Kendall County to raze building for downtown Yorkville campus expansion

YORKVILLE – Kendall County officials are wasting no time to clear the way for expansion of the downtown Yorkville county government complex.

Demolition of the annex building at 105 W. Fox St. is expected to occur by mid-May, the first phase of the $10 million expansion project.

The Kendall County Board on April 18 approved a $55,000 contract with Elgin-based Fowler Enterprises to raze the small frame and concrete block structure that sits next to the former Bristol-Kendall fire station at 101 W. Fox St..

The county is scheduled close on its $800,000 purchase of the firehouse May 1, County Board member Brian DeBolt said.

The five-bay fire station building will be transformed into the new home for the county’s Facilities Management Department.

The annex structure sits directly between the firehouse and the Kendall County Office Building at 111 W. Fox St., home to the county administration.

Removal of the annex building will open up space for reconfiguring the driveways, walkways and parking areas at the county complex, which also includes the historic Kendall County Courthouse, now home to the Kendall County Forest Preserve District.

Immediately to the north of the firehouse is the location for the new Kendall County Clerk, Recorder and Elections Office county leaders plan to get under construction this year and open for business in time for the 2024 elections. That building will occupy a prominent location at the top of the hill directly overlooking South Bridge Street (Route 47) and the downtown business district.

Much of the main floor, which covers about 14,000 square feet, will provide space for the county clerk’s Elections Office, along with the clerk and recorder functions.

The 4,500-square-foot lower level, with outdoor access to the east on the sloping property, will be used for storage.

The project is to be financed with federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The parking lot, with access from South Main Street, forms the western boundary of the campus. The lot will be expanded and reconfigured, along with walkways connecting all of the county buildings.

With the county’s Facilities Management Department taking over the former firehouse, it will leave its headquarters at the county’s other main campus on West John Street in Yorkville. As a result, space will be created for the expansion of the Kendall County Coroner’s Office.

Once County Clerk Debbie Gillette has vacated her offices on the second floor of the county building along with the elections office on the first floor, the county will be in a position to renovate those spaces for other use.