Dave Clark, aka Windy City Road Warrior, keeps his ear to the ground on all things Route 66 in the Chicagoland area.
On his blog, Clark reports that the International Tailoring Building at 847 W. Jackson Blvd. (Route 66) in Chicago has undergone an extensive renovation since the structure in recent years. It was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008. It’s being converted into Tailor Lofts for University of Chicago students.
But the most dramatic change is to the exterior. Clark writes:
More importantly for Route 66 travelers, the beautiful exterior restoration has brought the building back to its original look. For years, a four-story clock tower was sheathed in ugly corrugated metal.
The gleaming enameled terra cotta now shines again, and the four clock faces show the current time in all directions just as they did when the building first opened in 1916.
Here are before-and-after photos of the 1916 building:
It’s a most impressive restoration.
(Photos courtesy of Dave Clark)