Demolition of a dilapidated hotel on the Public Square in Downtown Galesburg is one legal step closer to happening.
A order for demolition of the former Broadview Inn & Suites was granted last week by the Ninth Judicial Court, Knox County, according to Steve Gugliotta, Galesburg’s director of Community Development.
Gugliotta tells WGIL the order states proper notices were issued, the building is in an unsafe and dangerous condition and the cost to remediate exceeds the value of the property as it stands.
The Broadview hotel closed in the Spring of 2020 and shortly after the city began issuing nuisance violation notices for weeds, trash and debris, outside storage and open window/doors. The Galesburg City Council authorized moving forward with demolition in March 2022.
In September, WGIL reported there have been 8 administrative adjudication cases for nuisance and criminal violations since the hotel closed. The cases have resulted in unpaid fines and fees of $16,514.20.
City administration said there has been no water to the building since February 2021, leaving it with zero fire protection. There are signs of concrete falling off the building, multiple broken windows and doors that have had to be boarded up, the roofing material is beyond its useful life and much of it has blown off allowing infiltration of inclement weather.
Gugliotta said a demolition bid package is prepared and the city anticipates it being advertised starting Wednesday. Bids will be due on Jan. 18, 2023.
The city will not publicly disclose a projected demolition cost ahead of letting a bid.
The former hotel and adjoining restaurant are owned by Beena (Galesburg), LLC. Gugliotta said the city has not been in contact with the owners.
It would be up to the City Council to decide if the City of Galesburg should pursue ownership of the property once it is torn down.
The building originally opened as a Howard Johnson Motor Lodge on May 1, 1978.
