Couple transforming historic Sterling building into event venue, cocktail lounge

STERLING – After more than a decade of trying to find its modern new destiny, a nearly 150-year-old downtown building is being revived by a young local couple whose sole entrepreneurial purpose in life is to share happiness.

Ashley and Ryan Nares, owners of Nares Event Co. and ‘Til Death Photo and Film, will be leasing the first and second floors of the three-story Mercantile Building, 117 W. Third St., turning the first-floor ballroom into a venue for weddings and other events, and the second floor into the headquarters for their photography/videography and wedding planning business.

As its new name implies, The Mercantile Ballroom & Cocktail Lounge will feature a standalone bar and a kitchen that serves globally inspired food, Thursday through Sunday for starters, Ashley said.

Old-timers will remember the multiwindowed structure, built in 1877 and across the street from County Market, as home for 61 years to Fred Boese Floor Coverings. Most recently, it held Sterling Antiques and Collectibles, an antique mall that opened in 2011 and closed a little less than a decade ago. It’s been empty since.

Sterling Today Inc., a nonprofit economic development group, bought the building in March 2013 for $110,000, with plans to turn it into a mixed-use retail and residential site. The economy and COVID-19 complications being what they were, those plans did not materialize, which turned out to be good news for the Nares.

The couple had been searching for a storefront in which to expand, and the Mercantile Building has been on their radar for three years, Ashley said.

“It’s just so pretty, and there’s not much like it around,” she said.

As a lover of historic buildings, she‘s “thrilled” that all the stars aligned and they’ll be able to bring their events company to a new level in the historic downtown locale.

The Nares won’t provide food catering, but they will do all that they can to help couples customize and realize the wedding of their dreams, within their budget, Ashley said.

In addition to the venue, they will provide an index of vendors and services, including packages that involve their own visual expertise, and anything else they can to create a one-stop wedding-planning experience.

As for the building itself, they have no plans to mess with historic perfection: The exposed brick and the original tin ceiling will remain, Ashley said.

Also, no slot machines and no TVs in the cocktail lounge. They want a quiet, peaceful place where people actually can converse.

“We love going to lounges and bars in Chicago, and we’re really trying to bring some of that cozy bar feeling back here,” she said.

As much as they love the urban vibe, these parents of two small children, who are 6 and nearly 5, were intent on keeping to their hometown and bringing more business to the area.

“We’re both from Sterling, and we really wanted to keep our business here in town,” she said.

Ryan, 37, is a 2005 Sterling High School grad, and Ashley, 35, graduated from there in 2007. What started as a side business shortly after the pandemic hit, with Ryan shooting video and Ashley behind the camera, soon turned into a full-time gig.

So Ryan left his job at Dixon prison, and Ashley hers working as a medical assistant in the surgery department at CGH Medical Center, and they haven’t looked back.

“It’s fun to get to be self-employed; we’ve had so many awesome experiences with the people we’ve met,” Ashley said.

Scott Winter of Winter Construction, who restored the Mercantile’s striking exterior, will be doing the renovation, which will begin as soon as plans for the buildout are finished and permits are in hand, said Janna Groharing, with Sterling Today and Sterling Main Street.

“We’re excited to see it come to life,” Groharing said. “I think it will be a good complement for what’s happening downtown.”

No only are they happy with the Nares’ vision for the site, and their respect for the building’s historic integrity, but “we’re also really excited that somebody local is reinvesting in their community,” she said, noting the scarcity of such venues in the area.

“It’s going to be a nice addition for the downtown.”

There are no definitive plans yet for the third floor, Groharing said, although the idea of creating apartments is on the table, and there has been talk of creating an Airbnb space.

To contact the Nares

The Nares are taking bookings for fall weddings other events, and for ‘Til Death Photo and Film, and expect the Mercantile Ballroom, which they will take over July 1, to be opening in September or October.

You can find the businesses on Facebook and Instagram and at themercantileballroom.com or tildeathphotoandfilm.com. Ashley also can be reached at 815-535-3214.