The following blog entry was contributed by: Sam Marts and Dina Petrakis
- he's Bucktown, she's Wicker Park - who compare their two ‘hoods.
Traditional Wicker Park is primarily renovations- Contemporary Bucktown is dominated by new construction. Both styles (and ‘hoods) make for fabulous homes, but use different vocabularies and standards. Which is YOUR fave- Bucktown or Wicker Park?
This Wicker Park Beauty (below, left) was in tragic disrepair before its complete restoration. All details of the exterior- not just the prominent elements- were renewed with the attention of Chicago's Landmarks Commission, to the Standards of the Secretary of the Interior. The landscaping of the historic side yard is new and conjectural but completely in keeping with the grandeur of the home.
This Bucktown adaptive re-use single family (above, right) was a windowless factory backing up to the railroad now on track to become the lauded Bloomingdale Trail. Interior volume reallocated, windows punched telegraphing changed use of space, and new facade materials all lend to this distinctive home. Both corners were hollowed out to become exterior space- the south is enclosed but open to the sky- the north is the entry portal. Note the contemporary landscaping.
