Winter 2026 Delta Upsilon Quarterly

Delta Upsilon’s Illinois Chapter has lived at 312 E. Armory Avenue in Champaign, Illinois, since 1926. Just shy of one century later, the chapter house, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1990, received its first major renovation.

The multimillion-dollar project first began to take form in 2019 when the Illinois Alumni Housing Corporation began to discuss the idea of a complete renovation. While the property had undergone small renovations over the years mainly to stay compliant with fire codes, it had vastly remained untouched over the previous 90 years. As the house continued to age, repairs and updates were becoming more frequent and more costly. With the help of the fundraising firm Pennington & Co., the alumni completed a feasibility study in mid-late 2021 that showed Illinois Chapter alumni would overwhelmingly support major renovation of the Tudor Revival style home.

The “Honoring the Past, Building for the Next Century” capital campaign launched shortly thereafter with a target fundraising window of $2.5-$3.5 million with a stretch goal of $4 million. Chuck Bleck, Illinois ’90, then led the architectural planning and the selection of a general contractor. Construction began in summer 2024.

Over the next 15 months, the chapter house would see most of its interior gutted. Without unduly changing the layout of the home, rooms and features were rebuilt to be more modern and functional without losing their historical touches. As many items as possible were refurbished and put back into the house. Notably, the first floor’s original main staircase was also recreated after it had to be removed during a renovation in 1985. Despite all of the work to be done, renovating the existing property proved more cost-effective than building a new house. As alumni put it, “The soul of the original building remains, but with modern conveniences.”

Modern updates include new HVAC, lighting, windows, roofing, and high-speed internet, as well as a modern commercial kitchen. Renovations to the attic also allowed for the creation of additional living quarters in the form of four new “suites.”

Due to construction, undergraduates were displaced from the chapter house for the entirety of the 2024-2025 academic year. During this time, many chapter activities took place at a Senior House rented by older members or in other spots on campus. With no time to spare, the final occupancy permit was granted for the chapter house the morning students began to arrive back on campus for the start of the 2025-2026 school year.

“I’m very optimistic about this new era of the house, and it’s my goal to make sure that we start this era off right,” said Chapter President Jake Tinoco, Illinois '28. “Being back in the house is a blessing, and it’s up to my brothers and myself to honor that and uphold our long-respected legacy. I think that this renovation is a huge boost to making sure that what we have here continues, because what we have here is special.”

The weekend of Sept. 5-6, 2025, alumni traveled home to Champaign for an official ribbon-cutting and reunion weekend. More than 300 DUs and guests were on hand to celebrate the facility. The weekend featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony, house tours, a barbecue, and a watch party for the Fighting Illini football game. A shared online photo album from the weekend led to nearly 500 photos being uploaded from the event.