Sun-Times architecture critic. Author of Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side.

Chicago
Lee Bey retweeted
How dumb is this? Trump will make his closing case at the Reflecting Pool, a symbol of his ineptitude and refusal to acknowledge reality. He’ll no doubt claim it’s fixed, but it’s just another vanity project that shows Trump cares above all about Trump. apnews.com/article/trump-clo…
4
2
17
1,021
My architecture column today. "The city and the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority are also lowering the curtain on the nearby former H. Gordon & Sons department store. And there’s more demolition to come." chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
1
285
My architecture column this weekend. "Preservation Chicago Executive Director Ward Miller said, 'We are hopeful that a new good steward would come forward to purchase and restore this amazing building.'" chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
3
5
22
1,643
chicago.suntimes.com/archite… Today's architecture column. The new book is a goodbye kiss and a loving remembrance to the wild and historic Johnson Publishing offices, which were wrecked and removed when the building turned residential in 2017.
1
1
23
1,025
My architecture column today. "The groundbreaking comes weeks after the museum announced plans to construct a two-story tall, 458-foot wide Welcome Hall in front of the building’s North Portico main entrance off 57th Street. chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
2
1
35
2,185
My architecture column today. "Built in 1927 as the Avalon Theater, the building was designed by John Eberson, who modeled the work after an intricate metal Persian incense burner he found in a Royal Street antique store in New Orleans’ French Quarter."chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
1
5
19
1,406
In a letter to the editor in today's Sun-Times, the distinguished author and city historian Tim Samuelson said the MSI's "current proposals to significantly alter both the building’s north and south elevations display gross disrespect for a masterpiece." chicago.suntimes.com/letters…
6
8
65
2,957
The architecture beat has me hopping this week. "Landmarks Illinois and Preservation Chicago told officials Monday that the designation is needed to protect the vacant O’Leary Mansion from demolition."chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
2
2
24
876
Btw, in the 1938 movie "In Old Chicago," this is how the fire started.
1
2
176
My architecture column today. "The new hall would be almost 30-feet tall and a whopping 458-feet — nearly three-quarters of a city block — in length: A big old wide-brimmed hat blocking the screen at the movie theater." chicago.suntimes.com/archite…
6
14
73
4,988
Don't miss Trygve Thoreson, author of DANIEL BURNHAM AND LOUIS SULLIVAN: Personal Histories of Two Icons of American Architecture in conversation with @LEEBEY of @Suntimes, at @PrintersRowFest (Center Stage) on Sun, Sept 13, 2026 at 4pm CT! printersrowlitfest.org/sched…
1
284
Printers Row Lit Fest is coming up next month. I'll be there Sunday Sept 13 in discussion with Trygve Thoreson about his excellent new book, Daniel Burnham and Louis Sullivan: Personal Histories of Two Icons of American Architecture. We'll be on Center Stage at 4pm.
2
14
84
4,205
The 1976 movie Monkey Hustle, filmed in Woodlawn and on 63rd St between Cottage Grove and Dorchester, a strip that was demo'd in the 1980s and 1990s. Everything in this scene from the building they're in to buildings outside --including this section of the CTA Green Line -- gone.
13
114
654
30,884