La Salle’s Kaskaskia, proposed brewpub flagged by city in recent inspections

The city of La Salle is reviewing the results of a building inspection performed Jan. 8 before forming an action plan. The downtown Maytag and Kaskaskia properties inspected are owned by CL Real Estate.

The inspection flagged some structural concerns presented Monday to the La Salle City Council, but City Engineer Brian Brown said that he will need to join Building Inspector Dennis Hocking and special counsel Sheryl Churney in reviewing the results before outlining their response to CL Real Estate.

Mayor Jeff Grove said the council should reopen the matter once the structural engineering team provides an outline with both the scope and timeline of what is reasonable.

Steven T. Hussey, president of CL Real Estate, confirmed the company hasn’t received any inspection results. City officials acknowledged that Monday, but Brown said CL already has responded by seeking its own structural engineer in anticipation of repairs.

“We’ve engaged a structural engineer for guidance as a good faith supplement to the city’s efforts,” Hussey said. “In the aggregate, we’re doing everything in our power to ensure that our buildings meet municipal code, and do not incur violations.”

Alderman Jim Bacidore said he was disappointed Monday in CL’s progress. Brown summarized most of the rehabilitation work tackled at the Maytag building, the site of a proposed brewpub and apartments, was to the exterior. He said that some concrete work will need to be done before the city will allow protective fencing to come down.

In a report presented Monday to the La Salle City Council, the Kaskaskia posed some risks to public safety.

Observed damage in the garage roof support north wall indicates that structural deficiencies that have a vital effect on the capacity of the wall to carry expected loads, according to the report. The wall lean should be corrected and braced above the second floor. The inspector recommends a repair or temporary support or restraint against lateral movement of the portion of the wall be completed. The shoring and cable ties may be amended to provide this support until the full building rehabilitation is completed.

The inspector also recommended all the buildings around the entire perimeter of the Kaskaskia be inspected for loose masonry and repaired based on the condition of the east face masonry cornice and facade.

A new site inspection also my be required by an architect to confirm the correctness of the reconstruction design information and to assess the current structural condition of the building, the inspector said.

At the Maytag building, the inspector said the city should require the owner to engage the design professionals of record or other qualified professionals to provide written comments on the identified construction deficiencies. The deviations from the permit drawings do not necessarily result in structural deficiencies, the inspector said, but should be reviewed by the design professionals to ensure the building’s safety and compliance.

“We keep checking the hotel, they don’t get anything done,” Bacidore said Monday. “They patch it, they patch it and we get another engineer and they patch and patch it so we’re losing all this money on engineers and they’re never going to do anything. We have to make them either say they’re not going to do nothing and forget about it, or have them do something.”

The mayor said he agreed with Bacidore’s assessment of proceeding forward.

Brown said he anticipates the city’s structural engineer checking in to make sure repairs are done properly.

Alderman John “Doc” Lavieri asked what legal options the city has, and if they are limited to enforcing the safety of the buildings.

City Attorney Jim McPherson said that those conversations are better for council members to have one-on-one with the legal team, but also said the city will have options available.

January’s inspection was the second at the buildings since the summer of 2022.