End of an Era

Some people remember the building at the corner of Lincoln Highway and First Street in DeKalb as the popular nightlife spot Otto’s. Other remember the building at 112 and 118 E. Lincoln Highway as the Seco Building or the old Montgomery Ward.

Diane Hosey remembers it as the previous location of her business, Ducky’s Formal Wear.

Hosey said it was the building’s history and prime downtown location that first attracted her to the commercial space. However, soon after moving in, she started having issues with the building.

“We didn’t have air conditioning and water continually leaked,” she said. “I remember days when it was so cold, we had to wear coats, hats and gloves inside because there was no heat. If there was a fight at Otto’s next door and a window got broken at our shop, it would take forever – too long – to be fixed.”

On the morning of Jan. 25, 2014, she walked into her shop to find what she calls “a rainforest.” Water was pouring out of the ceiling and more than four inches of standing water was pooled on the floor.

After remaining vacant for more than two years, the building was demolished on May 22 to make way for a $7.5 million building project that will house upscale apartments and commercial space.

“I think I tolerated the building’s conditions for so long because of its location,” she said. “If the owner had kept the building up, it wouldn’t have had to have been torn down. I don’t think the building could have been fixed.”

A historic building

DeKalb County historian Sue Breese remembers the building at 112 and 118 E. Lincoln Highway from when she went shopping as a young girl with her mother in Montgomery Ward.

“It has always been one of the busiest buildings in town,” Breese said. “The building was a meeting spot, a place for people to socialize. It wasn’t just a store, it was an important focal point of the town and community.”

According to Breese’s research, the lot was first purchased in 1849 by Dr. Basil Ruby for a mercantile business with John M. Goodell. In 1852, Ruby and Jackson Hiland had two stores and sold drugs, groceries and dry good until it closed. Ruby also practiced medicine in the building. Ruby sold his business to his son, who converted the building into residences until 1883, when it burned and was rebuilt. Mary Ruby lived in one of the residences until her death in 1915.

Construction on a new building at 112 and 118 E. Lincoln Highway started in 1917. It was finished the next year and in August 1918, Fisk Motor moved in.

In 1923, 106 E. Lincoln Highway was the Fisk Garage and 112 E. and 118 E. Lincoln Highway were used as The Orno Shop, which sold cut glass, and the DeKalb Theatre, with optometrist Dr. H. M. Payne operating out of the theater building.

From 1931 until 1934, the building was the Fisk-McLean Ford Agency and from 1938 until 1941, 108 E. Lincoln Highway was Hammes Motors.

Montgomery Ward came to 116 E. Lincoln Highway in 1939. The retail store expanded into 118 E. Lincoln Highway in 1946. In 1958, Montgomery Ward was remodeled to unite the two buildings to create a single uniform façade. The building became known as one address, 112 E. Lincoln Highway, in 1961.

In November 1969, after 40 years in downtown DeKalb, Montgomery Ward moved to a new location in the Northland Plaza Shopping Center on Sycamore Road. The company closed its DeKalb store in June 1981 and the chain went out of business in 2001.

Once Montgomery Ward moved out, the building became the Seco Building. The structure included the Uprising Tavern and the basement area became known as the Subway Gallery. In 1975, Four Squire Men’s Clothing was added to the Uprising building. From 1976 to 1978, multiple businesses were located in the Subway gallery, including a deli, photography shop, beauty shop and Decorations Unlimited.

Lan Sirs, a men’s clothing store, opened in the building in 1978. Uprising’s license was revoked and was closed in March 1984.

Otto’s Niteclub opened in 1985. Over the years, countless musicians performed there, including local bands and famous artists, such as rapper Snoop Dogg in 2002 and Wilco and Ted Nugent in 2004.

Lan Sirs closed in 2005 and Ducky’s Formal Wear opened there in 2006. In 2014, the building was officially shut down because of damage from a broken water pipe in the ceiling that burst, causing a flood and mold.

The future corner

In April 2017, Cornerstone Development LLC purchased the building for $300,000 and principal developer John Pappas helped rezone the property for what has become known as “The Cornerstone Project.”

The new building, expected to be completed within the year, will feature first-floor commercial shops and 51 fully furnished single-bedroom apartments. Barb City Bagels, located at 122 S. First St., will move into one of the shops and its current building will be demolished for tenant parking.

DeKalb Mayor Jerry Smith remembers when the corner of Lincoln Highway and First Street was the heart of DeKalb’s downtown, with the old post office, the Elks Club and a gasoline station also on the corner.

“That building and that area have a lot of significance to me and to a lot of people,” Smith said. “The crowds of people standing and watching as the building was torn down shows that they remember what the building was. It was a place for shopping and socialization.

“We hope that the Cornerstone Project will be a tremendous catalyst, a springboard for other businesses in downtown DeKalb in the future,” he said.