180-year-old home in St. Charles gets demolition reprieve – for now

A 180-year-old St. Charles home remains safe from demolition for the time being, as the city’s consideration of the owners' request was postponed at the Planning and Development Committee meeting Monday night.

The house at 217 Cedar Ave. in downtown St. Charles, known as the Barry House, was built in 1844. It was the home of Judge William D. Barry in the mid 1800s and Abraham Lincoln is believed to have stayed in the home while visiting Barry.

The owner, Baker Memorial United Methodist Church, petitioned the Historic Preservation Commission for a COA to demolish the buildings in October, and were given the OK to demolish the building at 211-215 Cedar Ave., but did not receive a positive recommendation to demolish the Barry House.

The church wants to demolish both the Barry House and the adjacent structure at 211-215 Cedar Ave. which they purchased at the same time. Both buildings are on the south side of Cedar Avenue just west of Third Avenue downtown, across from the church at 307 Cedar Ave.

Because the properties are located in a historic district, they are required to receive a certificate of appropriateness (COA) from the city in order to demolish.

Despite the commission voting against the recommendation, owners continued to seek the city’s permission from the Planning and Development Committee, which has the power to overturn the commission’s recommendation.

Around 60 people were in attendance at the Dec. 9 meeting, most of which were members of the church.

Historic Preservation Commission chair Kim Malay presented the committee with the commission’s recommendation to deny the COA.

Malay said their main reasoning was the building’s historical significance. She also expressed the commission’s dissatisfaction with owners' lack of effort to sell the property, stating that it was never listed on an MLS and the church denied an offer that was made.

Church representatives Brian Harris and Peter Vargulich, Pastor David Aslesen and attorney John Hoscheit all spoke at the meeting on behalf of the church.

The church has owned the building since 1993 and has been seeking permission to demolish it since 2017, to make way for a parking lot.

The owners’ reasoning behind the desire to demolish the homes included the financial burden the properties put on the church, the structures’ deterioration to the point they are uninsurable, and the fact that they have been the target of several break-ins, trespassing and vandalism in recent years.

“I think the bottom line here is; if the structures are removed it will actually enhance the experience for people that come to downtown St. Charles and visit our other historic structures,” Hoscheit said. “We believe without a doubt that this would be the best thing to happen there.”

Alderpersons David Pietryla and Bryan Wirball both expressed interest in a shared parking lot being developed on the property, and suggested a possible acquisition of the lots by the city in order to provide additional parking for downtown visitors.

“I personally would like to entertain the idea of acquisition,” Pietryla said. “I think we have an opportunity to stabilize our parking and we can continue to work with the church.”

“I firmly believe we have a parking problem downtown, especially on the east side,“ Wirball said. “I am in line with [Pietryla], looking into acquiring the entire property and working with the church in a partnership in a collaborative way that serves everyone’s best interest.”

Alderperson Jayme Muenz made the motion to postpone the decision in order to give the church and city staff more time to work through potential alternatives to demolition. The suggestion was met with audible groans from the audience.

“I think it’s our opinion that anytime things can move forward without government intervention, that’s really preferred,” Muenz said.

Harris said while the postponement was not ideal, the church was amenable to the idea, provided they have assurance that they will receive full support and cooperation from city staff in the ensuing discussions.

“We’ve waited a long time and we’re tired of waiting,” Harris said.

Committee members approved the postponement in an unanimous vote.