Annual Procession of Monks On Monday

Yesterday was the annual pilgrimage through Uptown by the monks of the (Vietnamese) Quang Minh Temple in Ravenswood. As Rev. Patti, from the Buddhist Temple of Chicago, explained several years ago:

"They are doing an ancient Buddhist custom of monks paying an annual visit to neighboring temples. Anyone is welcome to watch them pay respects at each temple and donations are appreciated from lay followers."

Photographer Bill Biederman saw the procession and took pictures, which he was generous enough to share with us.

We are lucky to live in a community like Uptown, where the experiences and backgrounds of our neighbors are so rich and varied. We love seeing the annual procession of the monks and learning about religious traditions different from what we grew up with.

Buddhist Monk Procession On Wednesday Morning

A procession down Argyle Street last September

Rev. Patti of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago wanted us to let readers know that Wednesday morning, there will be a monks procession around Uptown.  "About 30 monks from Quang Minh Temple at Damen and Montrose will be walking in a procession through Uptown, stopping at Chua Truc Lam on Wilson and Ashland, then our place The Buddhist Temple of Chicago (Leland and Broadway), then to Wat Phrasri-ratana-mahadhatu on Racine and Lawrence, and will end up on Argyle.

They are doing an ancient Buddhist custom of monks paying an annual visit to neighboring temples. Anyone is welcome to watch them pay respects at each temple and donations are appreciated from lay followers."

Traditional Buddhist Procession Takes Place This Thursday

One thing about Uptown: our diversity brings a lot of things you rarely see other places in Chicago.

Thank you to the Buddhist Temple of Chicago for posting about this annual tradition. On its Facebook page, it says,

"The monks are coming! This Thursday morning June 13, the monks of Quang Minh temple [Damen and Sunnyside] are doing their annual Uptown pilgrimage. They are scheduled to be at our temple [Leland and Racine] around 9-9:30am. Come welcome them at our place or watch them make their way northward to Argyle Street during the morning."

According to Rev. Patti in a previous year, "They are doing an ancient Buddhist custom of monks paying an annual visit to neighboring temples. Anyone is welcome to watch them pay respects at each temple and donations are appreciated from lay followers."

Annual Pilgrimage Of Monks Through Uptown

photo by Bill Biederman

Photographer Bill Biederman sends us a beautiful photo of this year's procession of monks through Uptown as they cross Dover & Wilson. More on the previous processions here. 

Annual Procession of Vietnamese Monks This Wednesday

A photo from last year's pilgrimage

Thank you to Rev. Patti Nakai of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago for letting us know the timing of this annual tradition in our community:

"On Wednesday, July 8, the monks of Quang Minh Temple will do their annual pilgrimage to Uptown area Buddhist temples.

They will start at their temple (on Damen just north of Montrose) and walk to Chua Truc Lam at Ashland and Wilson. Then they will visit the Buddhist Temple of Chicago (corner of Leland and Racine) and Wat Phrasri-ratana-mahadhatu (Racine just north of Leland) and complete the pilgrimage in the Argyle Street area. Weather permitting, no exact schedule but tends to proceed in the late morning to past noon."

The pilgrimage is based on an ancient Buddhist tradition of visiting neighboring temples and anyone is welcome to watch them pay their respects.  Here are some photos from previous years' processions.

Uptown Resident Christian Gray Stars in "Jeeves At Sea" at the Historic Peabody Estate

Uptown resident and actor Christian Gray (yes, that's his real name and he had it first) will be appearing at the historic Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oak Brook in Jeeves At Sea, the fourth installment of Margaret Raether’s adaptations of the stories of P.G. Wodehouse. The comedy will preview January 27-29, and will run January 30 through February 28, 2016. A complete schedule and ticket availability is here.

