Elgin co-op looking at building space after latest snag

The eight-year effort to start a co-op grocery store in downtown Elgin hit another major snag last week when a prospective location fell through, but those involved say they remain enthusiastic and are starting to consider building a space from the ground up.

The board of Shared Harvest had been working to secure use of part of the former PNC Bank building at 28 N. Grove Ave., which was purchased last year by Judson University's World Leaders Forum, board member Ian Kuhn said. However, the building owners recently decided they wanted to use the entire building, he said.

“We have been through every property several times in downtown Elgin, and there are several still on the table. But with COVID-19, everything is in flux,” he said.

The board is starting to consider purchasing an empty lot to build a structure, which other co-ops have done or are doing, Kuhn said.

Shared Harvest wants to offer affordable, healthy and locally-produced food while supporting local sustainability. Food co-operatives are owned by people who buy shares.

A majority of shareholders said they want the co-op to be located downtown, or just outside downtown, which makes the search more difficult because the venture requires adequate parking, said Carole Rauschenberger, an Elgin City Council member who is actively involved with Shared Harvest.

“There have been opportunities, but that's (dedicated downtown parking) made it a lot harder – and also everything takes longer than one thinks,” she said.

The ideal location is 8,000 to 10,000 square feet, Kuhn and Rauschenberger said.

The initiative suffered its first major blow in 2017 when a commercial space the board of directors had settled on -- an empty area of Ziegler's Ace hardware store downtown -- turned out to require too much work.

Shared Harvest has about $250,000 in the bank, including $100 shares sold to 1,026 households with a maximum 10 shares per household, Kuhn said. More loans are expected to be available when a building is secured, and the board has solicited applications for the grocery store manager position, he said.

The co-op also has an informal partnership with Blue Goose Market in St. Charles, whose owners have been providing free advice about issues, such as the grocery supply chain, Kuhn said. “They are advising us just for the good of what we are doing,” he said.

Shared Harvest will not hold its annual fundraising dinner this fall but is looking into the idea of partnering with a local farm to sell boxes of produce as a fundraiser, Kuhn said.