12 Feb wrecking permits seal fate for group of post fire houses along huron street

wrecking permits were issued for 4 and 8 east huron on 2-9-2016. there are not many houses left downtown, as one can imagine, and these two were slated for demo back in 2008. the owners (a law firm i believe) first auctioned off the interior furnishings way back when. i was there, and if i recall correctly, the marble fireplace was sold to an architectural antique company in minnesota.

i knew this day would come, but it breaks my heart that the pace of demolition for these post-fire houses, dotting the downtown area, is starting to pick up again. just at the end of last year another one came down along dearborn. to me, these houses represent the “little guy” that stubbornly and resiliently subsists, despite the rapidly changing landscape brought about by the construction of big high rises surrounding and often dwarfing them. it is especially hard to see them lose out, succumbing to the relentless erasure of nineteenth century residential architecture.