Rosenwald Courts Apartments is a cluster of 5 story walk-up apartments listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Originally built by Julius Rosenwald, then president of Sears Roebuck and Company, for better housing of minorities on the near south side, the development occupies an entire city block. The apartments are bounded on the North by 46th Street, on the East by Michigan Avenue, on the South by 47th Street, and on the West by Wabash Avenue. The structural framing is comprised of reinforced concrete joists supported by interior concrete beams and columns, with exterior load-bearing masonry walls.

Our team provided multiple services that catered to our expertise as a firm in the adaptive-reuse sector. Structural engineering services spanned from removing entire floors, infilling basements, providing new stair and elevator shaft openings, to strengthening the floor with a bonded overlay and providing concrete restoration work for the deteriorated framing system. Also provided were façade services – including restoration drawings, details, and meeting with the Historic Preservation representatives to find exact matches for the replacement bricks and terra-cotta elements. The owner valued K&H’s services to the point that they requested we step in to assist the design team at the adjacent Rosenwald Flats, a concurrent renovation of wood-framed three flat buildings on the northeast corner of the property.