The Warehouse, a former dance hall in West Loop, received a preliminary landmark recommendation from the Commission on Chicago Landmarks on Thursday after thousands signed a petition asking the city to preserve the building, which is known as the birthplace of house music and an icon of Chicago’s LGBTQ+ and Black history.
The vote was unanimous during the April meeting and a final recommendation is expected in coming months. If approved, it would then go before the City Council.
From 1977 to 1982, the three-story building at 206 S. Jefferson St. was the dance club where the genre of house music was born, led by pioneering DJ Frankie Knuckles. The area around the building, once commercial and desolate, is now a hotbed for redevelopment.
Preservationists have said the industrial building had no historical protections, which had put it at risk of being demolished, and a petition was started to urge city officials to take action. Now, under landmark rules, owners would have to get permission to make any changes to the exterior of the building.
Ward Miller, the executive director of Preservation Chicago, remembers attending The Warehouse in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
When The Warehouse made the top seven list of most endangered buildings in Chicago facing possible demolition, preservationists sprang to action to save the building where Knuckles elevated Chicago to a higher musical level
Besides playing soul-moving music through sound systems created by a New York engineer, Knuckles brought together partygoers from all backgrounds. Some have said The Warehouse was Chicago’s Paradise Garage and Studio 54.
Last fall, the property was up for sale and slated for redevelopment. Max Chavez, the director of research and special projects at Preservation Chicago, said recently there were no demolition permits on hand for the structure.
The new building’s owners said they plan to use the property for office space, Miller said.
“With almost 10,000 signatures, it’s a place that really matters to people, even in the United Kingdom,” Chavez said. “We need to be proactive while we have a chance. The Warehouse is such a cultural building with historic importance.”
