by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
John Keane of the Police & Fire Pension Fund has serious safety worries regarding the dilapidated Roosevelt Hotel. The building, which stands next to fund’s offices on West Adams Street, is currently condemned.
“I’m very concerned,” Keane said. “The building is a double black eye to the downtown area. I’ve written the mayor twice.”
In a letter addressed to the Mayor John Delaney, Keane wrote that the hotel, “has open windows allowing continual rain damage to an already unstable building. The building is not in compliance with City Codes . . . I am concerned for the safety or individuals who either walk of drive in their automobile in the unit blocks of West Adams and Monroe streets.”
Keane added that as temperatures drop, homeless people are likely to take up residence in the building and possibly light fires by taking advantage of the substandard security.
“It has the potential to be very dangerous,” he said. “Fires that are not carefully controlled can cause damage, injury and death.”
The City, in response to Keane’s claim, wrote that the property, “is a privately-owned building. It is our understanding that the owner has renovation plans for the parcel.” The Vestcor Companies, which also owns, and are currently in the process of converting the old Lynch building at 11 E. Forsyth St. into loft-style apartments, has similar designs for the 13-story hotel.
The City also added that Vestcor, by insuring that the floors providing street-level access are secure, is operating within its legal rights.
When asked if the fund would ever consider buying the hotel, Keane declined comment, saying “it would all just be speculation.”