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Blackstone Hotel: 636 South Michigan Avenue: After_(Photo courtesy of Bill Zbaren)
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Considered one of the city’s finest historic hotels, the Blackstone is a fanciful example of the “Modern French” style of Beaux Arts architectural style. The hotel was built in 1908 and designed by the prominent architecture firm of Marshall & Fox. Known as the “Hotel of Presidents,” the hotel has hosted a dozen U.S. Presidents and was also the location of the famous “smoke-filled room” where Warren G. Harding was chosen as the compromise Republican nominee for President in June 1920. The building had suffered considerable deterioration and neglect when Sage Hospitality Resources bought the building in 2005. City TIF assistance and the 20% Federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit helped fund a $112 million rehabilitation project. The work included extensive exterior rehabilitation, including brick and terra-cotta repair, new windows, new storefronts, new canopies, a new green metal standing-seam roof (to match the original color), and architectural lighting. Interior work included restoration of the main lobby, Crystal Ballroom, Art Hall, and barber shop, and retention of the Presidential suite and the ‘smoke-filled’ room. The Blackstone Hotel was designated a Chicago Landmark on April 29, 1998.
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