RESIDENTS will be able to tour the Copernicus Center, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave., including its ornate lobby, as part of the ‘Open House Chicago” architectural festival on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19 and 20. The festival will feature 11 landmarks on the Northwest Side.

(Photo by Eric Rogers)

by BRIAN NADIG

Breweries, churches and cultural centers are among the 11 landmarks on the Northwest Side that will be part of the annual “Open House Chicago” architectural festival on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19 and 20.

The festival will feature free tours of more than 350 buildings, many of which are not normally open for tours throughout the Chicago area.

The Copernicus Center, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 20. It houses the former Gateway movie theater, which opened in 1930.

The Eris Brewery and Cider House, 4240 W. Irving Park Road, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a guided tour with tastings at 12:30 p.m., on both days. It is located inside a former Masonic temple, whose construction was completed in 1911.

The Irish-American Heritage Center, 4626 N. Knox Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. The building housed a public school when it opened in 1927 and was converted into the center in the late 1980s.

The Muslim Community Center, 4380 N. Elston Ave., will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and closed on Sunday. It was once home to the 1,300-seat Rivoli Theater.

Saint Edward Church, 4350 W. Sunnyside Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. The lower level of the church was built around 1926, and the upper church was completed in 1940.









The Ed Paschke Art Center, 5415 W. Higgins Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both days. The building was once home to Knobe the Stationer.

The Jefferson Masonic Temple, 5418 W. Gale St., will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both days, with a health fair and blood drive from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and a pancake breakfast fund-raiser from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sunday. It was built in 1913.

The Lake Effect Brewing Company, 4727 W. Montrose Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Owner Clint Bautz opened the brewery in 2011, and guests will be shown the production space and barrel rooms.

The Our Lady of Victory Church, 5212 W. Agatite Ave., will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and from noon to 3 p.m. Sunday. The parish was founded in 1906, with the lower church being completed in 1928 and the upper church in 1954.

The Portage Lofts Arts Center, 4041 N. Milwaukee Ave., will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Once home to the Straus and Schram furniture store, its current tenants include the Filament Theater.

More information is available at www.openhousechicago.org.