The developer of the Jacoby Furniture Building in Alton has been awarded a $2 million renovation grant.

The developer overseeing the renovation and re-purposing of the 121-year-old Jacoby Furniture Building in Alton will have an additional $2 million to work with soon.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced the grant to help revamp the massive former factory as one of 16 grants totaling $20 million for infrastructure or renovation projects from the state’s Rebuild Illinois Downtowns and Main Streets Capital Fund.

Most recently, the building was home to the Jacoby Arts Center., which moved out in August so the building could be rehabbed. The end result will be 18 apartments, a restaurant, and an arts center.

JAC Managing Member LLC, which is managed by Alton attorney and major Democratic benefactor John Simmons, and his wife, Jayne, applied to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity in April after learning of a competitive Notice of Funding Opportunity process.

Under DCEO rules, the LLC is required to provide a 50-percent funding match for the grant.

In his announcement Tuesday in Jacksonville, Pritzker called the downtown and main street districts of cities and towns across Illinois “economic and cultural engines,” and said assisting municipalities and developers in efforts to revitalize and renew aging structures and infrastructure is essential for economic growth.

“As governor, one of my top priorities is to reverse decades of neglect and broken promises and bring jobs, opportunity, and hope back to communities across Illinois, while breathing new life into our downtown corridors and beyond,” he said.

“Our state government treated these towns across the state as a relic of the past rather than a key part of our future,” Pritzker said. “Main streets and downtowns were losing their small businesses, in part because they needed upgrades and improvements that local governments sometimes could not afford.”

A statement released as the governor made his public comments in Jacksonville noted that the goal of the Rebuild Downtowns and Main Streets program is to “drive investment in infrastructure and public amenities that will invite more people back into main street districts and local city centers in communities of all sizes.”

“The RDMS and (Research in Illinois to Spur Economic Recovery) grant programs are essential to supporting economic development in communities that need it most,” said DCEO Director Kristin Richards.

The Simmonses have refused to treat their downtown as a relic. This is the second development grant benefiting Alton that the Simmonses have played a key role in over the past three years. In 2022, the AltonWorks initiative, conceived by the Simmonses, received a $3 million grant.

That development was met with bipartisan approval.

“The RDMS and RISE programs are providing critical grant funding to communities that need it the most,” state Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, said of the first round of grants. ”From revitalizing downtowns and commercial corridors to supporting economic development projects, the state of Illinois is committed to promoting growth throughout the state.”

“I couldn’t be prouder of AltonWorks and I look forward to seeing what they do with their Rebuild Illinois award,” Alton’s Republican state Rep. Amy Elik said at the time of the 2022 grant award. ”It is easy to see why their work is gaining attention across the state and I am glad the governor is here to see it.”

In a 2023 open letter to the public, John Simmons expressed his dream of a revitalized, attractive and inclusive downtown Alton that can serve as a model for other cities. The mission, he said, is to revitalize Alton “one building, one park, one street and one opportunity at a time.”

“Jayne and I believe that a strong downtown is the foundation of a thriving community,” Simmons said. “Along with the city of Alton, business and civic leaders, and hundreds of supporters and volunteers, we aspire to serve as a catalyst to reposition Alton as a 21st century national model for social equity, economic mobility, and overall livability.”