Virtual tour of Belleville’s Meredith Home shows deteriorated details as rehab begins
The interior of the historic Meredith Home and Hotel Belleville reveals peeling paint and other signs of deterioration.
But it remains rich with deftly made architectural details along walls and light fixtures which highlight the art-deco style of the 1931 structure.
Before renovation of downtown Belleville’s National Historic building got underway this month, developers allowed a Belleville News-Democrat photographer and videographer to tour it and record its current condition.
The six-story, brick building is being converted into senior apartments along with retail or restaurant space on the first floor. It is expected to be finished in summer 2021.
The developer’s plan to keep the architectural features because the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and was awarded tax credits to help pay for the $14.2 million project.
“It’s going to be a total gut rehab,” said Mike Lundy, executive director of the Southwestern Illinois Development Authority.
Lundy’s agency is developing the project along with St. Louis-based Bywater Development Group.
Holland Construction Services of Swansea is the general contractor for the renovation.
Lundy said the interior demolition has gotten off to a “smooth” start.
“They had it all teed up ready to go,” he said.
The project was first announced in 2016 but faced delays in financing before the city sold the vacant building to the developers for $600,000 last month.
The building opened 89 years ago as the Hotel Belleville and then in the early 1960s the Belleville Diocese began running the Meredith Home for retirees until it sold the building to the city 10 years ago. It has been vacant since then and the city had to spend more than $120,000 to repair the roof.
The new name for the building is Lofts on the Square.
Future residents will be at least 55 years old and earn less than 60% of the area’s median income, according to a news release. The development could bring up to 60 downtown residents.
Along with the historic tax credits worth $2.1 million, the developers qualified for $7.5 million in federal low-income housing tax credits from the Illinois Housing Development Authority. The agency said developers convert the credits into equity by selling them to investors who utilize the credits to offset tax liability.
The city once had plans to tear down the building but later put a moratorium on the demolition to see if a developer would offer to renovate it.
This story was originally published May 20, 2020 at 12:00 PM.
