Work Starts On New Downtown Mixed-Use Building

OSWEGO, IL — Work has begun on the redevelopment of the former Village Hall site in Downtown Oswego, paving the way for a new restaurant and office space. The building — and the restaurant that will occupy it — is scheduled to open next summer.

Village officials joined Imperial Investments Wednesday for a groundbreaking at the former downtown brown field at 113 Main Street. Development firm Imperial Investments' plans for the site include a three-story building with a ground floor restaurant and office space on the upper floors.

Imperial is also developing the restaurant concept for the building. Mike Mann, Imperial's director of development, said the team has hired a chef, but said it is too early to reveal details about the restaurant's concept. The building however, will have garage door to allow for outdoor seating, and the restaurant will likely source its meat products locally.

"A lot of work went into this," said Mann, of Oswego. "I want to see stuff happen here that's happening in other communities."

Work on the building will begin immediately, with it hopefully be ready for its tenants by June 2020, Mann said. The construction timeline, however, will hinge on the harshness of the upcoming winter, he said.

The groundbreaking Wednesday was the culmination of years of hard work to get the prime Downtown lot redeveloped. The former Village Hall has sat vacant since 2008, when the new building at 100 Parkers Mill was completed. The former Village Hall building was razed in 2015.

In March, the Village of Oswego entered into an agreement with Imperial Investments to hand over the property free of charge, with a $60,000 tax increment financing district created for the site as a development incentive, Village Administrator Dan Di Santo said. The village expects to recoup the $60,000 within the first year of the building's occupancy.

The Village is also planning to improve the streetscape surrounding the development site. Plans include additional parking, reworked pedestrian thoroughfares and a rebuilt alley next to the under-construction building.

"This block is really going to come alive," Mayor Troy Parlier said. "This is an exciting, exciting day."

Imperial Investments has also purchased the Dairy Hut building, after the beloved ice cream parlor closed in August. The Dairy Hut building sits next to the former Village Hall site, but the projects will not be combined, Mann said. Imperial will announce plans for that building next week.