If you've never been to the Peabody estate, it's an added attraction. Built in 1920 by the founder of the Peabody Coal Company, the main home has 39 rooms and at one point was surrounded by more than 800 wooded acres. In 1924, after Francis Peabody's death, his family sold it to a Franciscan order of monks, who added buildings and converted the main home into a retreat house. First Folio Theater holds its plays in the main home.

If you're curious about the estate, walking tours are held most Wednesdays and Saturdays for $5. Make a day of it ... see the play (featuring your Uptown neighbor) and take a tour of a home that's on the National Registry of Historic Places right before the entertainment begins.

First Look At The Gardner School, at Wilson and Ashland

Today the construction fences came down and we are getting our first look at the future home of the Gardner School, at the southeast corner of Wilson and Ashland.

It replaces a very old building that most of us remember as the Paul Revere Masonic Lodge and. later, the Truc Lam Buddhist Temple. Demolition of that building began in January.

The Gardner School is a private daycare/pre-school with locations across the country.

After the order of Buddhist monks sold the building and moved to the 'burbs, a developer proposed a brick courtyard building with 12 family-size condos on the site, but the plans for a proposed zoning change were scuttled by then-Alderman Pawar after he got community input. The school was able to be built using the currently existing zoning.

We have no idea when the school will open. We're guessing that interior construction will take place during colder weather now that the exterior is complete.

Happy New Year!

From Ald. Osterman's latest newsletter:

Lunar New Year Parade and Celebration.  Join the Argyle business community for the annual Asian Lunar New Year celebration.

The festivities begin with the Chinese New Year parade on Saturday, February 16 at 1:00pm. The parade will feature Hip Sing dancing dragons, floats, a marching band and martial arts demos by Shaolin monks. It begins at 1121 W. Argyle Street and is free and open to the public.  Click here for more information. 

The Southeast Asia Center will also be celebrating the new year by hosting a 10-course Chinese banquet style dinner on Saturday, February 16 at 11:30am at the Furama Restaurant (4936 N Broadway).  Reservations are required, and the cost is $25 per person. You may reserve a seat for the event at the South-East Asia Center (5120 N Broadway, 2nd floor) or by calling 773-989-6927. 

Chinese Mutual Aid will also be sponsoring an event on February 16 from 11am-2pm at Truman College (1145 W Wilson).  The cost for this event is $7 for adults, $4 for children, and $5 for seniors.  For more information, visit their website or call 773-784-2900.

Parade Specifics:

• The parade kicks off at Hip Sing Association, 1121 W. Argyle St., at 1:00pm sharp.
• The parade will travel eastbound on Argyle St. to Sheridan Rd.
• The parade will then travel south on Sheridan Rd. to Ainslie St.
• The parade will then travel west on Ainslie St. to Broadway.
• The parade will then travel south on Broadway to Gunnison St. where it will circle the parking lot of the Broadway Supermarket Shopping Plaza.
• The parade will then travel north on Broadway to Argyle St. where it will disband in front of the Hip Sing Association, 1121 W. Argyle St.

The following will be parking restrictions that will be strictly enforced:

• Argyle St. (both sides of the street) Broadway to Sheridan Rd will have "no parking" restrictions from 9:00am - 3:00pm.
• Argyle St., Broadway to Sheridan, will have a soft closure beginning at 12:00 noon and a complete closure at 12:30.
• Sheridan Rd. (W side of the street only) Argyle St. to Ainslie St., will have "no parking" restrictions from 9:00am - 3:00pm.
• Ainslie St. (both sides of the street) Sheridan Rd. to Broadway, will have "no parking" restrictions from 9:00am - 3:00pm.
• Broadway (both sides of the street) Argyle St. to Gunnison Ave., will have "no parking" restrictions from 9:00am - 3:00pm.

I would like to invite our entire 48th Ward community to come out and enjoy one of the most exciting and colorful parades the City of Chicago offers, and stop by to enjoy a delicious meal at any of our wonderful restaurants on Argyle, Sheridan, and Broadway.

