Redevelopment commission approves façade payments, asks staff to draft longer completion timeline

Redevelopment commission members approved additional payments tied to downtown façade projects and directed staff to return with a revised façade- grant timeline at a future meeting.

The Crown Point Redevelopment Commission approved additional payment requests for 100 South Main Street and the final payment for 101–107 West Joliet Street and asked staff to draft a revised façade program timeline that would replace the current 90-day completion requirement with a year-plus-extension process.

The 100 South Main Street application (the massage school across the street from the square) had previously received $20,020.43. A presenter speaking on behalf of Olivia Sanafonte told the commission the exterior painting quote was $22,664.47 and that, with an approval up to $25,000, the remaining balance would be $4,979.57. During the motion, a commissioner moved to approve an additional $8,979.57 toward the exterior paint; the motion passed on a roll call vote with all voting members recorded as voting yes. The transcript contains both the $4,979.57 figure (presenter) and the $8,979.57 figure (motion), a numerical inconsistency noted in the record.

Randy Securis of 116 West Clark Street addressed the commission about 101–107 West Joliet Street, summarizing a multi-year project originally applied for on 2019-06-03. Securis said storefront glass, masonry restoration and second-floor windows are complete but that third-floor windows remain incomplete after the original contractor was involved in a fatal car accident. He said a new contract is being arranged and the work should finish within about a month. Commissioners discussed precedent for late payments and exceptions, saying other projects approved years earlier (a noted example: a Kiddie Academy application from July 2017 that received final payment in 2023) had also exceeded the 90-day completion window. The commission approved the final payout for SDR LLC (the applicant) by roll call; all voting members recorded “yes.”

Commission members spent extended time discussing the program rule that work must be completed within 90 days of grant approval. Multiple commissioners and staff said 90 days is often too short for projects that require specialized historic restoration, custom millwork or complex contracting. One staff speaker proposed a framework: allow one year to complete work, permit a six-month extension upon request, and allow one additional six-month extension under a one-time stipulation (for a total maximum of two years), with applicants required to provide updates every six months. Commissioners asked staff to draft a formal revision to the façade application and timeline reflecting that approach and return it for commission approval at a future meeting.

No statute, ordinance or formal new policy text was adopted at the meeting; the commission directed staff to prepare a proposal for the revised timeline. The record shows the commission intends to consolidate two existing façade programs into a single application with the revised timeline and consistent requirements for the storefront district.

Commission discussion noted the program’s typical grant cap structure: the program has previously used a $25,000-per-side cap and combined-applicant limits were discussed during the meeting (applicants with multiple façades had separate eligible sides). The commission and staff discussed allowing narrow exceptions in extraordinary cases where specialized craftsmanship or supply constraints make work take longer than two years.

Staff confirmed they will prepare a single revised façade application and timeline and present it to the commission for a future vote. The meeting record does not specify a return date for that draft.