Tasteful friends ... please proffer your thoughts on this Chicago condo

Oh, fuck.

Leprechauns, I am guessin?

Now that has character! I much prefer that to blandness.

How horrible is it that I loved several parts of it?!?

Honey, could you just run back up and get my keys, they're in the GREEN room.

Public housing?

The HOA at $776 seems quite high. Livable with 10k of renovation; paint and carpet and new appliances.

I love the couch, but not the fabric. Where does one buy a couch like that now? Also that dining table looks like a paul evans cityscape piece, which is very expensive. Kind of odd for such a cheap apartment to have a $10,000 dining table. I would never buy it though, I don't do communal laundry.

If I was a realtor I would waste everyone's time bringing people in to see this place completely cold, with no warning about what the place looked like, just to see the reactions when people see all that green and metalic fabulousness.

Who the HELL made that furniture!

it seems spacious and the green drippy upholstery must be saved. How they felt that went with the brown wall tapestry is a design secret lost to history.

Big Judy Garland fan. Tried to recreate the Emerald City.

I'm surprised the bathroom isn't carpeted.

Is that Soylent Green?

Get me a stager! Stat!

Desk Is a paul evans too. These people have like $50,000 + worth of vintage furniture in there.

Winston Towers. 98 % Elderly Jews. This building and the 4 others in the development are FULL of time warp 70s apartments. When I was selling appliances, I would sometimes have to go into units and take measurements. Never seen so many harvest gold appliances in my life.

R15, is there really a market for furniture like this? Seriously?

Incredible. Inspired by a 99 cent St. Patrick’s Day bead necklace.

OMG I internally screamed when I saw the bedroom!

Overall, it's a surprisingly nice apartment. Obviously very clean, well loved, and well kept.

Headboard in the bedroom is a milo Baughman or in the style of, you can buy it here...

That interior decorator knew how to do cocaine.

Could the home of a rare Jewish-Irish elderly couple?

I am impressed how well they have maintained furniture like that for over 50 years. These days, sofas look like shit after 2-3 years. Fabrics pill. The frame sags, etc...

It's a little bit fabulous in it's own way.

There really is r17.

Thanks R20, but where can we find their wallpaper that also matches the headboard?

It's hit that level of hideousness that it's turned the corner to fabulous and I kind of love it.

[quote]I am impressed how well they have maintained furniture like that for over 50 years.

You don't know Jewish women and their furniture. They probably had it covered in plastic for 50 years.

I'd love the challenge of decorating around that. Take it to one accent wall in each room and offset with 70's chic. I'm so vibing on Julianne's apartment in a Single Man. AirBNB. For the Peter Max set.

The appliances are original. 1502 would be a top floor unit on the end of the building, windows on three sides. delivery people hated going into these buildings. The tenants weee neurotic about the carpeting.

That would be the hard part r25. There is always Florence Broadhurst reproduction wall paper.

Agree R26! Would love to have it as a party place or weekend retreat. But in the one bathroom I would paint the bottom cabinets silver and in the other bathroom paint them green to match the wallpaper. They are just such normal colors they stick out like sore thumbs and ruin the ambiance. One should feel like they are on drugs in that place.

Hate the neighbourhood, no great view either, but perfect for an aging disco queen I should think. If the furniture was thrown in, it could be a very good deal. BTW R22 Not as rare a combination as you would think, my family is Jewish and Irish.

And to think, Joel living right next door.

lol but I do r27... the plastic was only removed off my great grandparents' chairs after they died, my grandfather died, and my grandmother moved into her own condo (they were all previously in the same house). Finally the fabric was revealed for the first time in 50 years. I don't know where the chairs are now though a table they had is now in my parents' house & it seems like it was just made better from the beginning than 90% of things you could buy now.

I find the floor plan interesting because you have a large layout with a big master bedroom with 1 tiny little 1-sink bath, that most people would consider a guest bath these days. There is a second bath for the 2nd bedroom that I suppose they could use, but was there no real "master bath" concept at the time? It's not even attached to the master bedroom.

I want it preserved for history. I want to write a movie set in that apartment and film it before it's gone and someone puts a brown leather couch and a big screen TV in it. Love the phone by the toilet. I would always keep a pencil on top to dial with.

I would demand Marlo Thomas has a cameo in the movie.

I see Leo and Lance.

