An Elk for a buck? City makes $1 offer to buy historic Elks Club in Rockford
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The city has extended an offer to buy the historic but deteriorated Elks Lodge No. 64 for $1, a move it says will allow the owner to avoid paying for demolition while giving the property another shot at redevelopment.
Owner Mark McInnis, however, said the offer was a non-starter after he’s invested more than $150,000 into the property at 210 W. Jefferson St. in downtown. He said he viewed the city’s pitch as more of a threat — that he’ll be pinned with paying for a court-authorized demolition — than a serious offer. He’s in the midst of pursuing a sale through an upcoming auction.
“They know that building is worth way more than a buck,” McInnis told the Rock River Current. “That’s insulting. … I was hoping to see something more realistic.”
PHOTOS | Inside the historic former Elks Lodge in Rockford
Mayor Tom McNamara sent the offer Friday to attorney Mario Tarara, who represents McInnis. The letter said the offer was valid until the end of the day on Tuesday.
“We feel like we are allowing him to relieve himself of hundreds of thousands of dollars of guaranteed expense he’s going to incur,” McNamara said. “This provides him an opportunity to get out from under that and allows the building that he wants to see redeveloped have at least a chance.”
Viable for restoration
The letter was sent the same day as a pair of masonry experts toured the property to evaluate the condition of the brick structure and the roof. Chicago-based Bulley & Andrews Masonry Restoration is providing a pro bono assessment of the property following another pro bono evaluation done Aug. 14 by Mary Brush of Brush Architects. She concluded that the building was deteriorated but viable for restoration.
“We strongly recommend the stay of demolition in order to perform a thorough conditions assessment and code analysis,” Brush wrote in her report, which the Rock River Current obtained from Landmarks Illinois, a nonprofit historic preservation group. “Despite the extensive work needed to the utilities and finishes, it will be viable for its next 100 years.”
Brush wrote that the deterioration appears to be to the finishes and not structural. However, she qualified that statement by noting they are an architectural firm, not structural engineers.
“The building enclosure is a high priority as the roof requires replacement immediately by qualified restoration professionals,” she wrote. “The original windows are salvageable for restoration. The interior finishes include lead and asbestos which is remediated systematically as standard procedure on the majority of Brush Architects projects.”
The Brush report, combined with a recommendation from the city’s Historic Preservation Committee to hold off on demolition, signals some momentum for the structure to be saved after the city sought bids to demolish it earlier this month. Those bids came back Aug. 12, and the low bid was $233,108 from Northern Illinois Service Co.
The city would pay for the demolition and then place liens against the property to try to recoup the cost from the owner. That is, unless the offer to sell is accepted.
“Providing this opportunity ensures hope for the Elks Lodge property — both by addressing the neglect of the owner who failed to properly care for it and by opening the door for meaningful redevelopment,” said Alderman Tamir Bell, who represents the 13th Ward where the building is located. “At the same time, it safeguards taxpayers by preventing excessive financial liability from falling on the city of Rockford.”
Meanwhile, McInnis has asked the city to wait until after a national online auction through Crexi.com concludes Sept. 17 to make a decision. He’s optimistic that the auction will turn up a buyer with the means to redevelop the property. He told the city that he worked for 14 years to bring the property back to life, but ultimately he exhausted all his resources and couldn’t make the project work. Now he wants to put it into the hands of someone who can, and salvage some of the investment he’s made.
So far, McNamara’s administration hasn’t put forward a measure for City Council to approve the demolition contract. It’s not clear when that could happen. The earliest it could go to the committee level is Sept. 8, meaning the soonest it would see the full City Council is on Sept. 15, the day the online auction begins.
“There’s a strong argument to be made for not wanting to reward a developer for ignoring code violations for years on end and letting a landmark property decline to the point where it is now in jeopardy of being torn down,” said Alderman Mark Bonne, who is also a part of the Historic Preservation Commission.
The minimum bid listed in the online auction is $50,000, and Bonne isn’t confident a sale will happen. McInnis, however, has said that the property is getting looks from people with portfolios in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
“It seems unlikely that any legitimate buyer is going to make an offer through this auction knowing that there’s a big cloud over this property in that the city has the ability to demolish it at any time,” Bonne said. “If the auction fails, I think the chances of him accepting the offer that’s in the letter from the mayor would probably increase greatly.”
Still, Bonne said the city is moving in the right direction because it’s no longer on a path that only leads to demolition.
“Now, the brakes have been put on demolition, or at least immediate demolition, and some other options are being explored,” he said.
An ongoing lawsuit between the city and McInnis’ Argyll Properties was back in court on Thursday for a brief hearing. The city initially sued Dec. 11, 2018, to try to force repairs or demolition on the grounds that the building was a public safety hazard. McInnis has said the building is structurally safe and that he’s made fixes necessary for public safety.
After a trial in 2021, the city was given clearance to raze the property if the owner hadn’t done so or made repairs by Jan. 3, 2022. The city allowed for several extensions before moving forward with demolition this year.
On Thursday, Judge Lisa Fabiano set forth a future status call for Oct. 9 for the court case. However, the city said that doesn’t mean it will wait until then to raze the property.
“The city was authorized to demolish the former Elks Club structure pursuant to the order previously entered by the court. The continuance entered in the case is not illustrative of when, or if, a matter will be on council’s agenda for demolition,” the city said through a spokesperson.
‘I’ve seen way worse’
For historic preservation advocates, Friday’s tour through the Elks Lodge reinforced the idea that the property had potential for redevelopment.
“I’ve seen way worse,” said Quinn Adamowski, regional advocacy manager for Landmarks Illinois. “It’s more than cosmetic. There’s definitely some concerns that have to be addressed, but nothing that looks irredeemable.”
Adamowski said he expects a report from Bully & Andrews within a couple of weeks on the state of the roof and masonry. That report would also provide recommended fixes to address the city’s concerns about public safety.
“This report will address their concerns for public safety,” Adamowski said. “It is a critical report in helping city administration, City Council understand what the actual problems with the building are.”
The Elks Club was designed by Lawrence P. Buck and built in 1912, but the club vacated the property in the 1990s and it was never put back into use. It was given local landmark status in 2004 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
The 30,000-square-foot property features Prairie and Greek Revival architectural styles. It’s highlighted by a third-level grand ballroom and a lower level that includes a bowling alley.
“Every time I take somebody into the ballroom they gasp,” McInnis said. “When you see the pictures of the ballroom, who wouldn’t want to save this place.”
Jennifer McInnis, an architect and Mark’s wife, said the building “has a soul that just stays with you.” She said she’s looking forward to seeing a buyer bring it back to life.
Adamowski said the Brush Architects report underscores the idea that the building has a potential future, and that it has architectural qualities that lend itself to reuse.
Developers could also benefit from historic tax credits and new market tax credits that would help with the expected multi-million dollar cost to renovate it.
“Rockford as a municipality, though there have been some losses from a preservation standpoint, there’s also been massive success stories,” Adamowski said. “The Embassy Suites is one of the best preservation stories, not just in the state but really I would argue across the country. What’s going on right now at the Barber-Colman is nothing short of fantastic.”
Landmarks Illinois is also pursuing a pro bono report for a feasibility and adaptive reuse study, Adamowski said.
“Rockford has a lot of preservation wins,” Adamowski said. “From my perspective, based on my cursory view of that building, I don’t see why this can’t be one.”
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
