City officials issued a demolition permit Thursday for the long-abandoned Damon Silos, which date back to the early 1900s.
The city’s Department of Buildings approved the permit days after outlining a plan for the demolition at a community meeting at the Arturo Velasquez Westside Technical Institute, 2800 S. Western Ave.
Officials from the Department of Buildings, the Chicago Department of Public Health, and demolition contractor Heneghan Wrecking outlined plans for tearing down the silos located near 29th Street and Damen Avenue, just north of the Stevenson Expressway. The demolition is expected to take about six months to complete, though it wasn’t yet known when it would begin.
The grain silos along with 23 acres of riverfront industrial land were sold by Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration to Michael Tadin Jr. for $6.5 million in 2022.
The silos have sat vacant since 1977 but remained a towering presence — gaining local fame after appearing in the 2014 film “Transformers: Age of Extinction.” For years, the grain elevators have drawn urban explorers.
This has led preservationists and local community groups to call for the silos to be saved and repurposed, suggesting they could serve as a backdrop for public park space and permanent music festival grounds. They argue demolition would erase a unique part of the city’s landscape.
Despite the pushback, Tadin has remained firm in his plans to demolish the structures.
The demolition plans have also raised concerns among McKinley Park residents, who fear a repeat of the 2020 Easter weekend implosion in Little Village, when part of a former coal plant was brought down, causing a massive dust cloud in the neighborhood.
City officials have labeled the demolition as “environmentally complex,” requiring extra precautions to ensure it is carried out safely. City inspectors and workers from the health department are supposed to be onsite daily during the demolition.
“We cannot and will not repeat the mistakes of the past, which is why complex demolitions require stringent review and public engagement regarding their potential impact,” said Marlene Hopkins, commissioner of the department of buildings. “This isn’t just about issuing permits in accordance with code—it’s about accountability and going beyond minimum requirements when community safety demands it.”
The demolition includes five buildings, with the largest part of the project focused on two sets of 80-foot concrete silos and a tower approximately 110 feet tall.