An Abandoned West Loop Venue Is Turning Into a Haunted Warehouse This Weekend

WEST LOOP— One of the neighborhood’s former creative venues is getting a temporary second life this weekend, and it is leaning heavily into Halloween.

Nightmare on Randolph takes over a warehouse space at 1249 W. Randolph Street on Friday, October 23 and Saturday, October 24, with two dance floors, more than 20 DJs, performers, Halloween animatronics, photo installations and costume competitions. Doors open at 6 p.m. both nights, with the event running late into the evening. Nightmare on Randolph is a 21+ event, and valid identification is required.

The organizer is billing the venue as “The Abandoned House of Vans Chicago,” giving the party an unusual backdrop with real West Loop history behind it.

House of Vans originally opened nearby in 2017 as a combination indoor skatepark, concert venue and creative event space inside a converted warehouse at 113 N. Elizabeth Street, just off Randolph. The former venue space has since been marketed for lease, retaining the industrial layout and high ceilings that helped define it during the Vans era.

For one weekend, that warehouse atmosphere becomes part of the Halloween attraction.

Friday and Saturday Are Two Different Parties

Nightmare on Randolph is not repeating the exact same event both nights.

Friday, October 23 is built around a Classic Killers and Throwback Tunes theme, with Halloween favorites, pop hits, sing-along tracks and house remixes spread across the venue. The idea is closer to a large costume party with nostalgic music than a traditional haunted attraction.

Then Saturday gets darker.

Saturday, October 24 is being promoted as the full Haunted Warehouse takeover, with house music and more immersive Halloween production throughout the building.

Across the weekend, organizers are advertising two dance floors, more than 20 DJs, dancers and performers, animatronics, giveaways, multiple photo opportunities and best-dressed competitions.

That distinction is useful if you are deciding which night fits your group.

Friday leans toward familiar music and classic Halloween-party energy. Saturday is the stronger choice if you want the warehouse setting and production to be a bigger part of the experience.

The Venue Is Part of the Reason This One Stands Out

Chicago has no shortage of Halloween parties this weekend.

The setting is what makes Nightmare on Randolph more interesting than another nightclub costume event.

When House of Vans opened in the West Loop, the converted industrial building combined an indoor skatepark, music stage, art programming and community events under exposed wood trusses and warehouse ceilings. Time Out described it at the time as a space for concerts, skate nights and creative programming rather than a conventional bar or club.

That industrial character is still visible in the former venue.

Current commercial marketing describes the former House of Vans property as roughly 12,900 square feet, with an open layout and ceiling heights reaching about 22 feet in portions of the building. The property has been marketed for potential creative, retail, entertainment and hospitality uses.

So when organizers describe the Halloween event as a haunted warehouse, they are not trying to turn a polished ballroom into something industrial for one night.

The building already provides much of that atmosphere.

What to Know Before You Go

This is definitely an adult Halloween event, not a haunted house for families.

Nightmare on Randolph is restricted to guests 21 and older, and valid IDs are required at entry. Doors open at 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with the overall two-night event scheduled through 2 a.m. Sunday morning.

Food will be available for purchase, and the organizer says re-entry is allowed. Coat check is available, while VIP table packages include reserved seating, express entry, a dedicated bar area and complimentary coat check. The event is also scheduled to continue rain or shine.

Tickets are being sold through the official Nightmare on Randolph event page, with several ticket and VIP options available.

Costumes are clearly part of the experience, especially with best-dressed competitions happening during the weekend.

And if your plan involves dinner first, you are already in one of the easiest Chicago neighborhoods for building a full night around the event.

Make It a West Loop Night Instead of Just a Party

The event's Randolph Street location puts guests close to Restaurant Row, Fulton Market and the Morgan CTA station, so there is little reason to treat the warehouse as the only destination.

You could start with dinner along Randolph, Fulton or Lake Street, walk to the event afterward and stay within the same neighborhood for most of the night.

That is a very different experience from the West Loop of a generation ago.

The neighborhood’s former warehouses and industrial buildings have increasingly been reused for restaurants, offices, hotels, apartments, entertainment and creative spaces. House of Vans itself was a good example: an old warehouse became a skatepark and concert venue instead of being demolished or converted into a conventional storefront.

Nightmare on Randolph continues that tradition temporarily.

An empty or underused former entertainment space becomes something completely different for two nights.

For residents, that constant reinvention is part of what makes the West Loop unusual. A block can contain a longtime industrial structure, a luxury apartment building, one of Chicago’s busiest restaurants and a temporary immersive event within a few hundred feet of one another.

Know Before You Go

Nightmare on Randolph takes place Friday, October 23 and Saturday, October 24 at the venue listed by organizers as 1249 W. Randolph Street in the West Loop.

Doors open: 6 p.m. both nights
Age: 21+ with valid ID
What to expect: Two dance floors, 20+ DJs, costume contests, performers, immersive Halloween production and photo installations
Food: Available for purchase
Re-entry: Allowed
Tickets: Available through the official event page

If you want classic Halloween music and throwbacks, go Friday.

If the phrase “haunted West Loop warehouse” is what caught your attention in the first place, Saturday is probably the night you are looking for.

Exploring the West Loop Beyond Halloween Weekend?

The West Loop changes quickly, sometimes down to the individual block.

The Cory Tanzer Group at Option Premier helps buyers, renters and relocation clients understand West Loop and Fulton Market housing, nearby development, transit, restaurants, nightlife and the everyday lifestyle surrounding individual properties.

Because living near Randolph Street is about more than how close your condo is to dinner.

Sometimes it also means having a haunted warehouse down the street for the weekend.

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