By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
Get our mobile app
ROCKFORD — A family-owned shop that has shined and repaired shoes with an old-fashioned touch for three generations is preparing to move to a new home.
Charles Street Shoe Repair, 2233 Charles St, suite E, has done business in Rockford for 97 years, including the past 65 years in one location or another on Charles Street.
But its days in the strip mall where it has operated for the past decade are numbered. The city plans to demolish that building and leave the land as green space as part of its efforts to curtail flooding along Keith Creek.
More news: ‘Together we are better’: New group focuses on long-term fixes for Rockford’s mental health services
Jeff Antinucci, who handles all the fixes at the shop he runs with his mother, Catherine, said the goal is to move to 530 Windsor Road in Loves Park by Aug. 1.
“It’s just a perfect spot. The neighborhood out there is really nice,” Antinucci said. “I’ve seen every place in the city, and this is the best of the spots that we found.”
advertisement
Despite the move to Windsor Road, it will keep the name Charles Street Shoe Repair. The space is roughly the same size as the current shop, he said.
The city told business owners in the strip mall — Drewelow’s House of Books, Shear Magic Hair Studio and Slots of Fun — to find new homes this summer as it prepares for demolition. The city is paying relocation costs for the businesses and will bridge the gap in the difference in rent for approximately a year and a half.
More news: ‘It smelled like a bonfire’: Air quality issues expected to linger this week in Rockford
The demolition is part of an effort to curtail flooding that has been in the works for more than 15 years.
The city has had issues with flooding along Keith Creek since at least the 1883, according to the Keith Creek Corridor Study. But its efforts to find a fix were heightened after a massive flood struck in 2006, submerging cars and damaging at least 700 homes and 80 businesses. Officials had described it as a 100-year flood event, but then another happened 11 months later.
In 2009, the city started buying and demolishing homes in the floodplain. It razed more than 115 homes through 2011, but flooding continued to happen. Another so-called 100-year flood happened in 2018 with five inches of rain falling in a four-hour period, nearly covering cars in some areas.
The city is spending about $1.67 million to acquire, demolish and relocate the businesses. It won a nearly $1.3 million state grant to help cover those costs.
Antinucci said finding a new location was stressful at times, especially as the deadline to relocate got closer.
“It’s hard to keep me down. I’m a pretty tenacious person,” he said. “I was not going to go out of business.”
He said the uncertainty about relocating was the most difficult part.
“I’ve never had anxiety before but now I know what it is,” he said. “I just want to get back to work, and get things back to normal.”
He thanked the cities of Rockford and Loves Park for help with the relocation.
More news: Here are the next 2 blighted properties the city of Rockford plans to demolish
Charles Street Shoe Repair is a full-service shop that specializes in repairing dress and casual shoes for men, women and children. It also has services such as horse tack repair and zipper replacement, and Antinucci does all the work in-house.
“I don’t sacrifice quality,” he said. “I don’t rush things through.”
Jack Antinucci, Jeff’s grandfather, started the business in 1926 in downtown Rockford. It was at St. Louis Ave. and Charles Street before moving to its current location about a decade ago.
Contact | Charles Street Shoe Repair
Location: 2233 Charles St., suite E., Rockford
New location: 530 Windsor Road, Loves Park (expected to open Aug. 1)
Phone: 815-226-0052
Email: charlesstshoerep@att.net
Facebook: Find its page HERE
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas