Building in Lake Forest — What We Know About This Community
Lake Forest is the historic heart of Chicago's North Shore — a community of deep architectural pedigree, mature landscapes, and homes that range from preserved 1920s estates to thoughtful contemporary new construction. Building or renovating in Lake Forest demands a builder who understands the city's architectural heritage, its Historic Preservation Commission process, and the high standard the community holds for residential construction. Forest Heart Builders has worked across Lake Forest on substantial renovation, historic preservation, and selective new construction.
Lake Forest's Architectural Heritage
Few American suburbs have an architectural inheritance comparable to Lake Forest's. The Market Square commercial district, the work of David Adler, Howard Van Doren Shaw, and other early-twentieth-century architects, and the deeply landscaped residential neighborhoods of the East Side establish a context that any new construction or renovation must respect. The city's most successful new homes either thoughtfully interpret traditional vocabularies or stake out contemporary territory with proportions and materials that hold their own against the historic context.
Lake Forest also includes meaningful housing stock on the West Side and in the city's more recent developments. Each context has its own appropriate response, and the wrong architectural language in the wrong neighborhood reads immediately.
Site Considerations in Lake Forest
Lake Forest properties span the city's substantial residential range — from deep lots in the East Side estate districts to standard suburban lots elsewhere. Mature landscape and tree preservation is essential on most projects. Lakefront sites involve specific bluff and erosion considerations. The city's building department is professional, exacting, and consistent.
Projects We Build in Lake Forest
Comprehensive renovation and restoration of historic East Side estates; thoughtful new construction on appropriate sites; substantial additions to established homes; and architectural millwork commissions including paneled libraries, dressing rooms, and historic-detail interior installations.
Working With the Historic Preservation Commission
Many Lake Forest properties — particularly on the East Side and in historic districts — are subject to review by the Historic Preservation Commission. Renovation, addition, and demolition work on properties of historic significance involves a formal review process with specific documentation requirements and aesthetic standards. We have completed multiple Lake Forest projects through this review process and we understand what successful submissions look like.
Why Lake Forest Clients Choose Forest Heart
Lake Forest clients are typically architecturally literate, attentive to detail, and exacting about quality. Many have lived in fine homes elsewhere and they recognize the difference between marketing language and actual craft. Our work — and the architects we collaborate with — speaks to that audience. We invite every prospective Lake Forest client to walk a recent project before making a decision.