Side Street Studio Arts’ plans to renovate a historic South Grove Avenue building will receive $500,000 in Tax Increment Financing district funds for the first phase of construction.
The Elgin City Council tentatively signed off last week on providing financial support to the nonprofit art studio, which Councilwoman Tish Powell described as “a game changer in our town in terms of the arts scene, in terms of bringing folks to our community who haven’t been here, in terms of collaboration and engagement with folks. … I can’t overstate how that contributes to the vitality of our downtown.”
A final council vote is expected in a few weeks.
Side Street, currently located at 15 Ziegler Court, will be moving into the 62 S. Grove Ave. building, which was purchased on their behalf by the Reva and David Logan Foundation in March 2022. Built in the early 1900s, the downtown three-story building has been vacant for 20 years.
Side Street owners Erin Rehberg and Tanner Melvin are rehabbing the structure in phases, creating a space for art programming, exhibitions, events and classes.
Phase one involves creating a main gallery on the first floor, adding new restrooms, restoring the building’s facade and installing a new elevator. Electrical, plumbing, HVAC and fire suppression will be updated. A second entrance from Riverside Drive will be added.
It’s expected that the gallery space will be used by more than 500 artists participating in 20 or more exhibits annually, the owners said.
The $500,000 was requested to help offset the $1.95 million cost for the first phase of construction. The entire project is estimated to cost $4.5 million, City Manager Rick Kozal said.
Approving the money was a no-brainer for Councilman Dustin Good, who said at last week’s meeting that his first thought when hearing about the project was, “This is a slam dunk for TIF funds. … I really can’t wait to see what Grove (Avenue) continues to evolve into.”
With the central city TIF district is expiring in 2025, the Side Street project is the last large initiative that will be funded by it, Kozal said.
“I would like the community to understand that funding through a TIF is meant to improve … blight in the TIF district,” Councilwoman Rose Martinez said at the meeting. “The improvements to this building will be a long-term benefit to downtown Elgin and will be a good use of TIF funds.”
She added that the money will not only mean “growth and success (for) Side Street Studio, but more importantly, work toward getting one more building in the downtown area to be occupied and generate some activity.”
The project “really reinforces the need to renew the TIF or create a new TIF,” said Councilman John Steffen, noting that additional TIF funding will be needed to complete the building renovation.
From the city’s perspective, Powell said, improvements made to the building will remain regardless of whether Side Street or someone else owns it in the future. It’s also helping draw attention to Riverside Drive and its promenade, she said.
Elgin has made a significant investment in the promenade, which Powell described as a “hidden gem in our downtown (that) we haven’t seen a whole lot of folks take advantage of. … I really see this as a catalyst to see that change.”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