I love it. The bedroom came as a bit of a shock but I love it. Copious amounts of coke have been done in that apartment and many fine cigars smoked.

It's like an homage to the Green Stamps they used to purchase everything in the place.

The condo needs a back story... I sense a connection to Aer Lingus.

That place is a crime scene that even the Green Hornet couldn't decode.

Whoa. I totally suggest you take the 3-D tour. It will really blow your mind.

I liked some of the style choices in terms of wallpaper. It was just the scale that pushed it into the minus column.

It looks like Miss Piggy's post coitus cum dumpster, after I've had my way with her.

I knew from the address & furniture it was going to be Jewish. That section of Kedzie - between West Rogers Park, Lincolnwood, and Skokie already put the odds up pretty high. And the furniture... yes, I am quite familiar with this kind of decor.

And no Jewish household is complete without at least a dozen tchotchkes - I knew they had to be hiding somewhere, even though the realtor probably told them to put them away, along with family photos. Ha - good luck telling nana and zadie to put away pics of her grandchildren. The 3d tour reveals all.

Anyone else notice the huge collection cologne in the bathrooms?

[quote] It's a little bit fabulous in it's own way.

Agreed. Perfect for horror movie set in 1974.

And always look for the oddly placed oriental vase or piece of art...and you will find it. The Chinese - Jewish relationship does not only exist on Christmas.

"Winston Towers. 98 % Elderly Jews."

And this is what happens when you let in a couple of Micks.

Yes r47, they could have used it in suspiria.

[quote]And no Jewish household is complete without at least a dozen tchotchkes - I knew they had to be hiding somewhere, even though the realtor probably told them to put them away, along with family photos.

If you look in the breakfast nook, picture #14, on the right hand side you see all the family pictures going back to Abraham. But why are they kept in the breakfast nook?

Looks like a 1960s Howard Johnsons.

I wonder if they have trouble keeping a cleaning lady?

"Dora, you missed a spot on the wall. There, dear. Right there. Poor girl is going blind."

The washer (?) has an Out of Order notice on it. Seemed odd to me, though perhaps it's been on Airbnb though if it had I'm shocked it's not already internet famous. Or maybe the owner just has dementia.

The (I assume) actor grandson is kinda cute. Depending how old those photos of him are anyway.

R8 That was my reaction to the couch, too. I would kill for that couch, but I wonder how expensive it would be to reupholster it.

The decorator must have this book!

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

The fact that the building has a Shabbbas Elevator is a pretty good clue it's Jewish building. I lived on Riverside Drive in the 80's and we didn't have one.

r55 I would guess at least $5,000 + cost of fabric. Anyone decorators out there know for sure?

Some of those walls look like a bad trip.

It has a Shabbas elevator? Perhaps that is why the dishwasher is labeled "out of order" - as they don't want gentiles in there mixing up the milk and meat plates.

But why hasn't it sold since 2012? That's bizarre. They're paying a lot in maintenance every month, whoever lives there (or doesn't live there and has to pay it).

Were Bob and Emily neighbors?

Sorry but I lived through that and that would have been bad taste even back then. But pretty cheap for a three bedroom.

Maybe they will only sell to other jews? r61

Anyway, this is what I grew up with and why (a) the German / Western European Jews never liked the Eastern European Jews (going back to the 1800s) and (b) all of my furniture is beige, brown, and black now. I will never listen to another piece of shade about me "hating color" and ordering from Restoration Hardware.

My eyes were assaulted from the 70s onward. We not only had wallpaper like this, but it was FABRIC by the time my parents' house was built. People see pics & think I had carpeting on my walls. Not carpeting, but velvet fleur de lis. Then there was (fake) suede, animal prints staring directly at me when I peed in the bathroom, (fake) stitched leather, and my whole neighborhood had this "string" wallpaper that looked like individual strings going up and down (it was individual strings - you could pull them off). All this stuff is still up except for my bedroom where I literally peeled it off in high school because it was too embarrassing already. My brother's room started to collapse under the weight of the wallpaper but they had someone come out and reinforce it. Heaven forbid it should have been removed. I can take pics tomorrow...

I like the den a lot and the condo fee isn’t so bad for nearly 2000 square feet.

I don't particularly like the decor, but the parquet flooring is really cool.

