Hicks Architectural Group
Street-facing resident pre-cast concrete balconies were failing and determined to need replacement. New code-compliant guardrail options were designed for the owner’s selection to increase light onto the balconies and screen views up from the sidewalk. Structural and masonry repairs were designed and the work is being completed this Spring with Hicks Architectural Group field observation.
Hicks Architectural Group provides thorough and competitive Critical Examination Reports and Ongoing Inspection Reports to building owners, required by the City of Chicago for high rise properties. Our services include on-site high-resolution photography and up-close testing of building elements, as well as the use of proprietary digital imaging equipment.
Using these methods, we provide clients the exact amounts and locations of any building distress, mapped onto accurate building elevations for the preparation of our reports. Experience with this work allows us to efficiently strategize methods to control the quality and costs of the investigation and identify any immediate repair work that may be required.
An intense hail storm damaged all aging roofs of this suburban condominium complex with 14 four-story multi-residential buildings. The roofs could not be repaired. The insurer stipulated that the buildings be reroofed for the budget of in-kind replacement to best match the original construction appearance from grade.
Hicks Architectural Group designed, bid, permitted, and administered the construction of the multi-phased roof replacement system for all buildings to the highest industry standards. We replaced around 170,000 square feet of low-slope roof and 90,000 square feet of cedar shake mansard with extended warranties.
The aging historic facades of the Catholic Theological Seminary were rapidly failing to prevent costly water damage to the building. Hicks Architectural Group was asked to investigate and determine what needed to be done. We performed a close‑up, hands‑on, 100‑percent scaffold inspection of all historic terra cotta and masonry, made targeted spot inspection openings of suspected worst‑case areas, then charted the location and type of observed deterioration onto “Facade Maps” for each building elevation and prepared a comprehensive critical examination report per City of Chicago Building Department requirements.
As a result of our findings, we designed mitigation repairs, prepared construction documents for competitive bidding and permitting, carefully reviewed new material mock‑ups to match original building materials, and performed services to routinely check, review, and record the quality of the work during the construction period.
“Facade Maps” chart the location and type of deterioration observed for each building elevation.
Since its construction in 1990s, this church has been plagued with exterior wall leaks. After a close visual inspection of the exterior and a review of targeted construction openings, Hicks Architectural Group prepared a condition assessment report of our findings; prepared bid and construction documents for exterior mitigation repairs to exterior face brick, concrete, and EIFS; and observed the progress of phased repair work for quality.
Hicks Architectural Group has performed roof inspections and is currently monitoring the construction work for the demolition and replacement roof and associated masonry repairs on the first of three condominium buildings, located in the Ridgeland–Oak Park Historic District.