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The Commission on Chicago Landmark recognized Sterling Bay’s rehabilitation of the Howard Building at 1000 W. Randolph St.Courtesy of Sterling Bay

‘Gold Standard’ Rehab Of Fulton Market’s Howard Building Honored With Preservation Award

Sterling Bay's $2.1 million restoration of the nearly century-old building was honored by the Commission on Chicago Landmarks.

Pilsen, Little Village, West Loop Primary category in which blog post is published
Mauricio Peña

Pilsen, Little Village and West Loop reporter mauricio@blockclubchi.org

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FULTON MARKET — Developer Sterling Bay’s rehabilitation of the Howard Building in Fulton Market has earned a preservation award.

On Monday, the Commission on Chicago Landmarks recognized 10 projects from across the city for excellence in preservation. The rehab of the Howard Building at 1000 W. Randolph St. for retail was among the projects recognized for “extraordinary design, craftsmanship and community impact.”

The Howard Building after Sterling Bay rehabilitation.
Courtesy of Sterling Bay

The two-story building was built by the architectural firm of Leicho & Esser in 1923 to attract merchants displaced from South Water Market.

Sterling Bay rehabilitated the vacant building with facade restoration and masonry cleaning. Other work included new windows, a revamp of the vacant storefronts and new mechanical systems.

“The Howard Building is an important anchor to the historic Randolph corridor and its rehabilitation serves as a gold standard for the rest of the district,” according to the Department of Planning and Development.

In 2016, the City Council approved a Class L property tax incentive, valued at $449,000 over 12 years, to support the $2.1 million rehabilitation of the building.

The Howard Building before rehabilitation.
Courtesy of Sterling Bay
The Howard Building before rehabilitation, left, and after rehabilitation, right.
Courtesy of Sterling Bay

A full list of the “excellence in preservation” award winners is below:

The awards, established in 1999, aim to recognize preservation and restoration efforts across the city.

The city’s Commission’s Permit Review Committee selected the winners from a pool of dozens of projects. All of the projects had to either have been designated Chicago landmarks or part of landmark districts to be eligible.

The Fulton-Randolph Market District was designated a landmark in 2015.

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