Walk down 17th Street in Pilsen and you can’t miss them. Two massive, 185-foot towers piercing the skyline. They’ve been there since 1914.
Honestly, it's a bit surreal to see them now. They’re wrapped in scaffolding. Not the "we’re fixing this up" kind of scaffolding, but the "don't let the bricks fall on someone" kind. This is St Adalbert Church in Chicago, and if you think it's just another old building, you're missing the point. It’s a battleground.
The Landmark Fight That Changed Everything
For years, the Archdiocese of Chicago and the local community have been at each other's throats. The church closed its doors for regular worship back in 2019. It was heart-wrenching for the Polish and Mexican families who built their lives around those pews. The Archdiocese cited a $3 million repair bill for those iconic towers and dwindling attendance.
Basically, the money wasn't there.
But the community didn't just walk away. They fought for a "Designated Chicago Landmark" status. It was a rollercoaster. In June 2025, they finally got a win, but it was sort of a bittersweet one. The Chicago City Council voted to protect the main church building, but the rest of the 2.1-acre campus—the rectory, the school, and the convent—didn't get the same shield.
👉 See also: Campbell Hall Virginia Tech Explained (Simply)
Preservation Chicago, led by Ward Miller, called it a "fabulous monument," but many former parishioners were furious. They felt like the city cut a backroom deal. By only landmarking the church, the city made it easier for the Archdiocese to sell the surrounding land to developers.
Why St Adalbert Church in Chicago is So Weirdly Beautiful
Most people don't realize that Henry Schlacks, the architect, basically tried to build a slice of Rome in the middle of a working-class immigrant neighborhood. He modeled it after St. Paul’s Outside the Walls. He even traveled to Italy with the parish priest, Father Casimir Gronkowski, to hand-pick the marble for the altars.
Imagine that. Immigrants who were making pennies a day in Chicago's factories were pooling their money to send a priest to Italy for marble. It’s wild.
The interior—back when you could actually see it—was a masterpiece of Renaissance Revival. We're talking:
✨ Don't miss: Burnsville Minnesota United States: Why This South Metro Hub Isn't Just Another Suburb
- Huge stained-glass rose windows.
- Italian marble everywhere.
- A replica of Michelangelo’s La Pieta (which caused a massive protest when the Archdiocese tried to move it in 2022).
The Current Mess: Who Owns It Now?
As we sit here in 2026, the status is... complicated. While the landmark status protects the exterior from being demolished, it doesn't stop it from being sold. There have been rumors of a nondenominational church looking to buy it. There was even a plan for a music academy that fell through.
A nonprofit developer once proposed using part of the site for affordable housing for asylum seekers. That caused another stir.
People are worried. If a private developer takes over, sure, the towers stay up, but the soul of the place changes. You've got folks like Julie Sawicki from the Society of St. Adalbert who are still pushing for it to become a "Polish National Shrine." They want it to be a place for occasional Mass and concerts, not a luxury condo lobby or a trendy event space.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Closure
A lot of people think the church just ran out of people. That’s only half the story. While it's true the numbers were down from the 1950s, St Adalbert was still a massive community anchor for the Mexican-American community that moved into Pilsen later.
🔗 Read more: Bridal Hairstyles Long Hair: What Most People Get Wrong About Your Wedding Day Look
The real killer was the "Renew My Church" initiative. It’s a massive restructuring by the Archdiocese. They have too many buildings and not enough priests or cash. When you have a building that needs $3 million just to stop the towers from crumbling, the math gets ugly fast.
What’s Actually Next for the Site?
If you're heading to Pilsen, you can still see the exterior, but don't expect to go inside. The building is "deconsecrated." In Church-speak, that means it’s relegated to "profane but not sordid use." Essentially, it's just a building now, not a sacred space.
Here is the reality of what to look for next:
- The Sale: Watch the property listings. The Archdiocese is still looking for a buyer who can handle the massive maintenance costs while respecting the new landmark rules.
- The Restoration: Now that it's a landmark, there might be access to city grants or tax credits to finally fix those towers.
- The Convent: Keep an eye on the 1626 W. 17th St. address. Since it wasn't landmarked, this is where you'll likely see the first signs of major redevelopment or demolition.
Practical Steps if You Care About Chicago Heritage
If you want to see the "Crown Jewel of Pilsen" before it changes forever, take the Pink Line to the 18th Street stop. You can see the towers from the platform.
If you want to get involved, the Society of St. Adalbert is the main group still fighting to keep the site as a shrine. You can also follow Preservation Chicago for updates on the legal battles regarding the surrounding buildings.
The best thing you can do is actually visit the neighborhood. Buy some tacos, walk the streets, and look up at those towers. They represent a century of immigrant sweat and "pennies, nickels, and dimes." Even if the doors stay locked, the history is still written in that crumbling terracotta.