Springfield demolishing part of former Salvation Army facility on 11th Street
The city of Springfield is demolishing parts of a former Salvation Army facility on 11th Street being used for overflow shelter purposes as part of its broader plans for the Springfield Rail Improvements Project.
A demolition permit for the site at 221 N. 11th St. was granted in October, allowing work to begin on tearing down warehouses formerly used for the Salvation Army's thrift store and for the "annex" portion of the building.
The city said that as of Wednesday, the demolition work was nearing completion.
According to Mayor Jim Langfelder, the site will continue to be used as an overflow shelter for the next two years even as work on the rail project progresses.
"We'll continue that at least this winter and possibly next winter," Langfelder said. "It just depends on the work being done on the juvenile center with Helping Hands, Sangamon County and Continuum of Care."
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The demolition of that portion is necessary due to the work needed to complete overpasses on Madison and Jefferson streets near the shelter site. Langfelder said that the proximity of the site to the new rail lines makes it difficult for the city to determine whether or not the location could be used for other purposes following the razing.
"(It's) landlocked," Langfelder said. "With the grade crossings, it's going to be limited on what you can do with that property.
The site had formerly been home to the Salvation Army's thrift store and Adult Rehabilitation Center before the pandemic, when thrift store sales collapsed and forced the organization to sell the site to the city. It was soon converted into a much-needed overflow homeless shelter.
Future plans for the shelter were given a big boost last week when Sangamon County officials announced a partnership with Helping Hands to provide emergency shelter services at the county complex on South Dirksen Parkway. Langfelder said with that in the works, the future usage of the 11th Street site is still up in the air.
"We'll make a determination on the needs," Langfelder said. "If it can be utilized to provide a need, we will use it in that regard. The thought was once the emergency needs are taken care of, the plan right now is to go to the juvenile center off Dirksen Parkway and that would become the new homeless shelter.
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Once that transpires, the need for that particular facility wouldn't be used in that regard. I'm not sure it makes any sense to do something else with the building. Our options are either to leave it to a useful purpose or bring it down."
Regardless of what happens to the rest of the building, the demolition of the associated buildings helps make sure the city's ongoing rail project reaches its full potential.
"It's pretty exciting," Langfelder said. "Transformational change (is) happening along that corridor."
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Springfield, IL, demolishing part of former Salvation Army facility
