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The 2008 Mayor’s Awards for Excellence in Downtown Property Improvements
On Thursday, December 4, 2008, Mayor Thomas J. Weisner joined with FoxWalk Overlay District Design Review Committee Chair Donald P. Truax to present this year’s Mayor’s Awards for Excellence in Downtown Property Improvements. The award-winning projects are described below.
Trinity Episcopal Church, 218 E. Benton Street
In 1837, the Trinity Episcopal congregation in Aurora was formed. Their limestone building, located at 218 E. Benton Street, was constructed in 1872 and is one of the oldest structures in downtown Aurora. Trinity Episcopal Church was presented with a Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Downtown Property Improvement because of work completed this year that included restoration of the church’s historic rose window, installation of storm windows, restoration of masonry, replacement of the roof, and painting of the exterior of the parish hall.
Fox Theatre, 28 E. Downer Place
The building at 28 E. Downer Place was constructed in 1919, as part of a complex known as the Fox Theatre. The property had been purchased by a private developer in the 1980s but never rehabilitated. It had deteriorated to the point where many of the interior floors and ceilings had collapsed. In 2003, the Aurora Civic Center Authority acquired the building. In conjunction with the construction of the Paramount Theatre addition in 2006, ACCA undertook a full restoration of the building adjacent to the Riverwalk. The historic Fox Theatre Promenade sign on the east elevation of the building was restored earlier this year as part of the redevelopment project. The Aurora Civic Center Authority was presented with a Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Property Improvement in recognition for the rehabilitation of the former Fox Theatre building.
La France Bakery, 118 E. Galena Boulevard
In 2007, Mr. Garcia and the Martinez brothers purchased this building, and spent the next year transforming it from a nondescript one-story commercial building to a space filled with crystal chandeliers, marble tiles, and fresh bakery goods. During warm weather months, the bakery features an outdoor sidewalk café. Indoors, all year long, customers will find bistro tables, china, and beautiful season decorations. Mr. Garcia, and the Martinez family were presented with a Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Property Improvement in recognition for the complete refurbishment of their building.
Balderas Beauty Salon, 25. N. Broadway
Clara and Marco Diaz purchased the building at 25 N. Broadway in 2006. Clara had been employed as a hairdresser at Balderas Beauty Salon for many years. She purchased the business, then bought the building and moved her family to the upstairs apartment. Since Mr. and Mrs. Diaz have owned the building, they have undertaken a restoration of the façade, removing dated siding, installing a new storefront system, lighting, and windows. The decorative cornice has been painted to complete the vintage appearance of their property. Mr. and Mrs. Diaz were presented with a Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Property Improvement in recognition of the restoration of this building.
Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall, 23 E. Downer Place
In Aurora, citizens raised the money to build a soldier’s memorial for the Civil War veterans, and in 1877 built the GAR building at a cost of $7,187.54. It is one of Aurora’s most widely recognized historic landmarks, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Constructed of locally quarried limestone, it is designed in the Gothic Revival style with pointed arched windows, and octagon plan. In 1904, an addition for a banquet hall, meeting room, and entrance tower was completed. By 1885, the Library’s need for expansion was evident. An addition was built onto the southern end of the building in 1885-1886. The GAR building served as the City’s Public Library until 1904 when its new home was built on the south end of Stolp Island. The existing tower was built in 1904, when the Veterans resumed use of the building after the Library relocated.
In the early 1960s, the city of Aurora planned to demolish the GAR building to make room for additional parking, but public outcry saved the original portion of the building. Although the 1885 addition was demolished, the 1904 tower with its castle-like profile also survived. The Foxboro, Massachusetts “twin” of the Aurora GAR Memorial is also still standing.
The building is in the midst of a complete restoration, which includes structural stabilization, restoration of the art glass windows, limestone repairs, roof cresting, new copper gutters, flashing and roofing, a refurbished entry stair, and construction of an addition to provide an accessible entry, an elevator and accessible bathrooms, as well as landscaping improvements. When re-opened to the public, the building will house the archives of the Grand Army of the Republic Commission, including memorabilia from the Civil War, and subsequent war efforts. This Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Property Improvement was presented to the partners in the restoration effort: the Aurora Preservation Commission (Jan Mangers); the Aurora Public Art Commission (Rena Church); the GAR Commission (Jo Fredell Higgins), and the City of Aurora Community Development Department (John Curley).