Virginia Square One is raising funds to save the c. 1897 Robertson Building and rehabilitate it into a new community center.

The heart of Virginia, Illinois, about 30 miles northwest of Springfield on Rt. 125, is its town square. The anchor of the square’s southwest corner is the Robertson Building, built in 1897. Once a hub of activity and the most-photographed building in town, the Robertson Building is now a shell of what it was in its heyday. Literally.

After sitting vacant for years, a major snowfall in 2011 caused a portion of the building’s roof to collapse and left the entire structure vulnerable to further deterioration. Today the Robertson Building is listed as one of the 10 most endangered buildings in Illinois by the preservation group Landmarks Illinois.

But if Susan Carson has anything to say about it, the Robertson Building will be stabilized and rehabilitated. Carson, along with Mike Carson, Tom Prather, Kevin Velten, Herb Snow and Alex Snedeker, form the core of Virginia Square One, a nonprofit organization dedicated to revitalizing the architectural heritage of Virginia’s town square.

Frank Butterfield, director of the Springfield field office of Landmarks Illinois, is full of praise for the organization’s efforts.

“This is an active group doing spectacular work to save an incredibly significant building,” he said. “For a community of 1,600 people, the work they’ve done has been amazing. They have the potential to become a case study for communities across Illinois.”

How can I help?

• Send a donation to Virginia Square One Foundation, c/o Petefi sh Skiles & Company Bank, PO Box 18, Virginia, IL 62691.

• Volunteer your time and talents for Virginia Square One fundraisers. Email [email protected] for more information.

After the roof collapsed in 2011, Virginia Square One acquired the compromised portions of the Robertson Building. (The corner portion, known as the Tower Building, is structurally sound, and its owner, Springfield dentist Dan Moffett, is in the process of restoring it.) Upon discovery that the collapsed roof was putting stress on the damaged joists and threatening to pull down the façade, Virginia Square One acted quickly to stabilize the building. The damaged joists were cut, the interior portion was demolished, and steel girders were erected to support the façade.

“We couldn’t stand to see the building fall down, because once it’s gone, you lose all the history connected to it, and you can’t bring that back,” said Carson.

The goal is to turn the Robertson Building into a community center. Virginia currently doesn’t have any large meeting space or shared community space.

Butterfield lauds their goals. “They are not trying to save this building out of sheer nostalgia. It can be a vibrant, usable building that contributes to the community once more.”

The next step is to get a foundation poured and walls and ceilings installed in the Robertson Building to make it a usable space again. Although this work comes with a six-figure price tag, Virginia Square One is up to the task of raising funds and ensuring that the work gets done.

“This group has very active and sophisticated fundraising efforts,” said Butterfield. “They secured a $100,000 challenge grant from an anonymous donor and are raising money to meet that challenge.”

To date, Virginia Square One has raised more than $35,000 toward their $100,000 goal.

“We try to have fundraisers every other month so we don’t burn people out,” said Carson. The most recent fundraising event was a 5K run held Labor Day weekend.

Carson remains optimistic that the necessary funds will be raised and the Robertson Building will once again become a vital part of the community.

“I wouldn’t do this if I wasn’t hopeful,” she said. “The thing that keeps it going is you have to believe. The key is to get other people believing, and when you get enough people believing, it comes true.”

Erika Holst is curator of collections at the Springfi eld Art Association.