Photos: Inside An Historic, Derelict West Town Church Slated For Demolition
By Stephen Gossett in News on Sep 21, 2016 4:51AM
The push-and-pull between development and preservation is an eternal, irreconcilable conflict for cities. One of the most noteworthy—and now urgent—examples in recent history of these competing impulses is the case of St. Boniface Church, in West Town. The architecturally significant but long-unused church has been endangered since at least 1999, with conservation-minded residents and organizations fighting to maintain it all the while. Now, the church’s fate could be sealed in as little as two days.
Preservationists have been fighting to keep the church standing in recent months, according to the Tribune, and according to DNAinfo, a developer who wants to save the church building has until Friday, or else it will be sold to another and all but guaranteed the wrecking ball. With that in mind, this seemed like the perfect moment to give readers a look inside St. Boniface—for what might be the last time.
The stunning, 113-year-old Romanesque Revival church was designed by Henry Schlacks, the most famous and celebrated architect of Chicago churches. It has also been closed since 1990 and that disuse has given way to disrepair. Both the splendor and neglect are both on display in the images above, often within a single frame. Our photographer Matt Tuteur has been taking photos inside the vacant church for years, and he shared a collection of his favorite photos, above, with us last month.
The city notified neighbors last month that unless Stas Development purchases the church (1358 W. Chestnut St.) by Friday, Sept. 23, it would be sold to developers Guardian Capital, who will likely demolish the building and use the site to build new homes. Stas wants to maintain the structure, use it to house condos and add an adjacent building to be used by the Chicago Academy of Music.
Whether or not that plan succeeds within the next few days will determine if the beauty that still shines through the ruins in the images above will be permitted to stand.