOrdinance” in 1972. The stated intent of the
Ordinance is “the protection and preservation” of the “special
environmental, recreational, cultural, historical, community, and
aesthetic interests and values” of Lake Michigan and the Chicago
Lakefront (§16-4-020).
This law was intended to provide an extra layer of review by the city
to guard against the whims of developers and local wards for
development that is too large or too commercial and incompatible with
accessible, environmentally-sound, lakefront space.
Moreover,
in 1990, the 49th Ward
of Rogers Park instituted the “Sheridan Road Plan” which
down-zoned portions of the street. The stated intent of this Plan was
to preserve the “residential character” and the
“low-rise vista” of Sheridan Road in Rogers Park. Therefore,
we have many people to thank over the past century for this
exceptional lakefront in Rogers Park.
A
lakefront and lakefront street like this is what every city wants--
Studies
show that cities with walkable, green corridors and readily
accessible park space are happier, healthier cities (see the New York
Times bestselling book Thrive:
The Blue Zone Way) Historic
architecture enhances these thoroughfares even more. Sheridan Road in
Rogers Park is just that-- a walkable, green corridor with historic
architecture connecting people to the lakefront. A corridor like this
is what every urban design planner and every city in the world wants
and Chicago has it!
We
should not ruin it with developments like enormous commercial car
garage--
So
why should we throw away this important lakefront corridor with
over-development and over-commercialization turning it into just
another exhaust-filled, cheesy, highway strip with massive parking
garages? Is this the best we can do for our unique-in-the world
lakefront? I do not think so. In response to Col. Pritzker/Tawani’s
proposed 250-car tower several hundred feet from the lake at Sherwin
and Sheridan, I say: “Don’t do it on the Lake!” We do not want
the Rogers Park Lakefront to become “Rogers Park-ing Lot”.
