Elgin's David C Cook office building to be demolished

A part of Elgin history is about to become history as the David C Cook company announced Wednesday it will demolish the 120-year-old 850 N. Grove Ave. property.

The decision follows an intense 12 months when residents in the Northeast Neighborhood Association and fans of local history made public appeals to developers and tried to gain landmark status for the structure. Both efforts failed, pinning the sole hopes for keeping the building standing on twelfth-hour negotiations between the company and Judson University. Those discussions, too, failed to grant clemency to the 24,000-square-foot office space.

David C Cook interim CEO Scott Miller said in a written statement the company started trying to find new uses and buyers for the building in 2006. A 2017 water main break that flooded the vacant building created extensive damage that left an apocalyptic interior to a structure that maintained a stately appearance from the outside.

"It became clear our only way forward was to initiate demolition of the office building," Miller said. "Removing the office will open a number of possibilities for use of the campus in a way that can enhance the surrounding community. While we remember our former headquarters with fondness, we are optimistic about the opportunities the cleared land will provide for the community of Elgin."

The warehouse and distribution center on the back end of the property will remain in operation. Last October, the religious publishing company estimated demolition will cost $2.4 million. City officials have issued the demolition permit, but no date has been announced.

City Council Member Steve Thoren was a member of the Elgin Heritage Commission that voted unanimously to recommend landmark status for the building last year. When the building comes down, that will be a big change to the aesthetics of the historic neighborhood, he said.

"It's an icon, a real staple in our community," Thoren said. "I hate to have part of our history fade away."

But Thoren said he also doesn't believe the city should keep trying to force the David C Cook company to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to keep the vacant structure boarded up and secure. He does, however, blame the company for the squalid condition inside of building that seems to be the main impediment to renovating the property.

"They are ones that didn't have a constant review of the building and let water leak into it for over a month," Thoren said. "It fell into disrepair, and that's their own fault."

With the building gone, Thoren said, he would not support row houses or modern-looking construction that doesn't match the atmosphere of surrounding properties. The best-case scenario would be something that maintains the office building facade. Failing that, a park with trees and nature (no playgrounds) and a commemorative plaque would be at the top of Thoren's list for what he'd like to see there.

Mayor David Kaptain said he could support a park, but he reminded residents the company will still own the property after demolition and control what happens on the site.

"We went through every avenue that we could, but there's no developer that stepped forward and no progress with the building," Kaptain said. "There have been a number of interested parties who have expressed interest, but they just look at the inside and say, 'Oh, boy. That's not going to fly.'"

The effort to make the property a landmark was pushed by the Northeast Neighborhood Association. It failed by one vote. Association President Eric Larson did not immediately respond to an interview request Wednesday. A message left on the association's information line was not returned. Kaptain said he doesn't regret his final "no" vote on the landmark status.

He said landmark status may have opened doors to some grant money but also make redeveloping or restoring the building more expensive.

"It's a sad day for the neighborhood, but everyone did everything they could," Kaptain said. "We just couldn't save it."