New upscale club for 'grown folks' opening in Elgin
The owners of a new "adult upscale club" opening in downtown Elgin have been hard at work on an astonishing transformation of the space that used to house the unemployment office.
Gone are the fluorescent lights, gray counters and worn-out floors. Now it's all gold trim, white leather couches, bead chandeliers and metallic epoxy floors.
"We have a decor for grown folks," co-owner Shirley Bassett said. "And it's strictly for ages 30 and up. We have a strict dress code - business casual."
The new club, called I.C.E., or Invitation to Class & Elegance, is expected to open Aug. 5 at 30 DuPage Court. It will offer happy hour along with a variety of music - mostly live - including jazz, soul, house, salsa and reggae Tuesdays through Sundays.
"I want to hit every different avenue, something for everybody," said Jacqueline Jenkins, the club manager and Bassett's sister. "We're bringing elegance and class to Elgin. It's a whole new experience - a very upscale, classy venue."
Bassett, of Elgin, said she, Jenkins and their sister Marcell Jenkins-Myrick of Bolingbrook are part of a team of about eight people involved in the venture under Dreamers Enterprise & Management Inc.
The team has a variety of experience in the entertainment business, although this is the first club they've owned, Bassett said.
Basset is a member of a gospel choir, Jenkins-Myrick has management experience and Jenkins is a performer, they said. "We have entertained for years as a family," Bassett said.
The music lineup for next weekend and a menu of signature cocktails, along with wine and beer, are still in the works, Jenkins said. There will be no food at first, but the goal is to open a full kitchen by next summer. "We are taking our time with it," Bassett said.
Bassett said she's been involved in a variety of businesses over the years. She owned That Suits You, a men's clothing store in downtown Elgin, until 2008, and now owns Bassett Remodeling & Carpentry Inc. also in Elgin.
"I love music," she said, "so this was just the opportunity for me to do the thing that we love to do, and open something that was more entertaining to the masses."
Downtown Elgin is a perfect location for the club, whose black-tie grand opening is Aug. 26, Bassett said. And she is not worried about any competition from Smooth Fox, a restaurant and nightclub that opened in June half a block away, she said.
"We are right in the heart of entertainment," she said. "I'm not only targeting people in Elgin. I'm targeting people outside of Elgin to bring them to Elgin and see what Elgin offers."