GALESBURG — There was no shortage of business news to be found in 2018. Amtrak funding, a new use for a vacant building, job creation and talk of wind and solar projects were just a few of the items that topped our list. But in Galesburg, few things stir more excitement than word of a new store or restaurant — and there were quite a few of those in 2018, too. Read on for a closer look at our top 10 business stories:
1. Sandburg Mall closes for good
Sandburg Mall doors were locked in September after GNC left as the last remaining store inside the mall at 1150 W. Carl Sandburg Drive. That closure was just the latest in a trickle of store closures in the last two years, the biggest being the departures of the last two anchor stores in 2018 — J.C. Penney and Bergner’s, whose corporate sisters also went under as parent company Bon Ton Stores declared bankruptcy.
The mall opened Oct. 1, 1974. Original owner General Growth Properties, sold the mall in the late 1990s as financial began. A limited liability company, Sandburg Mall Realty Management, bought the property for $3.3 million in 2007. By 2014, the LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It was over $2 million in debt. The mall was purchased by developer G.L. “Buck” Harris of Fort Worth, Texas, in 2016.
In recent weeks, the Sandburg Mall has brought in a new tenant in U-Haul that is operating out of the former Garden Center portion of Kmart. Plans about the long-term future of the site remains unknown at this time.
2. Former Walmart redeveloped into new retail space
Area residents await the opening of Marshalls after Harbor Freight & Tools, Five Below and Petsmart have all opened in the former Walmart location next to Hy-Vee at 1031 National Blvd., just off North Henderson Street. The former Walmart building sat empty for more than a decade before Tramlaw Galesburg LLC bought the building in 2016 and has spend the past two years working with Kairos Investment Partners to develop the property and attract retailers to the location now dubbed Galesburg Crossings.
One more business is expected to join the new retail option. The parking lot was resurfaced and the development is named Galesburg Crossings.
“This is a great project for Galesburg and the Knox County Area,” said Ken Springer, president of the Knox County Area Partnership for Economic Development.
3. Midstate Manufacturing to expand, add 77 jobs
Midstate Manufacturing Co. announced in mid-December that it will bring 77 new jobs to Galesburg over the next two years. The locally-owned company is planning an expansion that will also help breathe life into two buildings in the southwestern quarter of Galesburg.
According to Ken Springer, president of the Knox County Area Partnership for Economic Development, the expansion will involve the assembly of autonomous vehicle kits for off-highway trucks as well as an expansion of the company’s painting capacity. Many different parts make up the kits, and some of those parts will be made here in Galesburg.
Two buildings, which formerly housed manufacturers, have been purchased recently by Midstate and will be used for the expansion: 519 McClure St. and 1360 Monmouth Blvd., the former Outboard Marine Corp. and Midwest Plastics, respectively. Both buildings will have improvements made toward being ready for the expansion.
While specific details of the 77 jobs are not yet announced, they will be a combination of skilled and semi-skilled and will be full time.
4. Restaurants open and close in Galesburg
Galesburg had an appetite for new restaurants in 2018, with many of the new openings concentrated downtown. A review: 156 East, once a catering business, reopened as a restaurant on Main Street in March; Delinos’ moved from Cottage Hospital to the former Q’s Cafe on Main Street in April; The Bar 65 opened on Cherry Street in August; Craft Butcher & Deli opened on Seminary Street in September; the Carriage House, formerly known as Uncle Billy’s Bakery, reopened under new ownership on Seminary in November; and Charred 51 opened on Main Street in November.
Still to come: Jimmy’s Pizza, a longtime Wataga favorite, is making its new home in the Depot Centre at 379 E. Tompkins St., and the Whiskey Barrel is renovating the former New China building on Main Street into a brand-new restaurant.
But it’s the Packinghouse Dining Co. that made the biggest headlines in 2018. The restaurant at 441 Mulberry St., famous for its steaks, cinnamon rolls and salad bar, closed abruptly Aug. 19. Owner-operator Kevin Cerar also closed Petey’s Pub and Grill in Monmouth but kept Cerar’s Barnstormer, also in Monmouth, open.
The Packinghouse first opened in Galesburg in 1979, with Cerar taking over in 2013.
Customers were relieved to learn in October that the restaurant would reopen with Tabitha and Eric Sundberg as its new owner-operators. The Sundbergs have said they plan to keep the most of the restaurant’s original menu, while also adding some of their own items.
The couple had planned to open by Dec. 1, but interior project delays have pushed the opening back to late December or early January.
5. Trade war drops soybean prices
The market for soybeans tanked in July after a trade war between the United States and China began. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs — taxes on imported goods — on Chinese aluminum and steel, and China retaliated with tariffs on U.S. goods, including soybeans. Prices for soybeans reached $10.54 per bushel April 12 before dropping in July and hitting bottom at $8.14 Sept. 18.
