State OKs demo of Rock Falls’ former Micro Industries buildings with stipulation

ROCK FALLS – Rock Falls’ downtown and adjacent industrial buildings soon will undergo a historic resources survey.

The survey’s completion is a stipulation agreed upon by city officials, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the State Historic Preservation Office in exchange for the state approving the demolition of the former Micro Industries buildings, City Administrator Robbin Blackert said.

The city plans to turn the property into parking and green space, she said in a previous interview.

“They’re going to pinpoint any buildings that may be qualified to be registered with the historic registry,” Blackert said. “And, if so, then we’ll eventually have a couple public meetings and to let the owners of these properties know, if they qualify – and if they want to register their property – that there will be some tax credit incentives for them through this organization.”

On Feb. 6, Rock Falls City Council members unanimously approved a memorandum of agreement between the city, DCEO and SHPO regarding the demolition and historic survey.

The Micro Industries buildings, located at 200 W. Second St., Rock Falls, will not be part of the survey, Blackert said.

“This will probably be a multi-month process, so I think it’s important for the council to know this will not impede the demolition of the building,” Rock Falls City Attorney Matt Cole said. “We are going to work away at these mitigation efforts that the state has recommended and can still take down the building. So just understand those two will be happening concurrently.”

City officials plan to demolish the buildings later this year after asbestos abatement in the late spring or early summer.

In 2022, Rock Falls received a grant worth about $2.2 million from the state’s Rebuild Illinois Downtowns and Main Streets Capital Program to revitalize the property. The program supports local commercial corridors with concentrations of businesses hurt by the pandemic.

“What they are seeking is essentially us to conduct a survey of properties within the downtown area that may be eligible for these kinds of things so that they could potentially get access in terms of a registered historic district or historic building and tap into certain sources of funding,” Cole said. “That’s what they consider to be mitigation efforts, which essentially are going to help replace historic loss of this Micro [Industries] building.”