If this trend keeps going in Macomb, it’s gonna end up like my hometown, where, when I was growing up, practically the only “restaurant” was…Casey’s pizza.

I have to admit, I’d only patronized the place maybe twice in my life. But still, it was kind of a bummer to see another spot in the Square stand open (and therefore subject to more insurance/lawyer/tax offices setting up camp).

This new gap is on the same side of the Square on which the former Magic Dragon toy store used to be located. And the side where the historic Randolph House appears to be suffering from neglect. Then, on the same walk, we passed long-standing Gumbardt’s, which had a “closed” sign taped to the window and appeared to have some sort of metal framework-y thing inside, almost like a pull-down gate you might see at the mall (if there was a mall to be seen. HA!) Closed for good, or closed for remodeling? The sign didn’t say.

SO: are/were you a fan of Pagliai’s? Got any idea if there’s something new coming into the space? (OR, even better, got enough money to start up a coffee shop that stays open past noon? Do it!)

Other than the Rock Island item on this year’s roster (a building used by the Elks Club), the closest place on the 2011 list is a bridge in Sangamon County.

(More, below the image).

Screen shot of Landmarks Illinois web site

A couple of places I’d like to add to the list, (or at least to a subcategory of places that need attention):

• The Macomb Maid Rite,
• The Randolph House on the Macomb Square,
• and what remains of the former Carthage College campus, (where the Circle K organization was started, among other historical tidbits).

So, what about you?

What other local landmarks in the general western Illinois region would you be sad to see destroyed?

List them below, or drop me a line.

So I was pleasantly surprised when I received a comment on my post from a former Macombie Homie who says he’d like to look into buying the building to see that it gets restored. How cool would that be?

I seemed to remember, from when I first noticed that the building was for sale, that some person or company I’d never heard of was the seller–someone who’d made a handmade For Sale sign (i.e., no Remax hot air balloon here). So, to try to help, I swung by the former diner on Monday and took this (snazzy) photo with my cellphone. And I have to say, from a marketing perspective, I’m a bit concerned with the, er, presentation. I couldn’t find a web site for said realtor, either.

But hey, at least I sent this former Homie the phone number. Let’s hope he’s got some extra funds sitting around!

According to Tri States Public Radio’s story, the city has loaned close to $100,000 to the future owners of Jackson Street Market, which will be not in the former Thompson Food Basket—that’s been occupied by a megachurch for the last couple of years—but across the street in what I would call a….Morton-Building-type-mini-mall. The proposed location is 1601 W. Jackson (in what was Brenner’s Furniture).

So: are y’all psyched? Will you shop there? (And perhaps more importantly for those on the west side of town…will this place get a liquor license?)

[See items 2 and 3 below, after the Google Maps location image]

Jackson Street Market location

2. We’re part of a region suffering from a “B.A. divide”—and the separation between people who have a bachelor’s degree and people who do not is getting more dramatic, according this blog, where you can see a map tracking the increasing separation. (If you’re interested in this topic, also be sure to check out some of the entries by  Timothy Collins, who works for a center housed at WIU. Also, tell me if you agree that perhaps they shoulda used different colors for the states on the map, connotations-wise, than red and blue…)

And finally,

3. It turns out I am not the only one who feels frustrated when the sidewalks roll up at dusk. As you know from reading this blog, I like to gripe about how Macomb could do better at offering things downtown for shoppers and eater-outers, especially considering that there are thousands of students here (and they have suburban parents who visit them). According to the results of a recent survey conducted by WIU students, the majority of respondents would also like business owners on the square to acknowledge that some people actually shop and do things after, like, 10 o’clock in the morning:

Most notably… 80 percent of the respondents indicated they think businesses should stay open past 5 p.m.

Yeah! Boo-yah! That’s what I’m talkin’ ’bout. (So, um….Chamber, are you on this now? Or whoever else is supposed to make that kind of stuff happen? Thanks.)

On a somewhat related note: I had the opportunity to spend some time in the lovely little town of Galena (Ill.) this past weekend with C-Nor and some of my college friends. As we were walking around on the last day of October, taking in the sunshine and the movie-set feel of that historically preserved city, I couldn’t shake this weird feeling, and finally realized what it was—I was in a small town, going in and out of businesses, on a Sunday afternoon. Not only were there businesses to go to, but they were open.

So, you ask, does everything in life have to be about consuming? Is shopping and eating out the most important thing in a community?

Well good question, you.

