WEST TOWN — Members of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks voted to recommend the former Peabody School for Landmark designation on Thursday, a measure that will protect the 1890s building and make the Buffalo Grove-based developer who plans to create apartments at the site eligible for tax incentives.
The matter, which passed unanimously, according to Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), still has to be approved by the members of the City Council, possibly in early fall.
"I was in full support. It’s a great example of turn-of-century architecture and of schools built during that time period. It’s structurally sound brick and concrete and will last another hundred years," Hopkins said.
[Read the Landmark Commission's detailed report on the the Romanesque and Queen Anne style school, built in 1894].
The sale of Peabody at 1444 W. Augusta Blvd. to Svigos Asset Management for $3.5 million marked the first sale of a former CPS school that was part of a shutdown of underutilized buildings in 2013.
Nick Vitore, an executive with Svigos, declined to comment on plans for Peabody, except to say the general plan is to create apartments there and they are "still looking for the best fit" in terms of the number of units.
In addition to Peabody, Svigos also owns the former Near North Elementary at 739 N. Ada St., which is slated to house 34 apartments and a shuttered CPS school in Lincoln Park that was also converted into apartments.
Svigos specializes in developing and managing commercial and residential properties, and owns apartment buildings in Lakeview, Logan Square and Albany Park, according to its website.
Hopkins said that Svigos intends to apply for Class L incentive, a special property tax assessment classification to encourage the preservation and rehabilitation of landmark buildings.
Deputy Commissioner Peter Strazzabosco, with the city’s Planning and Development Department, said that once the school receives City of Chicago landmark designation, it enables the use of federal tax credits, parking and permit fee waivers, and other incentives to make rehabilitation financially viable.
In a blog post titled "Developers work to breathe new life into closed CPS buildings," the city's Planning & Development Dept. offered a first look at the adaptive reuse project at Peabody and other former schools that will benefit from Landmark designation.
"The designations also ensure the schools — all exquisite examples of the early years of Chicago’s public school architecture — remain neighborhood icons for years to come," the city said.
Designed by Board of Education architect W. August Fielder, Peabody school contained several elements influenced by the work of Louis H. Sullivan, according to the commission.
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