Eastern Illinois University is in the process of selling East Hall after a campus fraternity expressed interest in buying it.  

The transaction is targeted to be completed within the next three months.  

Eastern is in negotiations with the Eta Mu House Corporation of Sigma Chi Fraternity to buy the property at 2103 12th St., according to Executive Director of University Housing and Dining Services Mark Hudson.  

Eastern’s Vice President for Business Affairs Matt Bierman oversees business functions at the university, meaning he’s responsible for overseeing the sale of East Hall.  

While the negotiations regarding the sale have been relatively smooth so far, they haven’t been without drawbacks, he said.  

In addition to East Hall, Eastern also possesses ownership of 12th Street itself, which the university no longer wants to own, according to Bierman.  

“We want to convey that ownership back to the city for them to take care of,” said Bierman. “Well, they won’t take it back from us.”  

The city of Charleston won’t take back 12th Street until it has met the city’s minimum standard condition, meaning pavement work will have to occur before the city can regain ownership of the street.  

In addition to the sale, Eastern has reserved the right to first refusal, meaning the university has the first chance to buy the property back if the Eta Mu House Corporation of Sigma Chi Fraternity sold the property again.  

“We wouldn’t want somebody going to buy that [property] that was going to operate an establishment that was counter to university values,” said Bierman.  

Hudson oversaw East Hall’s presence on campus, including the building service workers formerly located in the property.  

BSWs clean and maintain all buildings and residential environments on campus such as residence and dining halls.  

These workers utilized East Hall as an office and meeting space first thing in the morning before going out to the larger campus to complete their tasks for the day, according to Hudson.  

With the sale of East Hall, the BSWs have been moved to Greek Court 2, the first house on the right upon entering Greek Court that is not being utilized by the university but fits the needs of the BSWs such as parking and storage, according to Hudson.  

As of now, East Hall is completely empty, as the BSWs moved to Greek Court 2 last November with relative ease. The workers own moving trucks, allowing for easy transportation of equipment and materials, said Hudson.  

Following the sale of East Hall, the Eta Mu House Corporation of Sigma Chi Fraternity won’t be the first fraternity to own the property.  

According to Hudson, Tau Kappa Epsilon owned the property upon its completion in 1964.   

The organization owned the property for several years before running into financial trouble in the early 70s, which saw the property leased to a church for two years.  

During the second year, Eastern faced a housing crunch which prompted the university to rent the building from the church to use as a residence hall.  

In 1989, Greek Court’s first houses opened, and East Hall was converted to be a part of Greek Court as the fraternities and sororities there needed another space.  

Eventually, the fraternity living out of East Hall swelled in numbers, and they moved to a larger house in the middle of Greek Court making the building unused and the paving the way for the BSWs to move in.  

Luke Brewer can be reached at 581-2812 or at lsbrewer@eiu.edu