Located in the heart of the historic Maxwell Street District, the project consisted of six buildings, which were renovated as part of a larger planned development. Dating back to the late 1800’s, these buildings were retail and residential multistory structures constructed of timber, concrete, and steel.

Part of a comprehensive Master Plan developed by the University of Illinois at Chicago was the redevelopment of the historic Maxwell Street district. The area had been an active retail district since the late 1800’s but had progressively declined over the years. The master plan’s focus was the development of a retail image for the area which addressed both the existing retail buildings and new buildings, the streetscape and wayfinding in the area. Klein and Hoffman, Inc. (K&H) provided structural engineering services including program analysis, schematics, design development, preparation of construction documents, and bidding and construction support services during construction to rehabilitate six (6) existing buildings and design one new building, in three phases.

The project included a complete assessment of existing structures which were targeted to remain. K&H also developed design guidelines for new construction and adaptive reuse.
Originally used for residential and retail customers, the six existing buildings were modified for new use and included the addition of floors to the buildings, reinforcement and repair of timber and concrete joists and columns, and reinforcement of the existing footings to support the new loads. Another interesting and challenging part of the project consisted of supporting a historic façade while demolishing the attached building, constructing a new structure behind the façade and connecting the two before removing the bracing system supporting the façade. Klein and Hoffman worked with the design team and the contractor throughout the project and assisted in sequencing the construction tasks.