The Municipal Courts Building, also known as the Lake View Building, is a

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

located at 116 S. Michigan Avenue in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. The building was built from 1906 to 1907 to serve as a temporary home for Chicago's

Municipal Court City court or municipal court is a court of law with jurisdiction limited to a city or other municipality. It typically addresses "violations of city ordinances and may also have jurisdiction over minor criminal cases...and over certain civil cases ...

. Jacob L. Kesner built the building, which was originally 12 stories tall, on a strip of land only wide; Kesner was one of the few property owners willing to grant the

Municipal Court of Chicago The Municipal Court of Chicago was the name of two municipal courts that existed at separate times in during the history of the City of Chicago. Municipal Court of Chicago (1837–1839) The first Municipal Court of Chicago was formed in 1837 by ...

a short-term lease. The building was completed later than planned, had less square footage than promised, and charged a higher rent than a competing offer from a warehouse, prompting Mayor Edward Dunne to conduct an ethics investigation into the approval of the building contract. The court only used the building until 1911; after it moved out, Kesner added another five stories to the building. The building was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on August 29, 1985.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Chicago school architecture in Illinois Government buildings completed in 1907 Courthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Courthouses in Illinois Skyscraper office buildings in Chicago National Register of Historic Places in Chicago Municipal courts 1907 establishments in Illinois