The City of Washington has stepped in for a second time to resolve disputes between the developer of a downtown square restaurant and an adjacent neighbor.
This time, the neighbor is prominent sculptor and former longtime Illinois Central College art instructor Marlene Miller, whose studio is in a historic building at 114 Walnut St.
The Washington City Council on Monday approved an agreement that includes more than $103,000 in reimbursement for damages and other costs that Miller said resulted from the demolition, excavation and construction of Tangled Roots Craft Beer & Kitchen, which opened in 2025.
LaSalle-based CL Red Real Estate is the restaurant developer.
Miller's request for reimbursement from the city, submitted in January, included structural repairs, lost rental income, legal fees and water-related damage.
The agreement between Miller and Washington includes language the city admits no liability or wrongdoing and the settlement does not establish a precedent for future claims against the city.
City Administrator Jeff Fiegenschuh said he's happy that months of talks involving city officials, the city's special legal counsel, Miller and her representatives resulted in a negotiated solution.
"The city's objective remained consistent during the discussions: resolve a long-standing dispute in a manner that protects the city's interests, avoids the uncertainty and expense of litigation, and allows all parties to move forward," said Fiegenschuh.
"The agreement represents the culmination of the negotiations and is a fair and reasonable resolution that's in the best interests of the city."
The money for Miller's reimbursement will come from the city's general fund.
Two years ago, council approved a nearly $27,300 reimbursement to the Washington Historical Society for damages done during Tangled Roots' construction to the society's headquarters in a historic building at 128 Washington Square.
That money came from the city's tax-increment financing [TIF] fund.
Damages related to a 2022 city decision to approve a variance for a two-story instead of a one-story restaurant were targeted in the society's reimbursement.
Downtown square building owner Tom Gross supported Miller during public comment Monday and said the damage done to her building was by the contractor, not the city.
But, he said, "as the work went on, I was surprised to see the city administration in place at that time was comfortable ignoring the surrounding property owners' request for assistance in dealing with how the damage was occurring."
Former society president Jewel Ward called the agreement between the city and Miller an opportunity to right a wrong and put longstanding issues to rest for the good of all of Washington.
Fiegenschuh said the agreement between Miller and the city involves only the city, not CL Red.
Asked by alderperson John Blundy if the city could take legal action against CL Red, Fiegenschuh said it could, but "I don't know if we'd win or not."
Miller will be getting more money from the city through a TIF redevelopment agreement when two repair projects are completed.
The additional funding will bring her total reimbursement to no more than her original request for nearly $115,700.
Miller declined comment about the reimbursement agreement.
Alderperson Bobby Martin III cast the lone "no" vote in a 7-1 council decision for the settlement. He expressed concerns about using general fund instead of TIF money to pay for the reimbursement and the legal language in the agreement.
Fiegenschuh said TIF money could not be legally allocated for the reimbursement.
Tangled Roots opened two years later than what was specified in a TIF redevelopment agreement with Washington.
That included avoiding a 2023 request by Miller in Tazewell County Court for an injunction to halt construction of the restaurant. An out-of-court settlement was reached.
The $9 million restaurant project, according to CL Red, includes about $1.1 million in TIF and other funding from the city.
