Attorneys file emergency complaint against owner of Wicker Park building where façade collapsed on woman

CHICAGO (CBS) — Attorneys on Friday filed the first legal action over a façade that fell and nearly killed a woman in Wicker Park.

Attorneys from Romanucci & Blandin filed an emergency complaint on behalf of the 22-year-old woman against the owner of the building at 1227 N. Milwaukee Ave.

The complaint claims the woman’s injury could have been prevented and is likely the result of the building owner’s “disregard for safety.” It claims the owner took shortcuts instead of making the proper repairs – despite warnings from the city.

“There is never an excuse for a shortcut to safety and it was clear the owner did not make proper or timely repairs, leading to this needless and nearly fatal injury,” Antonio M. Romanucci, founding partner of Romanucci & Blandin, said in a news release. “This 22-year-old student is facing significant medical challenges and her life has been meaningfully changed because of this clear and utter disregard for safety.”

Lawyers say the victim is a college student who is set to graduate in a few weeks. She was left in critical condition.

Just before 6 p.m. Wednesday, emergency crews rushed to the busy intersection and arrived to find the woman crushed by chunks of limestone in front of the building.

Facebook video shows good Samaritans rushing to help the moments after she fell to the ground. She was surrounded by debris that fell from the building.

The marquee-light sign for Value Pawn, the now-out-of-business pawn shop that was once located in the building, also fell down and was left dangling from the scaffolding canopy out front.

The young woman suffered a severe head injury after she was hit by debris.  The Department of Buildings said the debris went beyond the canopy when the young woman was hurt.

On Thursday afternoon, crews were removing slabs of the façade from the ground and placing it into a nearby dumpster. Parts of the façade that could be safely removed were also taken down.

The scaffolding company also extended the border of the canopy on the south side of the building, which was not in place on Wednesday.

Ross Luisi has a business next to the building. He says about three weeks ago, debris also fell from it.

“It was not cleaned up for a week and a half,” Luisi said. “People were just walking over it. – all in that area – large pieces of three, four-hundred-pound slabs of the façade.”

The Department of Buildings does confirm around that same time on March 21, they contacted an agent of the owner of the vacant building after an anonymous 311 call. The person was told to:

• Immediately put up a heavy-duty canopy on the public way around the front of the buildings.

• Get a licensed structural engineer to assess the building façade.

• Get a licensed masonry contractor to make emergency repairs.

While the heavy-duty canopy was put in place, the owner did not make any repairs.