Jacoby Arts Center vacates Jacoby Arts Center, AltonWorks provides updates

Many other developments also highlighted by AltonWorks at recent community meeting

By MELISSA CROCKETT MESKE
IBJ Managing Editor
[email protected]

By now, most regional business and industry leaders have at least heard the name of an ambitious local initiative known as “AltonWorks.” 

This initiative, grown from the brainchild first set in motion by Alton-based attorney John Simmons and his wife Jayne, has now become a large-scale visually and economically impactful engine for revitalization in Alton’s historic downtown. 

A self-proclaimed social impact redevelopment company, AltonWorks is on a mission to rebirth and reclaim the city of Alton’s downtown as a healthy, thriving, walkable district that reminds visitors of its importance to our past while also moving them forward into its future livelihood.

Recent news surrounding the dislocation of Jacoby Arts Center from the place it has called home since the site was first gifted to them by the Jacoby family in 2004. After building a nearly 100-year local legend as C.J. Jacoby & Co., Jack and Don Jacoby, along with their families, presented the organization then known as Madison County Arts Council the property, with the intent that it be perpetually utilized as community art space. 

Members of the Madison County Arts Council would later officially change the name of their organization to that of Jacoby Arts Center as well, to strengthen the identity, presence and brand, as well as to eventually overcome some misgivings they had been facing such as being thought of by many as a county agency, thereby only providing programming to Madison County residents. 

Providing the region with arts programming for more than 40 years, Jacoby Arts Center (the organization) has now vacated Jacoby Arts Center (the structure). 

In a letter published by Jacoby Arts Center, it was shared that the Jacoby building had been bought in 2018 by its now-owner and developer, AltonWorks. AltonWorks had come in to help the organization stay afloat as the building was quickly falling into dire disrepair and operating expenses had become unmanageable. Rehabilitation recently began on the building that necessitated the Arts Center vacating the building. 

The organization further shared in its public letter that AltonWorks has been presented with various plans for Jacoby Arts Center (the building) and its operating organization, Jacoby Arts Center, throughout the years since its acquisition. 

On May 15, 2024, according to the public letter, AltonWorks presented the arts organization with options for the construction phase, and for the future proposed footprint for Jacoby Arts Center to come back into the Jacoby building.

Representatives of the Jacoby Arts Center organization noted that the future proposed Jacoby Arts Center space in the current building would be 2,553 square feet, which is 80 percent smaller than the footprint they have had in the building. Further noted was that the proposed rent for the new space was expected to be beyond the organization’s budget. 

At the time the letter was published, the arts organization wrote that they did not know what the future held for them, for the building, or where they might move in the interim or in the future. Updates will be shared via social media and the organization’s website, jacobyartscenter.org. At press time, there had been no further updates. 

A significant public outcry has come through in the time since. So much so that AltonWorks recently hosted a community meeting to proactively address many of the concerns being expressed. 

AltonWorks spokesperson Susan Ryan shared with the Illinois Business Journal: “We offered JAC two separate options for temporary locations for themselves and the artists areas while the current building is under construction. Those locations were both offered with no rent and a minor fee to help cover utilities. They turned us down on both of those options. 

“We didn’t get the opportunity to discuss options beyond the Jacoby Building once construction is complete because they ended the negotiation process with us. It is our understanding that they did not seek alternative locations beyond what we offered to them,” she added.

John Simmons further told the Illinois Business Journal that he would like to see a viable plan come together that would bring the arts organization back into the building once its rehabilitation is complete, but that the organization would need to present a realistic and sustainable operational plan for moving forward.

At the Aug. 26 community meeting, AltonWorks provided a presentation that not only addressed plans for The Jacoby, immediately and in the future, but also shared updates and plans for a multitude of other projects in the works.

The overview presentation given by Senior Advisor Kiku Obata first outlined the AltonWorks founding principles of livability, environmental stewardship, social justice, and inclusivity. 

Obata then noted that there are three defined districts within the Historic Downtown Alton footprint that AltonWorks is revitalizing — the Grand Entertainment District, Broadway Makers District, and Jacoby Arts & Innovation District. Some of the historically significant structures within those districts and part of AltonWorks’ revitalization efforts include The Grand Theater, The Stratford Hotel, The Wedge, and, of course, The Jacoby.

Other AltonWorks spokespersons on hand at the meeting shared progress reports on bringing an enterprise-grade fiber network to the district as a utility, not just for businesses, but for the Alton community overall. Referred to as AltonWorks FiberNet, officials on hand said construction on the network would begin in the next month or two and take roughly 18 months to finish. 

The signature catalytic project for AltonWorks discussed was the Wedge Innovation Center, a transformation of Alton’s legendary Wedge Bank and Elfgen buildings. The center is now a 55,000 square foot research lab, think tank, and accelerator that will serve as an inclusive hub to connect entrepreneurs, early-stage, growth-driven companies, and government agencies to the digital economy in the Alton Metro Region.

TechSTL Executive Director Emily Hemingway was recently hired to also serve as its executive director. Key partners include MAIN Labs, TechSTL, GeoMarc, Center for Predictive Analytics and SIUE, along with local government, regional community leaders, corporations, mid-size businesses and startups.

The Wedge Innovation Center represents a groundbreaking advancement in creating a comprehensive hub for AI, data research, and community development. The center combines state-of-the-art facilities with a commitment to fostering innovation and collaboration. The primary goal for the Wedge Innovation Center is to serve as a high-tech business incubator, accelerator and co-working space. As a digital hub for the fiber network being constructed, it is hoped that the Wedge will also serve as a catalyst for higher-paying jobs in the region. 

AltonWorks also sees further tangible benefits to the community coming out of the Wedge Innovation Center such as free Wi-Fi, job training, apprenticeships, a digital library, catering kitchen, and a conference center for educational, networking and training events. There are plans as well for a restaurant on-site as well as retail space. 

Construction began in December 2022, and officials are now planning for a December 2024 debut. The Wedge will fill a pivotal role in revitalizing Alton by transforming historic buildings into a modern innovation hub. This redevelopment not only preserves the city’s heritage, but also stimulates local growth and economic development.

Another historic structure under construction by AltonWorks is the rehabilitation of Lucas Row, across the street from The Wedge at 601-611 E. Broadway. Plans call for retail space on the street level, with six apartments on the upper level and six garden-style apartments on the lower level.

As for The Jacoby, AltonWorks’ plans call for the restoration of the building to include art and retail space, as well as the construction of 18 apartments on the building’s upper two floors. 

New to the list of ambitious projects being tackled by AltonWorks is The Lovejoy, at Ridge and East Broadway. AltonWorks and Alton Forward are partnering with McCormack Baron Salazar, a national innovator in community development and urban revitalization, on a new mixed-use retail and residential development with a goal of attracting people looking for a walkable, urban lifestyle.

As the late August meeting wrapped up, a community discussion took place, with many questions from audience members that were answered by the AltonWorks’ panel. 

Meeting organizers also shared other ideas and visions coming out of this shared vision for breathing new life into Alton’s historic downtown. Among them: Developing the city’s riverfront into a family-friendly outdoor recreation destination that might just end up being known as the nation’s third coast, or “Great Rivers National Park,” and with Alton one day known as “the city of rooftops.”

To learn more about all the projects and plans being launched through AltonWorks, visit online at https://altonworks.us/ and sign up for their newsletter while you’re there. You can also follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn or reach them via email at [email protected]. Future community meetings will be announced as they are scheduled.

 

 

(Editor’s note: This story also appears in the October 2024 print edition of the Illinois Business Journal.)