Lee Bey

1 month ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Lee Bey

The parish buildings of the former St. Mary of the Assumption Roman Catholic Church are still handsome, noble-looking religious structures, even as they sit vacant and very much in need of repair. Normally it takes a miracle to restore and reactivate a complex of religious buildings like this. Then it turned out last week that St. Mary’s — shuttered, half-forgotten and tucked away on the farthest reaches of the city’s South Side — is the new pope’s old childhood church.

1 month ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Lee Bey

A $1.2 million grant to restore the aged 92-foot bell tower of Pullman’s historic Greenstone United Methodist Church was unanimously approved Thursday by the Commission of Chicago Landmarks. Made under the city’s Adopt-a-Landmark program, the grant — if approved by City Council — would cover a virtual rebuild of the 143-year-old church’s tower, reusing as much of the building’s distinctive original green Serpentine stone. Work could begin this year and carry into 2026.

1 month ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Lee Bey

The former On Leong Merchant Association Building has been a symbol of Chinatown for nearly a century, carrying with it a history as colorful as its architecture. And now the 97-year-old building’s design and backstory might help earn it a spot on the National Register of Historic Places. The program committee of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks is scheduled to vote May 16 on whether to support a National Register listing for the On Leong building, now called the Pui Tak Center.

1 month ago | wbez.org | Lee Bey

As warm weather eases its way into the city, the Burnham Building, a 120-year-old pavilion in Jackson Park, ought to be a perfect little spot to visit. Located on Marquette Drive just north of 67th Street, the one-story, open-air structure sits on a slight elevation, allowing the building’s patrons to better catch Lake Michigan views and breezes. The view from the rear of the building is no slouch, either.

1 month ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Lee Bey

Chicago Vocational High School was built to educate 4,000 students when its sprawling, 22-acre WPA Modern campus opened on the city’s Southeast Side in 1941. But today, between 700 to 800 attend the school, now called Chicago Vocational Career Academy. Large portions of the building have gone unused for years, prompting fears from architecture devotees and alumni that vacant sections of the architecturally significant complex might be someday demolished.