Municipal Courts Building (Chicago, Illinois)

The Municipal Courts Building, also known as the Lake View Building, is a skyscraper located at 116 S. Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The building was built from 1906 to 1907 to serve as a temporary home for Chicago's Municipal Court. Jacob L. Kesner built the building, which was originally 12 stories tall, on a strip of land only 40 feet (12 m) wide; Kesner was one of the few property owners willing to grant the Municipal Court of Chicago 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.[2]

Municipal Courts Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The Municipal Courts Building in 2008, situated between its wider neighbors
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Location	116 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Illinois
Coordinates	41°52′48″N 87°37′28″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1906–07
Architect	Jenny, Mundie & Jensen
Architectural style	Chicago
NRHP reference No.	85001912[1]
Added to NRHP	August 29, 1985

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 29, 1985.[1]