Chase plans to demolish a gem

JPMorgan Chase wants to tear down its 47-year-old Evanston branch at 1900 Central Street and replace it with a smaller building. The brick-and-glass structure is worth saving.

Preservation commission steps in

Evanston's Historic Preservation Commission took up the issue and is considering landmark status for the building. They postponed a vote for 60 days at Chase's request.

A resident sparked the fight

Architecture buff James McKee submitted a landmark nomination request to Evanston's planning officials. His effort put the building before the preservation commission.

“If we don't landmark it, they've got a plan in place to close it, demolish it, build a new branch. It would be a real shame to lose.”

David Haid designed it

The building was designed by the late David Haid, a prominent architect who studied under Mies van der Rohe at the Illinois Institute of Technology and worked in Mies's Chicago office.

Haid was a modernist master

Haid's work bears minimalist, glassy, boxy design kinship to Mies. He's now regarded as a prominent master of steel-and-glass structural expression and one of the purest expressions of the Second Chicago School.

His best works include

Haid designed Walter H. Dyett High School for the Arts, two low-slung jet black buildings in Washington Park, and his own Evanston residence. He died in 1993 at age 64.

Ferris Bueller connection

Haid's most recognized work is the black steel-and-glass residential auto pavilion in Highland Park, featured in the 1986 movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Haid supervised repairs to the pavilion's glass after filming.

Built in 1979

Originally constructed as the First National Bank and Trust of Evanston, the building is a subtle and clever structure with a full-story glass entry on Central Street and a pure steel-and-glass wall on Green Bay Road.

The interior is remarkable

The original single-room, column-free banking hall is largely intact. The ceiling features a remarkable exposed structural grid with lighted panels throughout.

Experts call it special

Architectural historian Susan S. Benjamin, who co-authored Modern in the Middle: Chicago Houses 1929-75, says the bank is special. It's hard to make a simple building really beautiful, and Haid succeeds.

“This is special. This is really special.”

Chase calls it utilitarian

JPMorgan Chase Vice President Jonathan Krissoff objected to landmark status, calling the building utilitarian and not worthy of protection. He compared Haid unfavorably to other Mies students.

Chase has resources to adapt

Chase says it needs a smaller branch on the site. But the company has vast resources to preserve and restore the building while creating whatever new space it needs.

Demolition would be wasteful

Sending in demolition equipment to destroy the building and its lovely banking hall would be distasteful and an affront to good architecture. Chase should reconsider its approach.

Decision comes November 18

The Historic Preservation Commission will revisit the landmark recommendation on November 18. Chase has time to reconsider its demolition plans before then.