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Walking Tour Group Will Detour to Bridgeport

By Casey Cora | August 14, 2014 6:58am
 Decorator's Supply Company, a Bridgeport manufacturer of custom architectural accessories, will be part of the Chicago Detours walking tour of Bridgeport.
Decorator's Supply Company, a Bridgeport manufacturer of custom architectural accessories, will be part of the Chicago Detours walking tour of Bridgeport.
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Facebook/Chicago Architecture Foundation

BRIDGEPORT — A tour group specializing in the overlooked corners of Chicago is headed to the city's oldest neighborhood.

"A lot of people kind of have Bridgeport on their radar but don't know so much about what's going on down there," said Amanda Scotese, founder of the Chicago Detours group.

The tour begins 10:30 a.m. Saturday and steps off at the Bridgeport Art Center, a massive brick warehouse building that houses a big storage business along with a whole creative ecosystem of interesting art-related businesses, galleries and studios.

Casey Cora says the tour gives people a chance to explore Bridgeport's culture:

The group will make its way to at least six more destinations throughout the 2½-hour tour, including the nearby Zhou B Art Center — home to the Chinese immigrants-turned international art sensation Zhou brothers — the stately and elegant St. Mary of Perpetual Help church and the Decorator's Supply Company, a manufacturer of architectural ornaments dating back to the famed 1893 World's Columbian Exposition.

 The interior of the ornate St. Mary of Perpetual Help in Bridgeport, celebrating its 130th anniversary.
The interior of the ornate St. Mary of Perpetual Help in Bridgeport, celebrating its 130th anniversary.
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St. Mary of Perpetual Help

The group will also stop at the Co-Prosperity Sphere gallery, where owner, publisher and brewer Ed Marszewski will talk about what makes Bridgeport "the community of the future."

Organizers say the jaunt through Bridgeport will focus on a few key theme that "considers the shift in cities as traditional industrial centers to being hubs of cultural production."

Also included are stops at Pleasant House Bakery, the English-inspired gourmet bakery famous for its beloved Royal Pies, and the next-door Maria's Community Bar, which repeatedly wins accolades for its craft cocktails and ridiculously diverse roster of more than 450 beers.

Tickets for Saturday's event cost $30 and are available by clicking the "Book Now" button at the Chicago Detours website.

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