Belleville panel OKs auctioneer’s plan to expand on Illinois 15

A veteran auctioneer is ready to take bids and call out to customers in a new home.

The city’s Planning Commission on Wednesday night unanimously supported a plan proposed by Adam Jokisch, president and CEO of Adam’s Auction & Real Estate Services Inc. in Belleville, for an auction and event center off Illinois 15 on the east side of town.

The commission makes recommendations and the City Council has the final say. Aldermen likely will consider the request on Feb. 16.

Jokisch said the proposed 19,400-square-foot building would be used for auctions and groups could rent it for events such as car and tractor shows. The business would use 12 acres of a 32.4-acre site at 1530 E. State Route 15, which is adjacent to Tractor Supply Co.

Jokisch said the new site would allow him to conduct more auctions for farm and industrial equipment.

“We want to stay in Belleville,” Jokisch said after the commission voted.

“I think it would be good to bring people out there in that direction. I think it would be good for everybody out there,” Jokisch said of the auctions and events that could be at the site.

He said nearby businesses, including Tractor Supply, The Weingarten and Eckert’s, would benefit from the auction center.

The motion approved by the Planning Commission included a condition that Jokisch build a paved parking lot for 65 spaces instead of the 23 proposed by Jokisch.

“I think it’s doable,” Jokisch said of the larger parking lot. “I think all their points are very valid.” A gravel lot will be used for displaying equipment and for overflow parking.

Jokisch, who founded his company in 1988, has 10 to 15 full-time employees as well as part-time employees. His office at 120 W. Main St. would remain open.

Along with auctions he now holds at the Belle-Clair Fairgrounds in Belleville, Jokisch auctions off homes and vacant land in the region. His company also conducts auctions throughout the country.

It’s too early to put a value on the building planned for Illinois 15, Jokisch said. If he receives city approval for the building, he hopes to have it open by the end of the year.

Annissa McCaskill, director of the city’s Economic Development, Planning and Zoning Department, said the city is not offering tax incentives for Jokisch’s project.

Mike Koziatek: 618-239-2502, @MikeKoziatekBND

This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 10:12 AM with the headline "Belleville panel OKs auctioneer’s plan to expand on Illinois 15."