Demolition began Tuesday of the nearly 115-year-old Near South Side building that formerly housed the E2 Nightclub, where 21 people died in a stampede in 2003.City officials last month issued an emergency order to demolish the two-story building at 2347 S. Michigan Ave., running contrary to the Commission on Chicago Landmarks’ denial of the property owner’s request to demolish the building in August.The landmarks commission had denied the request on a recommendation by city planning officials.The building dates back to 1910 when it opened as a Fiat showroom in the historic Motor Row District during the early days of the automobile. It later became infamous in Chicago as the home of the E2 nightclub, where, on the night of Feb. 17, 2003, a security guard used pepper spray after a fight broke out on the crowded second floor, triggering a rush down a stairwell leading to a narrow doorway. Twenty-one people were crushed to death and 50 others were injured.The Chicago Department of Buildings and the property owner, Randy Shifrin, could not be immediately reached for comment.Shifrin previously said he had plans to construct affordable housing and a memorial for the E2 victims.