By Michael S. Hoey
Business owner David John Dietrich, who owns an art gallery in downtown Darien, expressed concerns at a recent board meeting about the building at 2 N. Wisconsin St. He recommended the village raze the structure and replace it with something beneficial to the village.
Dietrich said the building is a problem for the village both aesthetically and as a safety hazard. Though the building is historic, he said it’s time to tear it down and replace it with a park or some other amenity that would enhance the downtown.
Administrator Rebecca LeMire said the ownership of the building is in question. It was recently sold by STI Holdings, LLC to John J. Bertram. Both the seller and the buyer list the same address in Las Vegas, so the ownership status is not clear and the village has not heard from Bertram about his plans for the building.
LeMire said the village is concerned about the condition of the building, which has some outstanding code enforcement orders against it.
The front door of the structure displays a notice from the village declaring it not to be used “for human habitation, occupancy, or use.” The notice states that anyone interested in renting, leasing, or occupying the building would be liable to a fine of not less than $5 ormore than $50 dollars for each week in violation of the order or imprisonment of not more than 30 days or both. The notice is dated March 18 of this year.
LeMire said the building had been deemed unfit for human habitation due to needed for repairs to the roof, missing windows and the lack of utility connections. She said orders to correct the outstanding code enforcement concerns were reissued to the new property owner on July 18.
The Public Safety Committee discussed the issue in May, according to LeMire and decided it did not want to see the building razed. Citations were issued to the previous property owner.
The committee and the board have not yet discussed what to do now that ownership has changed. LeMire said the issue will be on the September Public Safety Committee agenda for review.
Read complete coverage from the recent Village Board meeting in the Aug. 29 Delavan Enterprise.
