Eighteen months after massive fire, new construction begins at site of former Standard Roofing Co. building

DeKALB – The site of a roofing company building that burned down 18 months ago is starting to see new life on DeKalb’s south side.

According to a City of DeKalb social media post on Friday, the foundation for the new building at 1100 S. Seventh St. “is finished for a 7,200-square-foot storage building.”

“The framing is nearly complete and metal siding and windows will be installed next,” City officials wrote in the post.

The new building is being built on the site of the former Standard Roofing Company building, which was destroyed by a fire in February 2020. At the time, fire officials said the damage done from the hours-long blaze totaled almost $1 million.

Scott Zak, management analyst for City of DeKalb, said Friday the new building is not Standard Roofing being rebuilt.

“The space will be rented out for storage,” Zak said.

According to city documents obtained by Daily Chronicle, property owner Kevin Theisen submitted a building permit application in early July 2021 for new construction on the previous Standard Roofing site. Theisen wrote the new building he wanted the “pre-engineered building” to “be used for storage.”

Since the new building didn’t require any zoning changes, Zak said “it is a permitted use” and “that didn’t need to go before” the DeKalb City Council for their approval.

Theisen confirmed Friday he previously owned Standard Roofing and he’s also currently building the new storage space rental business at the South Seventh Street site.

Theisen said the idea for the storage space rental business is that “it’s probably going to store cars, boats and motorcycles” and he’s already starting to hear from interested potential customers. He said the storage facility will open “hopefully sometime in mid-November.”

During the February 2020 fire, the Sycamore Police Department reported calls from residents of burning chemical smell and a slight haze in some areas of town, likely from the fire raging nearby.

Dozens of firefighters from nine neighboring agencies assisted DeKalb Fire Department for hours to get the fire under control. The location provided many challenges for the firefighters, including fallen power lines, heavy fire load, flammable liquids, hazardous materials, and the compromised building structure.