A Gold Coast Masterpiece, Bughouse Square, and the Joffrey!

A Gold Coast Masterpiece, Bughouse Square, and the Joffrey!

I’m honored to be the Listing Agent for this lovely home at 1521 North State Parkway. It is on an oversized lot and has over 9,700 square feet of magnificent space. Lincoln Park is your back yard, and Lake Michigan is your swimming pool. Three separate outdoor spaces, landscaped and terraced. Built in 1894 but recently completely renovated, so you have the best of modern amenities combined with the classic elegance of the Gold Coast. It’s easy to say, but it truly doesn’t get any better than this!

The new owner will be surrounded by history. The architect, George Maher, shown above, and Frank Lloyd Wright were both draftsmen at the influential Silsbee firm in the late 1880s, and both helped design buildings for Chicago’s 1893 World Columbian Exposition. Maher designed 1521 North State Parkway in the Beaux Arts style, and later in 1899 the Pleasant Home, shown above, where he combined Arts and Craft styling with the horizontal lines you see in many of Wright’s designs. They are both considered giants in American architecture, and I’m thrilled with the Listing!

Another special place in Chicago from the same era is Washington Square Park. It started as a cow path with a well where farmers could bring their cattle to drink! The land for the park was donated to the City of Chicago in 1842, not long after Chicago’s founding in 1833, and the park was renovated using plans drawn up by the renowned Jens Jensen in 1910.

It now serves as the “front yard” of the Newberry Library, as seen above, and it took on the nickname “Bughouse Square” in the 1890’s. It was placed on the National Historic Register in 1991.

Bughouse Square was the primary spot in all of Chicago for Orators to pull up a soap box and expound upon topics of the day and engage in lively debates, usually with a radical point of view. In fact, the first Gay Pride March was located at Bughouse Square in 1970. As shown above, the park is an island of peacefulness in the middle of a bustling residential area!

I can’t close without mentioning the Joffrey Ballet’s creative world premiere adaptation of Steinbeck’s novel “Of Mice and Men”, being presented in a double bill with George Balanchine’s first ballet work, “Serenade” from 1933. “Serenade” is pictured above.

“Of Mice and Men” was adapted to the Joffrey stage by Cathy Marston, with an original score by Academy Award-nominated composer Thomas Newman. The Joffrey continues to be the cultural gem of Chicago, something every visitor to Chicago should see.

Let’s hope it warms up soon, Chicago’s famous summer Street Fests are right around the corner!

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Melinda Jakovich-Lagrange

Hello, I’m Melinda Jakovich-Lagrange. I sell high end real estate and I love this city! I am a senior Broker with Compass Real Estate, covering all of the best neighborhoods in Chicago. I recently was named one of the Top 1% Brokers in Chicago by both Crains Chicago and the Chicago Association of Realtors, and continue to love my work after a successful 26 years in Real Estate! For any Real Estate questions feel free to call me at (312) 953-3425 and/or go to my website at melindajakovich.com!

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