R63 - I would be surprised if that was why - not just because it is illegal, but the neighborhood has been selling to Indian immigrants for decades now. It's a very popular place for people from India & has Indian grocery, restaurants, etc... though that's the neighborhood, not the building. Who knows what the yentas are whispering at the condo board meetings.

R64 I cannot wait for your pics! It sounds like you had grass paper, which I'm still a huge fan of.

r64, at least you had wallpaper. We had that dark faux-wood paneling in our house that everybody had in the 1970s. You went around to everyone's house and they all looked exactly the same as yours. Like walking into a British estate home's library.

Yeah, grass paper (or grass cloth?) was in the kitchen & then the faux wood was in the basement and den. Here's two of the bathrooms I found on my phone. You get the picture. The living room is a little "nicer" looking but it's still dated yet my mother will remind everyone the sofas are Baker! Yes, from 1972... not quite the same.

Oh my god I love the wallpaper in the first, and that blue toilet and sink!

@ R70, oops

oh my wallpaper on the ceiling too! r70

I actually knew someone who lived there in the '90s. She moved into her mother's condo after she went into a nursing home. She had moved some of her own stuff in, but still had her mother's blue velour sofa and the shag carpeting was still there.

It's an excellent place to buy. The towers are God's waiting room for fussy, elderly Jewish folks who kept their places in excellent condition. A reno would consist only of paint, new carpeting and appliances.

haha that's my bathroom (the blue) & the other one was my brother's .

All ceilings had to be done...and electrical outlet plates & light switch plates. It gave a "seamless" feeling... lol.

My Long Island inlaws have that beige toilet and 1974 metallic look wallpaper to this day, though not as nice looking as in r70

Not sure if you noticed, in the brown bathroom picture, we had blue and brown towels to go with each bathroom. I forgot about that. They're paper thin now. I think they were purchased 30 years ago & still they are hanging up!

Thanks r76...I feel honored. I just noticed the blue garbage for the blue bath and the brown one for the brown bath. It's funny to me now because I don't even notice these things when I am there. I wonder where my mom found these things way back in the day. I don't think Bed Bath & Beyond was even around yet.

ha ! im a freak for the color green but they went too far here.

Are these rooms an acid trip?

Or are these the fantasies of a stoned Brady sibling?

Part of the problem looks like some decorated using new products/patterns but using their old methods. Victorian-ish and other traditional homes would always have the same wallpaper on all walls. This more modern stuff works as an accent wall, and you almost don't need to hang art over it. Ditto the furniture, the big sectional is a statement piece, doesn't need a ton of crap around it.

Those early 70s highrise condos are an interesting situation, where the floorplans often replicate the typical suburban bungalow, and older people who want to do away with house maintenance feel familiar moving in, replicating their suburban experience.

That apartment belongs to this guy.

[quote] [R15], is there really a market for furniture like this? Seriously?

As shocked as I was when I first viewed the photos, I have to admit to admiring the sheer brio, the exuberance of the place. I'd almost want to preserve it as a time capsule.

That 3d tour gave me life! Not only would I happily move in,I wouldnt touch a thing. So much personality,unlike 90% of the shit you see nowadays.

Is this considered "off the lake?" or is it too far inland.

They owned it literally and figuratively. They decorated for themselves, not for whoever would live there next.

I love this place! I don't think I would change a thing! The 70s are back!!

Maybe I am missing something on the floor plan, but I can swear there is only two bedrooms not three.

I like that shade of green actually, it’s very energizing and fresh looking even after all these years.

The building looks like Cabrini Green from the outside though, ugh

Holy fuck. I actually gasped flipping through those pics.

R83 what are those supposed to be? TVs?

What furniture designer is the equivalent to Paul Evans today?

Ironically with 70s nostalgia that condo is IN again, baby!

The electronics and phone in the study are amazing; land-line based phone/fax and another touch tone phone. State of the art for the period.

If I lived in Chicago, I would go to an open house or pretend to be a prospective buyer, just for an in-person experience. It's that fascinating.

I'm reminded a bit of the Malachite Room back in St Petersburg. I also love malachite. I've purchased several pieces because of my love.

I wish Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass could just auto play when you click on the photo gallery.

They were playing in my mind when I opened the link.

r89, you are right. I don't see three bedrooms. Unless they are saying that what is the office and what is the dining room could be turned into bedrooms. But there are not three bedrooms on the floor plan or in the pictures. There is one bedroom and a very large study which could make a bedroom.

