The 1960s
The Home Builders Association of Chicagoland (HBAC) ushered in the 1960s with the annual Modern Living Home and Flower Show, which turned out to be a historic event in 1960. On November 18th, the 16-day Modern Living Home and Flower Show opened as the first public event held at McCormick Place, a new $35 million lakeside convention center that housed a 400,000 square foot exposition hall and the 5,000-seat Arie Crown Theater.
It was the first time HBAC had the space to build model homes on site for the annual show. After gathering the records of homebuilders across the Midwest, the association set out on a quest to identify a house that exemplified the typical design of a Midwestern home. The construction of this house on the showroom floor inside the convention center was led by Joseph S. Giase, the chairman of HBAC’s committee to build the house.
The Modern Living Home and Flower Show was directed by HBAC’s Grover McDonald and actually began outside with a parade led by actor and comedian, Jerry Lewis. The show drew a million visitors, who were interested in seeing the vast new convention center, as well as the latest advances in home building and home improvement materials. In addition to five model homes, the exhibition featured a bomb shelter and a vast tropical garden complete with giant coconut palm trees and a wide array of other trees, plants, landscaping rock and patio brick.
In October of 1961, the association elected a new president, Mr. William J. Moreland, a prominent builder, partner in James C. Moreland & Sons, Inc., and president of other realty and building companies. Mr. Moreland had two primary objectives. His most important priority was to ensure that HBAC builders had the resources and training to provide all of the technological advances, services and amenities of a giant corporation while maintaining a local, personal touch.
Secondly, Moreland wanted to update and streamline building codes across all identified service areas so that builders could construct the same home in different locations without hitting a brick wall of antiquated or conflicting building codes.
Joining Moreland on the board of HBAC were two new vice-presidents, Joseph H. Anderson and Bruce S. Blietz, treasurer, Albert G. Collins and secretary, Harry Quinn. The association also elected new directors who would serve for a two-year term: Howard Aldrich, George Arquilla, Jr., Albert Collins, Jack Hoffman, Ed McCabe, Clarence Medema, N. Noble Ridker, Al Sakowicz, Louis Spero, and Ralph Symkal. Many of these HBAC leaders were also active and held leadership positions in other state and national builders associations.
In the fall of 1961, HBAC hosted 36,000 builders for a convention that featured demonstrations introduced new prefinished hardwood flooring and aluminum exteriors. The convention featured over 30 seminars, with topics ranging from federal housing policies and business management to home design, land planning, and market analysis.
In July of 1962, HBAC moved its headquarters to the new Oakbrook Professional Building at 228 N. LaSalle Street to provide a more central location for its members in eight counties. At that time, HBAC had become the largest builders association in the United States. In December of 1962, HBAC hosted its annual inaugural banquet and winter party at the Conrad Hilton hotel. President Moreland received an appreciation award for his time and achievements, most notably the relocation of the association’s headquarters. HBAC treasurer, Howard A. Aldrich, and mortgage banker, Raymond Jensen were also award recipients.
In the fall of 1963, HBAC elected new officers for 1964. John A. Stastny, president of Stastny Builders of Berwyn, was elected president. Other officers included first vice president, Irvin A. Blietz, second vice president, George Arquilla, Jr., treasurer, Albert Frank, and secretary, Jack Kepler.
In September of 1964, HBAC announced a new program designed to self-monitor the home building trade. The Registered Builder Program allowed homeowners a platform in which to file a dispute against builders and other industry professionals, and provided homeowners with a contract that would specify certain building specifications, including a completion date. The program provided a means of accountability and uniform industry practices for association builders.
On August 27, 1965, a tornado ripped through Chicago causing $7 million worth of damage and damaging several subdivisions built by HBAC members. Homeowners were impressed with how quickly these HBAC members completed repairs and even volunteered to help repair and rebuild homes that were built by other companies. HBAC
president, John A. Stastny stated that these members were prime examples of the organization’s dedication to the community. Jr. at the helm, HBAC published Chicagoland’s New Home Directory, which provided information on over 50 Chicago suburbs and descriptions of new
homes.
In the spring of 1968, HBAC launched a new marketing campaign called “The Name of the Game is Living”, a catch-phase that would be repeated in newspaper advertisements and stories across the country. The purpose of the campaign was to enable builders to better market new housing and products across the country, and to improve the reputation of builders in general. Officer information for 1968 is comprised of R.K. Widdecombe Jr., who served as Executive Vice President.
