Uptown and Edgewater: water and fire damage restoration

Sheridan Park is largely six-flats and courtyard apartments ^[1]. A six-flat is simple in plan: one central stair with two units per floor. That simplicity means a fire or leak affects everyone quickly. Smoke fills the only shared stair, and water runs down from the top floor toward the first-floor pair. If a back stair exists, it may be wood and exposed to weather, and it is the second way out, so report any burned or weakened section at once.

On a small building like this the owner is often close at hand, which can speed up decisions. Get all six households the same information on who the contractor is and when work will happen. Each tenant still needs to contact their own insurer ^[5].

Margate Park's terracotta apartment hotels, since converted into condos and co-ops ^[1], have small units along long interior corridors. They were designed for a different kind of living, and their mechanical systems may have been changed many times. Long corridors can carry smoke to units far from a fire, while vertical plumbing chases can bring water down through kitchens and bathrooms in a stack.

Glazed terracotta fronts should be cleaned only with methods that won't damage them. Where a building is a designated landmark or lies in a Chicago landmark district, outside repairs may go through commission review ^[3]. Uptown Square Historic District and other designations are worth checking; your contractor or the city can help you confirm what applies to your address.

Edgewater's lakefront high-rises ^[2] present familiar tower issues: leaks crossing several floors, corridor smoke and scheduled freight elevators. There are also older buildings here with hot-water or steam risers that can fail in cold snaps, sending hot water into several units. If you see steam or hot water, leave the area and call the engineer.

Lake exposure can drive rain through old window assemblies during storms. That kind of leak often comes back, so ask whether the source is a window, a riser or something above you, and make sure it's fixed before the finishes go back. For drying details, read about structural drying.

Old apartments often have plaster walls, built-in cabinets, wood floors and radiators. Plaster can stay wet well after paint looks dry, and hardwood will cup if water sits under it. Slow, measured drying gives both the best chance. Wet drywall: save or replace explains the thinking for wall materials generally, and how long drying takes explains why a schedule can stretch. If the building's heat is off in winter, ask about freeze protection for pipes, since a second loss can follow the first.

The Chicago overview has all areas. Directly south is Lakeview; to the west and southwest are Portage Park and Jefferson Park and Logan Square; downtown are River North and Streeterville and the Loop and South Loop.

Depending on what happened, read sewage backup cleanup, smoke damage cleanup, structural drying, fire damage restoration or water extraction. You can also start with what to do first after water damage.