[quote] Is this considered "off the lake?" or is it too far inland.

Kedzie is about as far from the lake as you can get and still be in Chicago. You can see city skyline in distance in one of the pics.

So I met my parents in a restaurant and couldn't take more pics of the house (I posted the bathroom above)... but I brought up this thread & of course they instantly knew half a dozen people who lived in here. My mom then exclaimed (envision your best Jewish inflections here):

"Oh THAT place?? That place looks like CABRINI GREEN!!"

She was talking about the outside, and she has no idea about this listing (though she couldn't see how her house was just as bad). It is mostly elderly Jews, though realtors can't say that - anyone in the Chicago area knows exactly where the towers are (there are apparently a few different ones). Then she went on to say

"nobody lives there anymore unless their parents die and they have to move in because they didn't leave them anything"

The place is huge. The master bedroom is huge (24'×15'). From pics it looks like it is currently being used as a den/office. How would you solve that tiny bathroom problem, though?

Jesus Christ, some of you are really obsessed with Jews.

i'd love to own that sofa. spectacularly overdone.

Some of us are jews, r104.... and it just looks like the places that our parents / grandparents / misc relatives lived in.

Jewish projects?

No one has yet asked the obvious question: why is this well-cared for, nearly 2,000-sq-foot unit selling for under $200,000? Even if it were in Chicago's worst ghetto I'd think it would sell for more than that. Yes, it's in hideous taste, but that's an easy fix. Why is it so cheap?

the hoa is nearly 800 bucks. the location looks far out from the city

The gynormous bedroom with closets at opposing ends was likely built as two secondary bedrooms, the master at the end has the walk-in and adjoining ensuite..

Yes - this is older Jew towers. It's not really close to anything special - although there is a lot of shopping around there and you're not too far from downtown. For a young person, it's not exactly where you'd want to live.

My mom's JCC is right around the corner. It's West Rogers Park - about 75% Jewish. That being said - there are some furniture items in there that would go for quite a bit of money. You just can't see through everything else going on.

r111 here - this is right on the line between Chicago and suburbia. You're away but not THAT far away from everything. Still not an area that's 'desirable' or 'hip.

And there's a Kosher Dunkin Donuts down the street on Devon Ave, if that matters. A pretty large orthodox community just adjacent.

It's kinda like Frank Lloyd Wright gone awry.

Frank Lloyd Wrong.

R111 not only have we seen them. We’ve discussed them.

As an aside, this is the first time I hear about Shabbot elevators (knew about "Sabath Mode" on some ranges), learn something new every day.

[quote]As an aside, this is the first time I hear about Shabbot elevators

I stayed in a hotel in Israel that had them. I don't understand. The elevator can go to certain floors on the Sabbath, but not others?

That apartment is frozen in time, it's impeccable. Perhaps the owners had another apartment in Florida, California or NYC. There is no way the owners lived there full time. Unless they managed to track down new unused old stock of 1970s furniture and other items every few years and replaced them. At the very least, the carpeting must be fairly new. Do you realize how gross 40+ year old carpeting would be?!

I bought a 50 year old post war co-op, the kitchen sink is original, it's still in great shape, I just changed the faucet and the plumber also replaced the pipes. The original owners spent their time living in my state for six months and the rest of the time in Florida.

That is...incredible. One room done up like that would be apalling, but this is admirable in its way. I actually love it. And a three bedroom apartment for $200k??! Here in DC a studio apartment is more than that.

r108. Maybe because no one wants to do their laundry in the basement anymore. I know it's a deal breaker for me buying a place, I have to have my own washer and dryer.

R117 - I would think a Shabbot elevator would have an attendant who mans the elevator from Friday evenings to Saturday evenings so nobody has to press a button. Now, how the hell they call for the elevator is a wonder to me. Or if it just regularly goes up and down on every other floor and you just wait for the door to open. I guess they could program the elevator to do this.

Typically religious Jews will always buy low floors in a high rise particularly for this reason. Go to any 2nd, 3rd, 4th floors of a high-rise and there will be a larger percentage of mezzuzahs on the doorframes. And the kitchens are always custom.

R108 - it's not in a hot or desirable area. Not awful by any means - but skirts suburbia. Plus it's an older building - this is one of I think 4 or 5 towers on Kedzie avenue. It's dated 60's 70's housing and there's no 'wow' factor at all.

