DeKalb South Pointe Center, golf course have new owners

DeKALB – An Iowa businessman who already is the owner of two former elementary schools in DeKalb County has bought a vacant banquet center in DeKalb.

Destan Aliu recently purchased South Pointe Center in DeKalb at a public auction for $136,000. Since making the purchase last month, Aliu has not done any work, similar to what happened when he bought the former Cortland and Malta Elementary Schools for a combined $82,500 in 2012.

South Pointe Center, 210 S. Pointe Drive, is near Chicago Golf and Tiki Tees, a newly opened business that Naperville resident Sundeep Oberoi bought July 2. Oberoi said that Aliu told him he wanted to open South Pointe as a banquet hall in their only meeting.

"I don't know what their plans are," Oberoi said. "I've been in there. They probably are going to need to renovate it before they reopen. That might take some time. It depends on how aggressive the new owners are."

Attempts to contact Aliu at Iowa phone numbers listed for him were unsuccessful.

South Pointe Center opened as a banquet hall after George Stratton bought the property in 1996, said Roger Hopkins, DeKalb's economic development consultant.

According to Almburg Auctioneering, South Pointe has approved seating for 900 people with three divided rooms and a fully-equipped commercial kitchen. The second parcel includes a 6,000 square-foot maintenance building and an additional two-story 11,000 square-foot building that has been closed for more than 20 years with no heat or other utilities and is in need of major renovation or tear down, according to Almburg Auctioneering.

The best use for South Pointe would be to offer it as a banquet facility with office space, Hopkins said.

Ron Gedye, director of operations for Chicago Golf and Tiki Tees, has checked the South Pointe Center building for sump pump doors and to make sure the doors were locked. Gedye, who said he has only talked to Aliu once or twice, said he also does not know what work Aliu plans to do and when.

"Repairs need to be done," Gedye said. "You can't let a building sit unheated or uncooled without having issues take place."

As for Oberoi, he wants the community to know his golf course is open for business. The nine-hole course also has a clubhouse where customers can buy chips and soda, a banquet room suitable for up to 220 people and a wedding gazebo.

It took Oberoi 13 days to open the golf course after he bought it. He hopes to offer mini golf for children and market Chicago Golf and Tiki Tees as a family business.

"We want that banquet center to be operational," Oberoi said. "The more people that come to visit the area, the more exposure our golf course will get."

Under new management

Chicago Golf and Tiki Tees, a nine-hole golf course with clubhouse, banquet room and mini-golf course at 200 Gurler Road in DeKalb, has reopened under new owners. The new owner of nearby South Pointe Center at 210 S. Pointe Drive, may have plans to open a banquet facility there.