Landmarks Illinois announces $34,000 in grant funding to people saving places in communities across the state

Funding will support people working on preservation projects in Anna, Chicago, Gibson City, Hometown, McLean, Mendon, Princeton and Rockford

/EIN News/ -- CHICAGO, Dec. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A 19th-century opera hall, an iconic Route 66 attraction and a nationally-recognized round barn are among the historic places Landmarks Illinois is helping people preserve through grant funding. Landmarks Illinois has awarded $34,000 to nine preservation projects across the state through its Preservation Heritage Fund and Barbara C. and Thomas E. Donnelley II Preservation Fund for Illinois grant programs. Grant-funded projects are in the Illinois communities of Anna, Chicago, Gibson City, Hometown, McLean, Mendon, Princeton and Rockford.

Preservation Heritage Fund grant recipients
Landmarks Illinois’ Preservation Heritage Fund grants provide monetary assistance to significant structures or sites in Illinois that are under threat of demolition, in imminent deterioration, in need of stabilization, in need of structural or reuse evaluation or need to be evaluated for landmark eligibility.

A total of $29,000 in matching grants has been awarded to seven Illinois preservation efforts in this latest round of grant funding. Visit our website to learn more about each grant recipient.

• Eugene S. Pike House Foundation, Chicago: $5,000 to make roof repairs on the historic Eugene S. Pike House, an architecturally significant former Forest Preserve residence named to Landmarks Illinois’ 2022 ‘Most Endangered’ list.
• Gibson City Restoration Association, Gibson City: $4,000 for masonry repairs to the historic Burwell Building, built in 1883 as an opera hall and is now being restored to spark economic development in the city’s commercial corridor.
• Hometown Christian Church, Hometown: $5,000 to make roof repairs to the mid-century modern church established in 1953 that has continued to be a cornerstone in the community for more than seven decades.
• CORE of McLean, McLean: $5,000 for power washing, base painting and other restoration work at the McLean Water Tower, a now decommissioned water tower built in 1935 that CORE is preserving to create a Route 66 landmark the community and visitors can enjoy and visit to learn about local history.
• Adams County Olde Tyme Association, Mendon: $5,000 to replace the roof on the Lewis Round Barn, an intricately engineered large barn completed in 1914 that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
• Bureau County Historical Center & Society, Princeton: $3,500 for renovation and adaptive reuse of the Sash Stalter Matson Building, a historic former library that opened in 1913 and is now being converted into a county history and learning center. 
• Ethnic Heritage Museum, Rockford: $1,500 to restore the porch on the Graham-Ginestra House, a National Register-listed home built in 1850 that is part of Rockford’s Heritage Museum Park. 

Donnelley Preservation Fund grant recipients
The Barbara C. and Thomas E. Donnelley II Preservation Fund for Illinois provides monetary assistance to preserve or protect significant structures and sites in Illinois that are under threat of demolition, in imminent deterioration, in need of stabilization, in need of structural or reuse evaluation or need to be evaluated for landmark eligibility.

Two grants totaling $5,000 were awarded recently through the Donnelley Preservation Fund. Visit our website to learn more about each grant-funded preservation project.

• Alt Space Chicago, Chicago: $2,500 to support design sessions for the adaptive reuse of the 100-year-old former Austin Bank Building. Alt Space will invite residents, artists and local leaders to contribute ideas for reimagining the interior and exterior spaces as they transform the building into a community arts hub.
• Shawnee Hills Arts Council, Anna: $2,500 to conduct a structural engineering study of Anna’s original City Hall Building used by the Arts Council to host community programming. 

More about Landmarks Illinois grants
Landmarks Illinois grants are given on a matching basis, requiring the recipient to raise funds equal or greater to the Landmarks Illinois grant amount. Landmarks Illinois grant funding is used toward preserving historic and significant places in communities throughout the state. Often, these small grants help spark community engagement around the preservation of a place and help boost local fundraising efforts for the preservation project. 

Grant applications for the next round of funding through the Preservation Heritage Fund and Barbara C. and Thomas E. Donnelley II Preservation Fund for Illinois grant programs are due April 1, 2025.   

About Landmarks Illinois
Landmarks Illinois is a membership-based, historic preservation nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving, protecting and promoting the places people across Illinois value. We advocate for the sustainable reuse of historic resources, provide expertise and free resources on preservation and work to ensure that historic places remain a vital part of the state's communities. We are People Saving Places for People. For more information, visit www.Landmarks.org.

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• Lewis Round Barn

Kaitlyn McAvoy
                    Landmarks Illinois
                    312-995-9679 
                    kmcavoy@landmarks.org