What's absolutely SHOCKING to me is the price of parking - only $50 a month? I've never heard of that in any high-rise in Chicago. The outdoor parking there is horrendous - which is why it's $25/month. You have to shovel all snow and no protection from the elements whatsoever.

I pay close to $200 in my condo building in Chicago for indoor heated parking and that's pretty good. And I don't have an assigned space - it's valet, which is actually less desirable than an assigned parking spot, which are few, coveted and fought over.

From what I understand reading an article, Shabbot mode means the elevator automatically runs through all the floors, pausing to let people get on-off. Some fancier ones only pause at the lobby and whatever floors residents have requested to their building management (might cut down a lot of useless stops).. This only happens during that time period of Friday to Saturday Night sunset (aka can't order oh B&H time).

Wrong R123 - a shabbot elevator has a devilish 7 year old who waits at the ground floor and then pushes all the buttons. It's essentially the same thing.

Woe to the ones on the high floors - that's a nightmare and could fuck up being on time for services. Can you imaging going down and then forgetting something? "I'm not going up there - you go up there. NO way - you forgot it - you go up there."

Many elevators in those types of buildings also have a timed door response - meaning the close door function DOES NOT WORK. The doors open and stay open for 30 seconds then close on their own. This is to allow elderly people time to get on the elevator.

Is that a fax machine in the office?

For those commenting on the price, please note this building is on the very far far Northern tip of Chicago. It's more like Lincolnwood or Skokie ... though yes, technically Rogers Park (Chicago neighborhood). If you had to take public transit to work downtown, it would be the longest possible trip from the North side in Chicago. It doesn't get any longer. I suppose you'd just drive. (I am not sure how it compares to the South side or West, but for the North - it's far).

You'd never see something closer to downtown - or even in Edgewater (more gay neighborhood far North) at this price. This neighborhood doesn't exactly have much going on except old lady pool exercises at the JCC. I think it's a price for people on a fixed income, which is probably the group the building attracts.

2 bedroom condos in a more high-traffic, close-to-downtown part of the city are going to be at least twice as much (and 5x as much in certain buildings). They'll also be more up to date, typically. Chicago's price ranges are quite something, though. Basically anyone can afford to live there if they want to give up certain amenities or don't care about noise from the L train, etc... it's nothing like Manhattan or DC unless you are 22-32 and single & "need to be where everyone is"

My NYC friends are always bewildered by how many of their Chicago office coworkers (making less than them) have purchased their condos, but it's actually possible here.

What's sad is that there is one extra pillow on the left side of the bed and in the walk-in closet, a bunch of hangers and some woman's clothes.

I have a feeling this woman's husband died and she left for Florida and died many years later. I would say she didn't touch the apartment because of too many memories. Sad.

A lot of the furnishings were high-end and expensive (including the wall paper) during the day.

R126 - Not sure how many young people without serious financial backing could buy in New York. But yes - Chicago housing prices are much less expensive than the coasts.

More money for vacations, saving, shopping and going out. And Chicago isn't really THAT cheap - but compared to NY and SF? Yes - incredibly so.

Lack of transit up there. But you could buy the equivalent out by the Cumberland stop on the CTA and it would probably be cheaper.

No way anyone Irish EVER lived in that apartment. Never. Not ever.

For the poster up thread, there is a coin laundry on every floor.

And the wallpaper, as some of you could tell, just screams 1970s.

Probably the highest assessment in the building - the higher the floor, the higher the assessment. And it may be the largest apartment on the floor. So, they may very well be paying the highest assessment in the building.

Interesting to see this apartment. I know exactly where this is. I sometimes drive by these buildings cutting through to avoid a commercial street (very busy) over to a side street heading over to the lake.

Strange to see no walk in shower even with 2 bathrooms. Usually with 2 bathrooms, one has a walk in shower.

The listing claims "tons of closet space" but not from the layout diagram.

I'll take the word of the poster commenting on the expensive furniture. For me, it was hard to see what the actual layout of the apartment was with all the conflicting patterns and colors.

I think the floor plan is inaccurate. They moved a wall for a bedroom or something. And that closet doesn't seem to be on the floor plan but maybe it's part of what is labeled "WC" (which usually means water closet / bathroom - but perhaps it is where the hot water heater is & the rest is clothes?)

The Irish stuff was just a joke on the green. I've been to Dublin enough to know that it doesn't look "Irish" at all... not that there's a particular style there really, but it's definitely not THIS.

