First opened in 1986, South Shore Line’s Dune Park station was more than due for a major renovation. Located just north of Chesterton, Dune Park is also the administrative headquarters of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD), which operates the South Shore Line. Hundreds of passengers use the station to travel around the Region and into Chicago each day, and though it is an attractive building with a unique design, it was starting to show its age both visually and functionally.
The station’s distinctive roof was in particular need of attention, so South Shore Line turned to Korellis, a homegrown company that boasts decades of experience working on some of the largest and most complex roofs in the Region.
“We’re proud to have been selected to work on this project,” said Larry Millefoglie, sheet metal project manager at Korellis. “It was a public bid, and we were selected among other contractors. It’s a profile job. It’s a real showpiece, and we love jobs like this that are challenging, detailed, and more involved.”
Millefoglie pointed to Korellis’ extensive portfolio of uniquely challenging jobs – some of which shared similar characteristics – as a key reason for why they earned the right to work on Dune Park in the first place.
“We’ve worked on a lot of high-profile jobs in the area,” he said. “The Hard Rock Casino is one of our projects, as is Cabela’s here in Northwest Indiana. The Welcome Center off I-65 is also one that I worked on. With my experience, the experience of our guys out in the field, and our team in the office, we have a team that’s able to put everything together and bring out good results for everybody.”
Once it landed the job, Korellis’ main task was to remove the station’s older, decorative concrete roof and install a new standing seam metal roof. The team also installed new snow guards, gutters, and other necessary weather and seasonal protections.
One of the things that makes Dune Park such a unique design is the array of dormers it has. Dormers are structures, sometimes containing a window, which jut out from a pitched roof. They add extra angles and surfaces, which made the job all the more interesting for the Korellis crew.
“There’s a lot of detail on the building, especially installing a metal roof, that takes a lot more than a single-pitched roof,” Millefoglie said. “Dune Park has multiple dormers, valleys, hips, and ridges that accent the roof and give it different profiles. When it all comes together, it makes for a pretty unique-looking building.”
Korellis wrapped up its work on the station in early August. Millefoglie noted that there was a certain amount of pride that came with working on the station since it has played a key role in the modern history of the Dunes, as well as in the daily lives of many Northwest Indiana commuters.
“It’s a very important station; my wife works with the Department of Natural Resources office and knows a lot of the history around it,” he said. “I’ve spent 27 years in the field, traveling all around the United States. To be able to work on something like this, close to home, and be a part of the history of something so important is a special feeling.”
To learn more about Korellis, visit korellis.com. For more information on the South Shore Line, visit mysouthshoreline.com.
