MOORE’S SUMMARY: The planning and design of a new legislative building that would eventually replace the William G. Stratton Building has “very, very preliminarily started,” Capitol Architect Andrea Aggertt confirmed to Capitol News Illinois. But she cautioned there’s “no money” yet appropriated for construction.

WHY IT MATTERS: The $350 million renovation of the Capitol’s north wing is slated to wrap up this winter after more than five years. The project, which included construction of a new underground parking garage and conference room and a new main entrance with enhanced security features, is a precursor to even bigger changes to the multi-building Illinois Capitol Complex. Aggertt said as much when we spoke with her last week.

“We’ve done the programming phase, a task that helps us determine maybe what should go in the building,” Aggertt said. “It’s not even a definitive. So that process, I would expect, would be ramped up possibly after the north wing is done, but there is no money for construction at this point.”

DOLLAR SIGNS: Illinois lawmakers tucked $50 million into the fiscal year 2024 budget for the planning and design of a new legislative building and the demolition of the Cold War-era Stratton Building. The sum has been reappropriated in every subsequent budget.

ROADBLOCKS: Per the Capitol Complex master plan, completed in 2021, a new legislative building on the northwest corner of First and Monroe streets — currently a gravel parking lot — was slated to be built between 2025 and 2029. The Stratton Building would be demolished and replaced with green space and a 900-space underground parking structure. An executive office building would also be constructed at the northeast corner of College and Edwards streets. New buildings could also be erected along the west side of College Street, currently the site of a visitors center and above ground parking garage.

But it’s clear that the timeline laid out in a plan won’t be met as several roadblocks remain. The biggest? As with most things in life, money. The funds for the north wing renovation were appropriated from the Rebuild Illinois capital construction program. Aggertt said she’d “assume” that Stratton won’t come down until the next capital bill.

While the planning and design funds get the ball rolling, they’re far from what would be required to construct a new, 280,000-square-foot legislative building and a new, 180,000-square-foot executive office building.

Also factoring in are competing priorities. Aggertt told us the Capitol’s east wing will require a renovation similar to the current north wing overhaul within the next decade. And the roof of the Capitol dome itself will need to be replaced. These could take precedent, especially with finite construction dollars available.

All of this serves as a reminder: Master plans are working documents, or roadmaps that offer guidance but are always subject to change.

SMART PLANNING: Despite some of the roadblocks ahead, the current renovation is quietly laying the groundwork for the Capitol Complex’s post-Stratton future.

An underground tunnel has been built halfway into Monroe Street outside of the Capitol’s north entrance. It will lead to a dead end for now but could connect in the future with the new legislative building as well as the Jim Edgar Executive Office Building (formerly known as the Illinois State Armory).

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Aggertt said forward thinking was also behind the $46 million underground parking garage for legislators and staff. While a large expense for a facility that only a few hundred will enjoy, she said this will eventually allow more green space around the Capitol Complex by eliminating the “seas of parking lots” in line with the master plan.

“We want to make sure that the decisions we make today are smart, and we’re not negatively impacting the decisions that need to be made 40 and 50 years from now,” Aggertt said. “So the underground parking garage was one of those early decisions to help us make future decisions 10 and 20 years from now.”

ARMORY UPDATE: In August, Gov. JB Pritzker announced the Armory would be renamed in honor of the late Edgar, who served as governor from 1991 to 1999. But it will be several years before the long-mothballed structure is put back to use.

The state is aiming to have interior renovation and modernization of the 90-year-old, 254,636 square foot structure completed by the autumn or winter of 2030, according to Capitol Development Board spokesperson Lauren Grenlund.

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Phase 1 of the project involved a full abatement of hazardous materials, improvements to the limestone exterior, updating and restoring the building’s historic windows, and creating accessible entrances. It cost about $26 million. Phase 2, the interior renovation, is expected to cost about $175 million. The project is funded by Rebuild Illinois.

Asked about cost overruns, Grenlund said “scope and services were added to the project, and CDB performed a restacking effort to create a more efficient, modern workspace that aligns with the state agencies’ needs.”

Once complete, more than 800 state employees will work in the seven-story building. Agencies expected to occupy the refurbished space include the governor’s office, the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, Department of Aging, Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Central Management Services and CDB.