BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WMBD) — A Rockford developer purchased a historic downtown Bloomington building to turn it into lofts.
Urban Equity Properties purchased the old State Farm headquarters building on Washington Street. The building has been vacant for many years, but will now hold 183 loft apartments, a restaurant on the top floor, and a food court and other retail shops on the ground floor, including a Starbucks.
“We see a ton of potential in downtown Bloomington, and in the State Farm building, just the State Farm building is iconic,” said Justin Fern, CEO and president of Urban Equity Properties. “I personally fell in love with the building the first time I saw it.”
Currently, the building is under construction, and the first phase of the construction is expected to wrap up in the summer of 2027. That first phase will complete 57 lofts on the top few floors, the top-floor restaurant, and the ground-level Starbucks.
Fern expects that when construction is complete, the building will return to form, like it once was.
“We’re really looking forward to this. This building really is the anchor and has been the anchor to downtown for a long, long time, and then the building went vacant. Fast forward to today, and we’re going to be converting to 183 loft apartments. So it will definitely be the anchor again,” Fern said.
U.E.P. also purchased the old car garage across the street, which will be revamped into parking for residents and employees, living and working in the new building.
“We’ll also be doing a rehab at this building, bringing it back to its original glory, which will be again, parking, but a very nice art deco parking facility, really to its original art deco architecture that will facilitate parking not just for our State Farm conversion here, but also help with our ground floor food hall retail parking,” Fern said.
WMBD TV first reported this story. You can read more about this story online at CIProud.com.
