Renovation and expansion work on what was once the Happy Village bar is progressing well on Wolcott Avenue in the East Village neighborhood of West Town. A summer 2024 visit to the site showed little more than the north portion of the original building gutted, with barren space behind it and to the south. Now, lot where the demolished single-story portion of the bar used to sit has been improved with a two-story building that stretches to the rear of the construction site.
Rendering of 1057-1059 North Wolcott from eastvillagechicago.org
Happy Village circa August 2021 pre-demolition, via Google Street View
Happy Village, at the corner of Wolcott Avenue and Thomas Street. Photo by Daniel Schell
Original facade at 1059 North Wolcott. Photo by Daniel Schell
Peter Hand Brewery seal. Photo by Daniel Schell
A demolition permit for the single-story building at 1057 North Wolcott Avenue was issued in August 2023. That was followed less than a week later by a permit to repair and replace interior elements at the main bar, at 1059 North Wolcott. Finally, on May 22 of last year, a renovation permit was issued to expand the 1059 restaurant space onto the now-demolished 1057 space, and build a two-story residential addition atop that expansion.
Photo by Daniel Schell
A peek into the ground floor of the restaurant expansion. Photo by Daniel Schell
The north facade, along Thomas Street. Photo by Daniel Schell
Photo by Daniel Schell
Photo by Daniel Schell
The result will be a three-story building at 1057, with restaurant space at ground level and four dwelling units on the two upper floors, and the renovated single residential unit over the original eatery at 1059. That second story has been gutted, apparent from the blue sky visible through the windows from the street. There will also be two surface parking spaces added at the back of the 1057 Wolcott lot.
Rear of the 1057 Wolcott expansion, from the alley. Photo by Danel Schell
Photo by Daniel Schell
Photo by Daniel Schell
StableRocket is listed as the general contractor in both of the latter two permits. The new rendition of the building is based on plans by SGW Architecture & Design. The May 2024 renovation permit shows a reported cost of $3.4 million.
Photo by Daniel Schell
Photo by Daniel Schell
The property has changed hands twice over the past six years or so. At the moment, it is difficult to ascertain what new ownership’s plan is for the next iteration of the restaurant space.
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A little bit of Chicago saved and appropriately enhanced.
I live a few houses down on Honore, and I love watching the progress as I pass by via the alley. It might not be the most economical way to build new housing generally, but it is a fantastic way to preserve this corner spot. Cladding the cinder block with Chicago common brick in the back is such a nice touch. I am very excited to see how the facade turns out! I hadn’t seen a render before, but I figured it would be good given the care that is obviously going into this passion project. I cannot wait to see it completed and to try out the restaurant that hopefully opens soon after completion.
What a cool little project that preserves a cool little building. I would love to see more projects like this around the city.