Demo Begins At Former Truc Lam Buddhist Temple

About two and a half years after the owners of the building at Wilson and Ashland put it up for sale, demolition has begun. The front yard is full of heavy equipment, and the butter-colored siding has been mostly removed. A permit for new construction was issued in November 2019.

[A reader tells us that the mid-December wind storm was unkind to the building and exacerbated the deterioration seen above.]

The building, which was previously a private social club, and later the Paul Revere Masonic Lodge, was built between 1880 and 1885.  It was most recently the Truc Lam Buddhist Temple. The order of monks bought it in 2006 and put it on the market in mid-2017.

Preservation efforts were attempted, but failed. According to Preservation Chicago, it

"helped to advocate for this historic building about ten years ago prior to the purchase of the building for use as a Buddhist Temple and advocated for a Chicago Landmark Designation of the building at that time. Initial steps were taken, but unfortunately, the Buddhist Temple leadership did not consent to landmark designation and as a result, the building has no formal historic protections."

The temple has since relocated to Elmwood Park.

In 2017, a plan was proposed for a 12-unit courtyard building of two- and three-bedroom condos to go on the site, but Ald. Pawar (47th Ward) denied the necessary zoning change after hearing neighbors' objections, and the sale fell through.

In 2019, a new purchaser bought the property and announced plans for a two-story, 14-classroom daycare/pre-school, which did not require a zoning change.

A history of the building at 1521 West Wilson can be found here.

Procession Along Broadway

This panoramic photo of the monks' procession between temples this morning was taken by Ric Addy of Shake Rattle & Read, as they passed his store on Broadway.  Click on it to see a larger version to get the full effect. 

A Procession Down Argyle

One of Uptown's buzzwords is "diversity," and it's fair to say that most Chicago communities aren't home to at least four separate Buddhist temples and congregations, from different countries and with different traditions.  A reader wrote in today to say:  "I came across this procession of monks on Argyle when I was on a walk with my family. I thought your readers would like to see some of the pics." Thank you!

Daycare/Preschool To Be Built On Site of Truc Lam Buddhist Temple

The Gardner School proposal for Truc Lam site, north elevation. (NORR)

Note that the meeting location has been changed for tonight at 6:30PM to My Buddy's, 4416 N. Clark.

See the entire presentation with renderings for tonight HERE.

The order of Buddhist monks who owned the Truc Lam Temple at Wilson and Ashland has completed a sale of the property.

A previous sale that was contingent on a zoning change fell through when the zoning change was denied. It would have put a 12-unit courtyard-style brick residential building on the lot, consisting of two- and three-bedroom condos.

Now the property has been sold and the building will be demolished this spring. No zoning change is required.

The new owners of the property will build a preschool/daycare building on the site, consisting of a two-story 14-classroom facility. The new owners will ask Ald. Pawar for an expansion of a loading zone on Wilson for pickup and dropoff of students.

There will be a community meeting about the new school on Thursday, February 28th, 6:30pm-7:30pm, at My Buddy's, 4416 N Clark

Explore 17 Chicago Neighborhoods Using A Scavenger Hunt Guidebook

Oh, this looks fun.

We came across a book of urban scavenger hunts going through 17 neighborhoods, including Uptown, and mostly on the North Side and Central Chicago areas.

The publisher says of Chicago Scavenger, by Jessica Mlinaric: 

"Decipher the clues and track down the photos leading you to over 300 little-known museums, vibrant public artworks, nature areas, overlooked historical markers, charming cafes, architectural oddities, and more. 

Visit the nation’s first Black art museum and a B&B run by monks. Raise a glass at Chicago’s smallest bar and take a stroll down a real yellow brick road. From Pullman to Rogers Park, seek the thrill of discovery in Chicago’s unique and diverse neighborhoods."

All the sights can be found outdoors, so it's especially good if you're being a COVID-cautious adventurer.

You can order the book directly from the publisher or through Amazon.