The South Side Fire House in Waukegan is doing its part in saving lives today, this time acting as a transitional homeless shelter for single men.
Built in 1911, South Side Fire House found a new life after it closed in 1983. Since 1993, the building has served Waukegan and the surrounding area as a homeless single men’s shelter, the first of its kind in Lake County.
“It’s one of these iconic buildings that found a new use,” said Ty Rohrer, museum supervisor at the Waukegan History Museum. “This is a constant battle in preservation today with many buildings, to find a new purpose. It’s rare. And this was the first homeless shelter in Lake County, so that is definitely important to the community.”
The structure is Italian villa, with its four-story tower, and the detailing is more consistent with the craftsman style, according to the Waukegan web site. “The building is kind of unique in Waukegan architecture. It’s a mixture of architectures,” Rohrer said.
The Waukegan Fire Department was founded in 1847 and by the early 1900s population growth led to a second fire house on the south side of the city. One of the notable features of the design is “the brick corbelling (staggering bricks) found on the upper story of the tower, which creates a series of geometric patterns on the wall surfaces around the window openings,” according to the Waukegan website. “The broad overhanging eaves on the building are supported by simple but substantial wood brackets. Window openings feature multipaned sashes in 8-over-2 and other combinations. A pair of wooden doors dominate the facade.”
The South Side Fire Station was recognized by the Waukegan Bicentennial Commission as one of 27 architecturally significant buildings and designated as a Bicentennial Landmark, an honorary title, Rohrer said.
The fire house closed in 1983 after the new central station at Jackson Street and Belvidere Road opened, and sat vacant for 10 years. The city invested about $80,000 in the structure for use by its building, zoning and code enforcement departments. However, the idea was nixed and the city deeded the property and sold it for $1 to Waukegan Township for the county’s first homeless shelter.
Longtime Township Supervisor Milton Staben had worked to establish a shelter after the downtown YMCA closed. The building was named the Staben Center for Staben and his son, a criminal defense lawyer; both died in 1993, according to township brochures.
The building was declared a landmark in 2000 by the Waukegan Historical Landmark Preservation Commission. The designation protects the exterior, Rohrer said. Buildings must meet one of seven criteria in order to be placed on the list, such as architecture, historic value, or having a notable builder or artist.
“It’s important to Waukegan history because of its first use, being the kind of iconic fire station on the south side of Waukegan,” Rohrer said. “It’s an old building that withstood the test of time. It’s not your ordinary, utilitarian fire house.”
After the death of state Rep. Eddie Washington (D-Waukegan), in 2010, the former South Side Fire Station was rededicated in the lawmaker’s honor. Washington was an advocate for the homeless, according to newspaper reports.
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The Staben House, a shelter for homeless women and children, is now in a seven-bedroom house on the west side of Waukegan at 3000 Grand Ave. The women’s and children’s shelter opened in 1997 in a house built in 1930 by Dr. Robert Smith, a Barbados native and one of the first black doctors in Lake County, according to newspaper accounts.
Both The Staben House and The Eddie Washington Center complement each other with their services. Fifteen men live in the shelter for up to six months with additional counseling for another six months. The Eddie Washington Center estimates that more than 2,500 men have been helped through the years.
“And we’re still saving lives,” said Marc Jones, a manager at the Eddie Washington Center.
Shonda Talerico Dudlicek is a freelance writer.
South Side Fire Station
Building size: Four-story tower is 52 feet tall.
What’s in a name? South Side Fire Station was named for its location in the city.
Building age: Built in 1911 as Waukegan’s second fire house.
Original use: Fire house.
Current use: Transitional housing for homeless single adult men in the Lake County area. Residents volunteer at local social service agencies and with community activities to help develop a strong work ethic.
Did you know? Fifty-foot fire hoses were hung full-length to dry in the tower.