I mean they said 3br but only 2 show on the floor plan. And the closet in the pics is not in the floor plan.

[quote] I've been to Dublin enough to know that it doesn't look "Irish" at all..

Nah, this [italic]is[/italic] what often happens when Irish people go on a bender.

lol no it's way too much work. You have to zoom in on the 3d to see it but the dining chair fabric was the same as the living room UFO sofa. And the Office sofa matched the rug pattern exactly (which is even more odd - how did they do that?) Anyway, this place took a lot of hard work at one (crazy) time. I still like the office actually. Not sure why.

They should’ve gone with rainbow and gold-coin wallpaper.

Very psychedelic place.

The large 24'x15' room used as a study used to be 2 bedrooms. Looking at the floor plan, the bedroom on the far right side of the apartment is the master bedroom with the "WC" labeling the walk in closet.

One sad thing I noticed. Hanging on the otherwise empty left side of the walk in closet is a plastic covered long item from "Margies". Margie's used to be (they may be gone now; I don't know) a big bridal store in Chicago. The clothes on the right side of the closet look like a man's clothes to me. I wonder if the wife died and the husband kept her wedding dress.

Am I back in the 70s? Also, I'm blind now.

It took me a while to identify that empty space with the orangey, browney, wavy wall covering and the chandelier and the white rug with green splotches . According to the layout, it's the foyer. Looks as if there should have been something else in that space.

It would have to be scraped. Combine the breakfast area and kitchen, then open up to the dining room. Move the wall between the two bedrooms to make a large master suite and small guest room. At a hundred bucks a square foot, you’d have $ to make the absolutely necessary renovations. In LA, $1K a square foot is becoming the norm for areas anyone would agree to live.

I don't mean this as a dig or to be catty, just simply as an observation, but one thing I find odd about the place is the dichotomy between the excessive, expensive decor (others above mentioned the pricey furnishings) and the other run-down elements of the condo. The appliances appear very crummy/old, the bathrooms are generally underwhelming, with standard shower heads, basic faucets, tubs, etc. It's obvious they wanted to create a stunning and luxurious environment, but there's a lot of crap that really detracts from that whole feel. Plus the layout is rather basic. It actually reminds me of my first crappy apartment, with the sliver kitchen and tiny bathroom. And what's with the phones in the bathrooms? Was that a thing back then?

The surrounding area looks very Eastern bloc.

I had never heard of Shabbat elevators before. What a bizarre religion.

"The Israeli Knesset passed a special Shabbat elevator law[2] in 2001, ordering the planning and building of all residential buildings, and public buildings which have more than one elevator, to install a control mechanism for Shabbat (Shabbat module) in one of the elevators.[3]

In this mode, an elevator will stop automatically at every floor, allowing people to step in and out without having to press any buttons. Otherwise, Jewish law prohibits observers from using an elevator on Shabbat in the normal manner, because pressing the button to operate the elevator closes a circuit, which is one of the activities prohibited on Shabbat, and may also indirectly lead to "writing" of the new floor number in the display.

In 2009, some Haredi rabbis, led by Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, published a religious injunction forbidding the use of Shabbat elevators.[4]

Some interpreters believe that a non-Jew known as a "Shabbos goy" may not be employed to press the buttons and hold the door for Jewish people, in buildings that do not have Shabbat elevators, unless the Jew has great difficulty using the stairs themselves. As discussed in that article, a non-Jew is not expected to keep the Sabbath like a Jew. Therefore, Jewish law holds that a Jew may benefit from work performed by a non-Jew only if the non-Jew performs this work for his own good and of his own free will."

Irish people don’t actully decorate their homes in all-green. We’re not fucking leprechauns.

R143 If you are offended by the Irish jokes please open a case with the Housing department and in the vast majority of cases we will file a grievance on your behalf. Then nothing will happen.

This thread has me plotzing and I'm not even Jewish.

[quote] had never heard of Shabbat elevators before. What a bizarre religion.

Supposedly sane adults kneeling in front of a wooden or plaster idol beseeching it for assistance is bizarre.

Green is my favorite color. I cannot dismiss the place completely without living in it for a while.

They could have moved it intact to NY and used it as the Boys in the Band set. Or would the play then have had to take place at Leonard's apartment?

Shabbot elevator ... I’ve never heard of that brand.

