Demolition permit put on hold amid Joliet preservation controversy

A demolition permit for a 19th-century limestone house has been put on hold amid community concern over the future of the building.

The two-story house, built in 1851 by one of Joliet’s early settlers, is likely to be replaced by a Thorntons gas station at some point.

But city attorneys have put a hold on a demolition permit while they review Illinois Historic Preservation Agency records on the building.

Local preservationists and others are urging the city to resurrect a plan to move the house several blocks east rather than let it be demolished.

“I don’t have any problem with them putting a gas station here. I have a problem with them tearing down history,” said David Castleberry during an interview at the corner of Jackson and Collins streets, where the building is located.

The home built by George Casseday could be the oldest house in the city. Casseday arrived with his family in Joliet in the mid-19th century. He acquired land on both sides of what now is Jackson Street, developing an estate that has disappeared but for the limestone house and a street bearing his name.

“The street named after him – that was his driveway,” Castleberry said.

Castleberry grew up in the neighborhood, passing by the house so often that he admits to taking it for granted. But now he wants to buy it and move it 1,200 feet east to an empty lot on Jackson Street.

He has had an Indianapolis company that specializes in such moves lined up since spring after talking with city officials and Thorntons representatives about relocation possibilities. The move would cost $172,000, funded in part by Thorntons, he said.

A proposal including Joliet incentives to offset Thorntons’ costs was to be presented to the Joliet City Council in May, Castleberry said.

“Everything seemed to be fine,” he said, until the attorney representing Thorntons informed Castleberry that the company no longer was interested in the relocation plan. “He said they didn’t need to help us and they weren’t going to do any of it.”

Thorntons’ attorney Michael Hansen has a different version of what happened.

Hansen said Thorntons determined that it could not proceed with the project if the house was to be moved because of the time it would take and questions about Castleberry’s “financial wherewithal” to participate.

Hansen told the council at its Aug. 20 meeting that state officials had reviewed the matter. A determination was made by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency that the house would be demolished, he said.

“The IHPA made the decision. It’s a done deal,” he said then.

But a spokeswoman for the state agency said Wednesday that the developer never informed the IHPA that relocating the house was a possibility, and the agency would have no objection to moving the structure.

“When the developer came to us, that was not something that was listed as an option,” spokeswoman Rachel Torbert said. “We have found out about it, but that’s after the memorandum of agreement was put in place for what the developer is working on now.”

The agreement provides for demolition while preserving some materials from the house, photographs to preserve its memory and a written history.

But it does not prevent the house from being moved intact to another location, Torbert said.

“If the developer wants to relocate it, that would be up to the developer,” she said.

The state preservation agency also determined that the Casseday house was eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Kendall Jackson, director of community development for Joliet, said the demolition permit has been put on hold as the city seeks documents used in the IHPA review of Thorntons’ plans for the Casseday house.

“The permit is currently with our legal department,” Jackson said. “I think they want to look at those documents.”

Mary Beth Gannon, a member of the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission, has led the groups of people opposing the demolition at three consecutive City Council meetings.

Gannon told the council Tuesday that there is growing demand that the city do more than save remnants of the Casseday house.

“They want this house saved,” she said. “They don’t want a pile of rocks.”