I thought this over after we drove back down to Macomb with our candy corn (from the old-timey candy store) in tow, with thoughts of Galena’s vintage toy store and nothing-but-socks store (um, yeah) and Abe Lincoln and U.S. Grant dancing in my head. And my answer is that no, shopping ain’t everything. But having lots of stores and restaurants, and a historic site or two—and having them open on a Sunday afternoon—leads to people (and their dogs and strollers) walking around downtown on a sunny day. And that, always, is more hope-filled and less depressing than things like this.

Chris and I checked out the new Shiloh’s Bar & Bistro for dinner on a Friday night, after they’d only been open a few days. I asked the hostess if I could speak to the owner, since I wanted to thank him for our interview, but he was (understandably) too busy to come up front just then. I was pleased to see the place was bustling and loud and almost crowded.

We did not order an appetizer, but apparently with dinner entrees you receive a pre-meal order of small slices of seasoned bread with some kind of pastel-orange, cream-cheesed-based spread. I was tempted to finish off the plate.

Chris’s order: Crispy Shrimp Salad. My impression: ew. But only because I don’t eat shrimp. He liked it.

Alison’s order: the Chicken Shiloh. This dish involved both bacon and Gouda. Enough said. (Rice and vegetables also excellently prepared.)

Second visit: with two girlfriends, who we’ll call Emily and Kim. Friday night, Sept. 3

Appetizers: crab cakes, heavily breaded, accompanied by some kind of creamy sauce. Very good. We have a mini-spat in which each of us pretends to not mind if the other takes the last half of one, which means we all obviously want it.

Drinks:
Ravenswood Lodi red wine. (Alison. Happy.)
Honey Brown beer. (Kim. Happy.)
Water. (Emily. Pregnant. Pissed at Kim and Alison.)

Alison’s order: Chicken Roulade. Dry. I didn’t really like it. (My friends explained it was made the way it was supposed to be.)

Emily’s order: Filet mignon.

Kim’s order: The Ella Fitzgerald. (Bowtie pasta with some kind of creamy sauce and feta cheese.) It was delicious. I know this because I ate off her plate.

Service: Excellent on both visits. However, this is what happened when Emily gave her order to the young waitress.

“I’ll have the filet.”

The waitress froze, pen poised over pad. “The…filet …of…?”

Overall impression:

That second visit, it was almost an hour to get our food. But we were happy to catch up. And it was busy. And even though I didn’t really like my Chicken Roulade, I will definitely go back and try new things. (And, if I should ever find myself ordering “the filet,” will be specific.)

The menu is fancy enough that there are several items I don’t really recognize (hence the Roulade), yet casual enough to feel like you can wear jeans and nobody looks at you sideways. It might seem a bit pricey in a town where one of the few choices is, say, Buffalo Wild Wings, but the thoughtfulness of the menu, the quality and the service seem worth it. It’s a fantastic, much-needed addition to Macomb, and it was great to see the place hopping.

P.S. It’s my 500th post, y’all. (Not counting the earliest incarnation of my blogging self, which was in the early 00s and which was under a kind of pseudonym. (No, not Gossip Girl, but boy do I wish I could cause the same kind of destruction!)  Thanks again to those of you who read and subscribe, and especially to those who comment, either online or in person.

To the first reader of this 500th post, you may redeem the key to your new car, and brush the confetti off your shoulders, at the customer service desk. Prize not redeemable for cash.

melted (?) sign

Originally uploaded by Rural Rose

Sunday night walk around Macomb, continued.

This sign (for Purdum Electric, I think?) is near where the fire destroyed two buildings. I’m not sure if it’s got anything to do with the fire, or if it’s just old and neglected…

Randolph House

Originally uploaded by Rural Rose

The downtown courthouse square in Macomb has fallen on some hard times.

In addition to a recent fire on the the south side that destroyed two businesses, several stores have closed and still sit empty. And, (while this is just my opinion and preference as a consumer), stuff that IS moving in seems less-than-friendly to college students, their parents and professors in a university town, such as a shop selling items related to …being Catholic (?). (Um, yeah.)

The Randolph House on the east side–which was once part of a grand hotel where Abraham Lincoln spent the night and gave a speech–appears to be somewhat neglected. Lately I’ve been wondering: who owns the building? Are there any plans for restoring it? Does it fall under the historic preservation protection?

I haven’t done much digging around for the answer, but thought I’d throw it out here and see if anyone might know the score.