Sycamore’s Harvester Square, dilapidated and overdue for a facelift, may have some new tenants soon.

City Manager Bill Nicklas said two companies that have shown interest in the building are Blumen Gardens, a nursery, and Blackhawk Moving.

Harvester Square, on South Avenue in Sycamore, holds much historical significance to Sycamore. The Marsh Harvester factory was the city’s earliest and largest factory, which was built in 1869.

“That building has been around forever and it’s always sad to see an old building go, but it needs to be cleaned up and restored,” said 35-year Sycamore resident Ellen Brown.

The building has a contamination problem – it has held several barrels that could contain hazardous materials beneath the floor of the building for years.

“There are high levels of contamination which contain mostly oils and acids, which is the reason they had to tear down parts of the building,” Nicklas said. “And also the general structure of the building was becoming deteriorated.”

Potential new owners have a different vision for the old building.

Co-owner of Blumen Gardens Joel Barczak said he envisioned the old building becoming a botanical, garden-like atmosphere. It would take the place of his business’ current location, 403 Edward St., just down the street from the Harvester Square Building.

“We hope to move our business into the building because our business requires so much space, and we need space to allow our business to grow,” Barczak said.

Barczak said the location is great because it is right to the north of the Edward Street location, close to the original location.

Relocating would allow more space for outdoor items such as fountains, Barczak said. With the added space, Blumen Gardens could become more park-like.

When bringing in a new business, there is concern for property values or traffic increases, which would bother local residents.

“Since Blumen Garden is a small business, we think that it would help increase property values,” Nicklas said.