The old Marshall Field's department store in Park Forest will soon be a pile of rubble, but small pieces will live on through a special sale of bricks from the long-shuttered landmark.
The Park Forest Historical Society is selling single bricks from the two-story store, once an anchor of Park Forest Plaza and the centerpiece of one of the nation's first regional shopping malls.
"It's a tremendous loss," said Jean Nicoll, society archivist and a Park Forest resident for three decades. The store "was critical to this community, and it hurts. Everyone has a Marshall Field's story to tell, about how important it was to their lives and how proud they were to have it in our community."
Park Forest's Field's store opened March 28, 1955, and operated until March 29, 1997. It has been empty since, despite efforts to find a new use, including as a possible theater, condos or even a local library.
But no proposal proved feasible, and the village deemed it impractical to spend up to $80,000 yearly to maintain an empty building. Demolition began last month.
"It was a behemoth of a building," recalled Nicoll, who once lived across the street from the store. "It was (part of) the first or second shopping center in the country, and it was a classic example of midcentury modern architecture."
Marshall Field's has vanished as a retail name since Field's stores were converted into Macy's in 2006.
Park Forest was created after World War II as a planned community to accommodate an influx of returning veterans moving to the south suburbs.
Part of the plan included construction of Park Forest Plaza, which was developed in the early 1950s by Phil Klutznick, who went on to help create the Old Orchard, Oakbrook Center and Water Tower Place malls.
Park Forest Plaza's fortunes faded as newer retail outlets opened and shopping patterns shifted. The village bought the property in 1995 with an eye toward redeveloping an estimated 300,000 square feet into a more traditional downtown center.
Park Forest's new DownTown now includes an arts center along with retail businesses. But a developer's plan to build housing on the old Field's site has fallen victim to the sour economy and housing market woes.
The historical society hopes to have as many as 500 bricks from the Field's store to sell. Proceeds will help support society projects and a museum at 141 Forest Blvd. Bricks will be available for $15 each --- or two for $25 -- and will come with a certificate of authenticity.
The museum is selling bricks the first three Saturdays in December in conjunction with a 1950s Christmas display at its location.
-- Jack McCarthy
No comments:
Post a Comment