Wow! Ol' Pocky, the Lawrence Avenue wall of St. Boniface Cemetery, has been crumbling away for years now. How nice to see that its restoration is now officially underway. The first section to be replaced is just east of Clark.
Update: A reader pointed out a slide show that St. Boniface has put online about the rebuilding of the wall, all 1600 feet of it. It will mirror the design on the Clark side of the cemetery, which will be more open and attractive. The entire project should take two seasons. You can see a sample slide below, and the whole show here.
That is great news! What an eyesore up to this point...
ReplyDeleteCheck out the presentation on the Archdiocese of Chicago Catholic Cemeteries web site:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.catholiccemeterieschicago.org/locations.php?id=22#1
Unfortunately, Preservation Chicago just added the St Boniface wall to its list of endangered architecturally worthy buildings or architectural details.
ReplyDeleteIt will have to stay along with the lovely, midcentury, Maryville buildings.
Sure, most people look at these things as crap, but then we haven't started a non profit that pays us big bucks to pontificate on what's best.
Think of the hardcore preservationists as the Catholic bishops of preservation. Every old building, or detail, is sacred. Every old building, or detail, is great. If an old building, or detail, is wasted God gets quite irate.
That has been an eyesore since I was a little kid. Good!!!
ReplyDeleteI think Preservation Chicago has a few screws loose. Some of what they do ofcourse makes sense and some of it is idiotic.
ReplyDeleteSnicker.