Rockford City Council approves Elks Club demo after mayor breaks tie vote

November 3, 2025|By Kevin Haas|In 815 News, Local, Rock River Current, Rockford, Business, Business/development, Top Stories, Featured, News

The Rockford Elks Lodge No. 64 was built in 1912 and has fallen into disrepair. It’s pictured on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at 210 W. Jefferson St. in downtown Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — City Council has voted to demolish the historic Elks Lodge No. 64 after Mayor Tom McNamara cast the tiebreaking vote.

The vote ends a monthslong effort to save the 113-year-old building from the wrecking ball, barring any 11th hour maneuver that might turn ownership over to the city or a developer with the resources to rebuild it.

There’s no set timeline for when the structure would be razed. The city must execute the contract by mid-month, according to City Administrator Todd Cagnoni. However, some aldermen still hope a deal can be reached with the owner, Mark McInnis, to sell before crews start demolition work.

For now, the council’s directive is to demolish the property at the corner of Jefferson and Main streets in downtown.

Aldermen voted 6-6 to award a $233,108 demolition bid to Northern Illinois Service Co. of Rockford. The vote came after about 25 minutes of discussion, and required McNamara to break the tie.

The mayor told the Rock River Current after the meeting that the city has previously offered incentives to help redevelop the property, and it has made an offer to purchase it so it could be saved. But after years in court of trying to force the owner to make repairs and address safety concerns, McNamara said the property must come down. He laid blame on McInnis for allowing the property to reach its current state.

“It has proven that the property will only further decay and create more public safety issues, as we’ve had debris multiple times fall into the street, fall into the right of way,” McNamara said. “You can say council voted (to demolish), you can say I did — yeah, we sure did. But I think he is the person who has brought the property to demolition.”

The city filed a lawsuit against the owner on Dec. 11, 2018, to try to force repairs or get an order for demolition. Judge Donna Honzel later ruled on the city’s side, ordering the owner to fix or demolish the property by Jan. 3, 2022. The city was authorized to tear it down if the owner didn’t comply. Rockford granted several extensions before seeking demolition bids this summer, sparking a last-minute effort to save the property.

“It’s terribly sad because it’s a beautiful building and had a tremendous amount of potential,” McNamara said.

A stained-glass window is viewed from the third level of the historic former Elks Club on Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, in downtown Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

The property, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, has had issues with a decaying roof and crumbling facade. However, two independent reports — one from Brush Architects and another from Bulley & Andrews Masonry Restoration — concluded it could be saved and reused.

Maureen Kirschmann, a member of the city’s historic preservation commission, told council members before the vote that the structure still holds tremendous potential despite its dilapidated state. She urged the city to delay demolition and search for a new developer.

“Demolition would permanently erase a piece of our city’s architectural history, but a change in ownership could unlock new possibilities for restoration and reuse,” she said during the public comment portion of the meeting.

McInnis has said he’s been in discussions with potential buyers, but needs more time to solidify a deal. The City Council previously granted a 14-day delay two weeks ago. He has said that he worked for years to redevelop the property, but ultimately exhausted all of his resources without success.

Alderman Mark Bonne has urged the city to purchase the property, which he says will put it in a better position for redevelopment. He has noted several historic redevelopments including the Coronado Theatre and Embassy Suites by Hilton Rockford Riverfront that were previously owned by the city while searching for the right developer.

He said he and city staff met Monday with a “credible buyer” who could redevelop the property. However, the buyer is only interested in working with the city and not the current owner, Bonne said. The potential buyer was not disclosed.

Bonne said he has also met with three other potential buyers over the past few weeks.

The city has previously offered to buy the property for $1, a move it says will save the owner from being liable for demolition costs if it were to be torn down. As it stands now, the cost of demolition would be put in a lien on the property for the owner to pay. However, aldermen don’t anticipate the owner will be able to pay that cost.

“We have a national landmark that’s really dangling by a thread and I hope that the current owner comes to his senses and accepts the offer that the city has already made,” Bonne said.

Cagnoni, who was in the meeting Monday with Bonne and potential buyers, said there isn’t yet a plan in place for what they would do with the property. He was asked by Alderman Chad Tuneberg to weigh in on whether the buyers had sufficient resources to carry out a redevelopment.

“There wasn’t a plan brought forward that would demonstrate sufficient resources to advance the project,” Cagnoni said. “I can’t say whether those individuals do or don’t have resources, but as it relates to this project and taking it on that has not been indicated.”

The grand ballroom of the former Elks Club as seen from the balcony level on Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, in downtown Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

The Elks Lodge was designed by Lawrence P. Buck and built in 1912. The club left the property in the 1990s. It was later donated to Goodwill Industries, which made some improvements and sold it to Argyll Properties in 2011 for $15,000, according to records from the Winnebago County Clerk & Recorder’s Office.

The Elks Club was given local landmark status in 2004 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.

The multistory clubhouse is built in the Classic Revival style with Prairie Style influences, according to Landmarks Illinois, a historic preservation group. It’s highlighted by a second floor grand ballroom and a bowling alley on the lower level.