The Home Builders Association of Chicagoland rang in the New Year of 1969 with a new consolidation and a new name. The association, led by president Jack Hoffman, joined with the Northern Illinois Home Builders Association to form the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, a new regional association.
The newly appointed president Jack Hoffman was the developer of Hoffman Estates. He and his dad Sam built their first homes in Phoenix to provide homes for the returning GIs. Hoffman built 5,000 homes in the town incorporated in 1959 as Hoffman Estates. (Jack Hoffman is the father of our City Chapter Board Member Edward ” Bird” Hoffman.)
In June of 1969, HBAGC hosted the first Modern Living and Garden Show in Chicago since the historic show in 1960. The show, led by home show committee chairman, Joshua Muss, was held at the International Amphitheater. The center of the amphitheater boasted a landscaped area complete with a lake and surrounded by model rooms displaying new interior designs.
In the summer of 1969, Jack S. Kepler took the lead in petitioning Congress to enforce a cap on the prime interest rate hike by private banks. Kepler identified inflation as the primary cause of declining annual building rates and began a letter writing campaign among HBAGC members. HBAGC also published a series of articles in the Chicago Tribune to inform prospective homebuyers on a variety of topics related to homeownership and home building.
The 1970s
In the 1970s, HBAGC continued their full calendar of events, including seminars, football outings and meetings. In September of 1970, HBAGC’s general membership meeting was held in the Furniture Mart, and was focused on Planned Unit Development and gaining the cooperation of village boards and plan commissions. Speakers included Bruce Blietz and Al Hoffman. In 1971, Lynn Krause was vice president of the HBAGC.
In 1972, HBAGC formed a new committee to develop a program to provide better protection to homebuyers who found defects in the original construction of their homes. The head of the committee was William Kennedy of Kennedy Brothers. Also spearheading the new program was Robert Faganel, president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, and Robert Arquilla, Past President of the Home Builders Association of Chicagoland. The new bonding program served two primary purposes: to provide funds to repair defects that were the fault of the builder, and to improve and repair the building industry’s reputation with regards to the quality of such repairs.
In 1973, Robert Widdicombe, Jr. continued the association’s fight against contractor’s unfair pricing for association members. As proof of his success, HBAC received a settlement for $250,000 in a lawsuit against plumbing contractors who were unfairly hiking up prices for builders.
In 1975, Don Dise was the president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, with Theodore Doufexis serving as executive vice president and Herschel Farr serving as associate executive vice president.
In 1978, Ralph Harwood was president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago. In 1979, Martin Bartling, executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, led a campaign to limit restrictive building regulations. His efforts led to a meeting with the major and commissioners from Cook County to discuss the regulations.
The 1980s
The 1980s began with the fresh vision of HBAGC’s new president, Bruno Pasquineli. His goal was to make housing and homeownership affordable and accessible to prospective homebuyers at all socio-economic levels. He stated, “housing is not an economic issue but a social issue.” Pasquineli proposed changes in the federal government, with subsidies through tax breaks and other incentives, and in the banking industry, with an increase in the amount of disposable income a family is allowed to spend on housing.
In the summer of 1980, several HBAGC members were inducted into the Housing Hall of Fame by the National Association of Home Builders in Washington, D. C. George Arquilla Sr. was honored for his modern construction designs and community development. Don L. Dise of Aurora was recognized for his development of communities that were friendly to the environment. John A. Stastny was honored for his continued devotion to the good of the community by taking measures to ensure that housing was affordable.
In 1981, Edmund H. Sorenson, president of U.S. Shelter was elected as president of the HBAGC. In 1984, David Hill was elected as president. In 1987, master suites with elaborate master bathrooms were the popular home amenity. The HBAGC sponsored the construction of several beautiful examples of these new master suites in the Parade of Homes in Long Grove. That summer, HBAGC also sponsored the Excellence in Housing Design competition.
In 1988, a brewing controversy over the legality of impact fees was the association’s main focus. After only the briefest of discussions the year before, the county quickly passed an ordinance to authorize the fees. The Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago and its attorneys maintained that they should have been given the opportunity to present their case prior to the passing of legislation. They filed a lawsuit that stated that the impact fees were illegal.
In 1989, several HBAGC members received recognition for their outstanding contributions to the building industry. Executive Vice President, Martin Bartling Jr. received the Professional Builder’s 1988 Achievement Award for building leadership. Jack Hoffman was added to the Court of Honor of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago. Nick Snyder was appointed as HBAGC’s director of organizational development and training.
