Commerce Building (aka Ilgenfritz Building), Sedalia

For over a century, the Ilgenfritz Building has anchored a prominent corner in Sedalia’s downtown commercial district. During its first 115 years, the building was enlarged, storefronts were modernized, it suffered two fires, and commercial and office tenants remodeled interior spaces. Despite these changes, the building retained some very unique historic elements. There were pressed tin ceilings in the first-floor retail spaces; upstairs, the double-loaded corridors had unique scored plaster and glazed walls, including signage painted on the frosted glazing, and a ceramic tile floor; and staircases with period balusters and newel posts connected upstairs to downstairs.

In 2009, at the depth of the recession, a new owner embarked on an adaptive reuse project that transformed the underutilized commercial building into affordable housing. The plans focused on restoring the delaminating stone façade and rebuilding the long-missing parapet, preserving the distinctive historic features, and creating comfortable modern apartments. The award-winning project also restored an important shot of energy to downtown Sedalia.