Knox County is a large producer of soybeans, with farmers producing 8.2 million bushels in 2017. Local farmers sought storage in hopes the markets would improve. As of noon Friday, the price was $8.86 per bushel.
6. Culver’s is coming to town
In July, The Register-Mail learned that Culver’s Restaurant will bring Butterburgers, frozen custard and jobs to Galesburg in January.
DaRo LLC purchased the former First Choice Medical Equipment building at 1320 N. Henderson St. and part of the Tompkins State Bank parking lot on July 11 to convert into the new restaurant. The partners in DaRo LLC include Michele Davis and Jason Roe, who also own the Culver’s in Princeton together. Roe also owns the Culver’s locations in Rock Falls and Dixon.
Davis, who will be the restaurant’s operator, estimated that the restaurant would open in January. The establishment will offer the traditional Culver’s menu plus its “limited time only” items. The restaurant is expected to hire approximately 100 employees, full- and part-time.
Workers from Keepsake Construction of Chicago were seen installing roof framing and ceiling beams on Dec. 20, but Davis could not be reached for comment on construction progress and an opening date by The Register-Mail’s press time.
7. Southwest Chief stays — for now
Amtrak announced in October that its Southwest Chief train line, which stops in Galesburg, will remain in operation for at least another year.
Since the summer, Amtrak had been considering shortening the train’s route to a stop in Kansas and using a bus service to take customers the rest of the way west to California. Scot Naparstek, Amtrak’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, told a U.S. Senate committee in early October that Amtrak is committed to operating the train line at least through September 2019.
City of Galesburg officials including Galesburg Mayor John Pritchard have been vocal in their support for retaining the Southwest Chief since Amtrak CEO and President Richard Anderson proposed a plan in June that included shortening the line’s route.
Pritchard expressed his concerns about the line to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Chicago, when the senator visited Galesburg in September to discuss Amtrak issues with local officials.
Durbin supported the THUD appropriations bill for fiscal year 2019 that included $1.3 billion for Amtrak’s National Network, which includes its long-distance routes like the Southwest Chief. The bill passed the Senate, but has not yet made it through the House. A deadline to pass the bill was set for Dec. 7, but a press representative in Durbin’s office confirmed Dec. 20 that the government funding situation has delayed the process. In the meantime, Durbin has supported an extension of THUD funding through Feb. 8, 2019, by supporting the Continuing Resolution vote in the Senate on Dec. 19.
8. Solar projects coming to Knox County
The Knox County Board approved four solar projects in late November. Two of those are planned for the 4100 block of Illinois Route 41, one is planned for Yates City near the southeastern corner of Knox County and the fourth is planned for 2500 Grand Ave. in Galesburg, outside the city limits. Some spoke against the projects and two board members argued solar should not be located on prime farmland.
Two other solar projects were approved for conditional use permits in May on the east and west sides of County Highway 9, east of Galesburg. Those votes but the Knox County Board were 10-4 and 9-5.
The Knox County Area Partnership for Economic Development has backed all of the projects. President Ken Springer said KCAPED “strongly supports the development of renewable energy in Knox County.”
9. Jupiter headquarters open in Galesburg
Jupiter Machine Tool Inc. held a grand opening for its Galesburg headquarters on Sept. 6. The company at 1124 Enterprise Ave. specializes in making computer-numerical controlled manufacturing equipment that other manufacturing companies buy and then use for their operations. The company also creates augmented reality tools and assists customers with technical support through its Thunderbolt Service system. Thunderbolt allows customers and Jupiter staff members to use augmented reality eyewear to connect through live video and audio to fix problems with machines in real time.
At the time of its opening, Jupiter CEO and chairman Ray Whitehead said the company was looking to hire more than 30 employees over the next year.
10. Leadership changes at Carl Sandburg College
Dr. Seamus Reilly became the seventh president of Carl Sandburg College. He previously served as vice president of institutional advancement at Parkland College in Champaign since 2008. Before that, he chaired the Fine and Applied Arts Department at Parkland from 2006-08 and was director of literature, philosophy and religion there from 2001-03.
A native of Ireland, Reilly holds bachelor of arts degrees in English and history as well as master of arts degrees in modern English and American literature from University College Dublin. He earned his doctorate in English from the U of I in 1997. Reilly began his new position in Galesburg July 1.
Reilly replaces the Dr. Lori Sundberg who accepted a new job as president of Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Sundberg, a Galesburg native, had been Sandburg’s president since July 2010. She was the first female president in the college’s history, as well as the first Sandburg alumnus in that role. She had worked at the college in various other roles since 1995.
Robyn Gautschy: (309) 343-7181, ext. 265; rgautschy@register-mail.com