Original owner

My best friend had a kitchen that looked like that in their newly built house in the 70's. The bathrooms had the same style AND they had a bar corner in their living room. I was so jealous I could die. We lived in a normal boring home from the 30's and visiting my friend was like coming to an American tv-series.

R142 , R146 All religion is bizarre ( and twisted ) , just scientology + time .

r143 - nobody thinks that they do. It's called a joke (or an Aer Lingus cabin). And it was a basic joke that really shouldn't offend you. Why so touchy? I thought Irish people had a sense of humor... or did millennial-ism ruin that too?

R140 - the mindset is more "if it works, leave it alone" And as for the bathroom, "I don't want to deal with a plumber... they just make a mess and charge you for what - a faucet we already have?" There are some nice stores in Chicago (Studio 41 is one) that sell bath fixtures, but you can spend $4000 there in a blink of an eye for 2 bathrooms (and that's before it's even installed!) I tried to redo my shower there, and the estimate & headache (with new tile too) outweighed any benefit of doing it for a while.

Kitchen appliances only tend do get replaced when they break.

I've never seen phone jacks in a condo bathroom before, though. It would only be a thing if someone had a disability maybe and was concerned they would fall or whatever. But who knows, if it was built to attract the retired crowd, maybe they did it for that reason.

On the missing bedroom issue, the description says that the big second bedroom/den was once two small bedrooms, and could easily be separated again.

Personally, I'd carve a master bath out of that huge master bedroom space, then break up the den into two smaller bedrooms again. The two small hallway baths could be recombined into one decent-sized second bath.

Can you imagine how much that place would be in Manhattan, where post war apartments are almost as expensive as pre-war?! That apartment is huge.

My co-op is around 1000 square feet and I'm including my walk-in closet in those measurements. The co-ops in my area, which has been going through rapid gentrification over the past few years, are now hitting the $600,000-$650,000 mark and I'm not even in Manhattan, yet I'm only a few minutes away. I have an amazing Manhattan skyline view. It's the best of both worlds, I'm close to the city with an amazing view, yet I don't have to deal with the hassle of living in Manhattan, such as outrageous food prices. btw, I only paid $45,000 for my co-op, that was less than 20 years ago.

It would be over 1 million if it was in one of the newer luxury buildings in Chicago too. It's in the middle of nowhere.

This was just built in Lincoln Park, for example. Everything is 500k - 2 mil and that's actually not as expensive as a building actually on the lake right nearby. Chicago will have Manhattan prices, but this price is not representative of the city. It represents one tiny far North tip of the city where there is an abundance of condos and a shortage of elderly retirees to buy them.

I meant to say Chicago will Never* have Manhattan prices, but..

It is the Silver Spring of Chicago.

OMG, R159! Stevie should live there!

Why would anyone retire to Chicago?

Because they already lived their whole life their and their families are there.

I guess I don't know Chicago very well but that building seems to be in the middle of nowhere.

R153 it's probably an Irish-American. Actual Irish don't usually give a shit.

I love it.

What's going on with the sloppy paint job in the corner of the living room? Hiding mold?

[quote]Why would anyone retire to Chicago?

He wasn't talking about people who retire [bold]to[/bold] Chicago. He meant people who retire [bold]in[/bold] Chicago, i.e., people who are already there.

Probably water damage. The condo is being sold "as-is" per the listing.

Phones in hotel bathrooms used to be a thing before everyone had mobiles/cells. Not sure what the rationale was.

[quote]Phones in hotel bathrooms used to be a thing before everyone had mobiles/cells. Not sure what the rationale was.

So you could answer the phone while you're on the shitter.

THAT SOFA! THAT GREEN BEDROOM!!! My God how tacky. Great price for that much room though. But a total gut job will be required. And the building looks like a big hospital from the outside.

Phones in bathrooms were a convenience and/or status thing, particularly for elderly folks, but also for anyone who needed to be “on call,” like executives or doctors, etc. Or anyone who thought they were that important, or wanted to give that impression. My dad’s onetime boss had them in his mountain cabin that were stayed at exactly once. One of many ostentatious touches that were out of place in a cabin. He was a jackass. I also remember seeing them in a hotel fairly recently and chuckling at how anachronistic they seem now. Like car phones.

[quote]Not sure what the rationale was.

