Confronted with the imminent demolition of historic Tree Studios and Medinah Temple, the City of Chicago partnered with Friedman Properties to develop a plan for saving both endangered structures. The redevelopment presented Friedman Properties and its City partners with enormous financial and restoration challenges along with an unprecedented opportunity - to preserve an entire historic city block.
Characterized by its intimate scale and quiet courtyard, Tree Studios lacked the notoriety of Medinah Temple. However, its history as the country’s oldest known artist community made saving the building a top priority.
Determined to return Tree Studios to its original grandeur, Friedman Properties embraced the challenge of bringing the building up to modern safety standards while restoring its historic integrity. For nearly five years, hundreds of construction workers and artisans labored side-by-side, rebuilding Tree Studios by hand.
Architectural details were recreated from surviving fragments in on-site carpentry shops. Restored windows and skylights brought back the natural light so prized by earlier generations of artists, and the courtyard, a jungle of weeds, was transformed into an oasis in the center of the City.
Today, Tree Studios is home to a re-emerging creative community with a portion of the building’s upstairs studio spaces reserved for artists while arts-related businesses occupy street level commercial space.
Location
601-623 North State Street, Chicago, Illinois 60610
Completion
Winter 2003
Project Type
Mixed-Use: Office and Retail
Description
The country's oldest continually operating creative community, Tree Studios and its annexes are prized by artists and preservationists alike. Once threatened with demolition, the complex is now meticulously restored to its original condition and outfitted with modern safety features and amenities. A Chicago landmark and one of the World Monuments Fund's top 100 most significant structures, Friedman Properties, the City of Chicago, the State of Illinois and preservation organizations including Landmarks Illinois, forged a one-of-a-kind partnership to enable the restoration of the complex. The unprecedented cooperation between these groups is considered an international model for how public-private partnerships can be used to successfully revitalize historic buildings. Today, Tree Studios is home to a thriving community of artists and arts-related businesses. The public also enjoys unprecedented access to the building and its hidden courtyard garden through ground floor retailers, including the occupants of both historic Annexes.
