It wouldn’t be Preservation Month without dedicating a post to our expertise in leading Section 106 reviews!
Under the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), Section 106 reviews are vital for identifying and safeguarding historic resources from potential negative impact caused by federally funded construction projects. When such projects arise, preservation specialists (like us) step in to assess the historic resources in the project's vicinity and how the project’s implementation may affect their location, design, setting, feeling, materials, workmanship, and association.
One of our Section 106 projects involves the proposed reconstruction of Metra Commuter Rail’s 59th Street Station in Hyde Park. This project encompasses the reconstruction of street-level depots, new platform-level headhouses, and adjacent limestone embankment reconstruction. Located just west of Chicago’s Jackson Park at the eastern end of the Midway Plaisance, the station has served the University of Chicago and Hyde Park since the 1890s. The railroad's historical significance is grounded in the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, known primarily for its influence on Chicago’s architecture and regional urban planning, and also where traction power, the electrical system that continues to run our transit system today was unveiled to the world.
Through this type of historic assessment, we determined that the proposed changes would impact the historic integrity of the surrounding historic districts and following this determination, AltusWorks played an instrumental role in advising on station design changes as well as the development of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to mitigate this affect.
We take pride in our role within this public process, which identifies and preserves Chicago's historic resources while facilitating necessary improvements to aging infrastructure for the benefit of all.
Pictured here: Souvenir map of the World's Columbian Exposition at Jackson Park and Midway Plaisance, Chicago, Ill, U.S. A. 1893; Library of Congress
Legat Architects
Ellen Stoner Anney Grish Kesha Patel
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Marketing Director, Cullen Construction Management
2moLove the entrance, beautiful development!