For being able to answer the phone on the toilet, pre-cell phones? I agree making calls there is weird, but when you’re waiting for an important call, or just imagine a need to, the rationale seems pretty obvious.

I remember the first time we stayed in a "swanky" hotel; we could tell it was classy because there was a phone in the bathroom. (This was in the late '60s.) And even swankier was when they at a TV in the bathroom.

[quote]So you could answer the phone while you're on the shitter.

Talk 'n' Turd.

"I'm. Opening. A. Jar-r. Of. Pickles."

R169 - this explains why hotels had phones in bathrooms

“As of December 2008, it was still an AAA requirement for Four and Five Diamond properties to have bathroom access to a landline or cordless phone.”

The building is not in the middle of nowhere. If you check the google maps satellite view you will see that the areas to the east, north and south are densely populated.

Directly north is a commercial street Touhy Ave with multiple bus lines. A bus stops in front of the building. Also, multiple Jewish temples and associations in the area.

Directly west, flowing north and south is the North Branch of the Chicago River and beyond that is a large shopping mall.

This building, similar to the other 4 buildings in the same area is actually the most conveniently located for anyone who relies on public transportation.

It's in the middle of nowhere relative to Chicago neighborhoods, not relative to Topeka.

Nobody who works in the loop would live there.... which is most people. No (major) employers are anywhere near there. No young person (under 30 or even 40) would live there.

It is essentially a suburb, which is fine if that's what you want or are retired.

West Rogers Park is a densely populated area of (mostly) Indian immigrants and Orthodox Jews. There's not exactly much going on around there unless you like Indian food.

It could take uber 45 minutes just to get to the Wrigleyville Cum Dump, and that's when the cubs are NOT playing.

West Rogers Park used to be a liberal reform Jewish neighborhood.

Yeah that's where my mom is from. The reform Jews all left.

My mom is 70 - if that puts it in perspective.... but yeah she grew up there as a little kid, raised reform, basically. No bat mitzvah but still holidays.

I knew at first glance the building was in Chicago.

I’m guessing that’s the original wallpaper. Very 70s.

No. Just no.

[quote]There's not exactly much going on around there unless you like Indian food.

Well, that Google satellite view shows it's only a couple of blocks to Olive Garden and Red Lobster!

[quote]Phones in hotel bathrooms used to be a thing before everyone had mobiles/cells. Not sure what the rationale was.

Simple: It’s so you can call for help if you induce a cerebral aneurysm by overstraining.

[quote]I remember the first time we stayed in a "swanky" hotel; we could tell it was classy because there was a phone in the bathroom. (This was in the late '60s.) And even swankier was when they at a TV in the bathroom.

Now that's class! We always stayed in motels that had a machine attached to the bed where you dropped a quarter and got a nice massage.

....

Actually I know someone who did just retire to Chicago believe it or not. He lived in Ft. Lauderdale the past 25 years and decided to move back due to the dullness and lack of culture in Ft.Laud/Wilton Manors - plus he could never get used to the plastic stupid people. His words, not mine.

So - it CAN happen - not that it's the usual flow.

Just bumping because I wanted to see the decor again.

The bathroom appears to house Red Door, White Linen and Aromatics Elixir. Bubbe would have wafted into the room before she actually made her visual appearance. I would have really enjoyed that. My Aunt Lil always did that.

I've seen this place before 2018 but I thought it was on the DL.

Can't find another thread this one might be in.

Anyone else remember seeing this before?

The faucets, sinks, etc. may look shabby and bad in the year 2018. However, back when this was decorated, they may have been better brands for the era.

Excuse me for bumping, but this was really an enjoyable thread - it was linked int he recent on of 70s decor.

I actually wound up liking a lot of the apartment; the comment about the Art Deco wallpaper belonging in Suspiria was dead on the money.

Paul Evans (who appears to have designed at least two of the pieces featured) is an acquired taste, but IMO one of the most creative designers of the period in America, tying into the work of artists like Louise Nevelson and earlier outsider artists in Chicago like Joseph Cornell. I hope those pieces were salvaged by someone who knew what they were - some of Evans' work sells for the half-million mark.

I've lived in Chicago and found it depressing and the people insular. I'd have to be paid to live there again.

It sold for $147,000, the buyers got a really good deal.

Particularly if the furniture was thrown in, in which case they made out like bandits.

Someone watched way too much Sesame Street as a child....

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

I could live there without changing anything!