Source: Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York / Wikimedia Commons
Rockford’s City Council voted 11-1 to let a Victorian-era home on North Main Street become a 20-room rental aimed at traveling nurses, laborers and other professionals who need somewhere to stay for a few months at a time. Alderman Kevin Frost cast the lone no vote, raising concerns about the short-term single-room occupancy use before the special-use permit cleared the council.
A Landmark Gets a New Purpose
The property at 2520 N. Main St. is the two-story Otis Eddy House, built in 1876 by Otis Eddy, described as a prominent farmer and master mason, according to Rock River Current. The house carries a Gothic Revival style and was most recently used as a furniture showroom for Village Green, which operated at the North Main location for 57 years before ending operations there in September 2024. Two weeks before the special-use vote, the council approved local landmark status for the home, making it the city’s 30th local landmark — a designation that provides protection against changes or demolition of a significant property and requires the site to retain its historic design integrity as it is converted for new use.
Nathan and Lauren Erb bought the property in late June with plans to renovate the yellow Victorian house and an addition behind it into single-room-occupancy rentals. The sellers, Gloria and Mike Heath of Dixon, had originally planned to self-renovate the home and live in it during retirement, but they learned the property was not zoned for residential uses and decided to sell rather than pursue a zoning change themselves.
What the Rental Would Look Like
As proposed, the project includes 20 single-room-occupancy rentals with shared kitchen, laundry and bathroom facilities spread across the house and the attached addition. Earlier reporting from Rock River Current described the layout as seven bedrooms in the Victorian home and 13 in the addition, with shared bathrooms, kitchen and common spaces throughout. The owners envisioned the rooms serving traveling laborers, health care workers and other professionals seeking stays of roughly three to six months — an alternative to furnishing an apartment or paying hotel rates for months on end…