A Bloomington eyecare practice that became a primary tenant of the former State Farm building downtown in 2020 has announced 100 layoffs.
Keplr Vision has informed the state of Illinois through the WARN [Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification] Act that the company plans to eliminate the jobs starting Sept. 7.
“Keplr Vision has been working to ensure our managed optometry practices have the resources and support they need to deliver the highest levels of quality care. As a result, we made the very difficult decision to reduce our corporate and administrative operations and eliminate 100 non-clinical positions,” the company said in a statement to WGLT.
“We value the contributions of all our employees, and this restructuring was done with as much care and consideration as possible," said the company, adding the employees losing their jobs will get "ample resources and support, including retention bonuses, severance packages, and outplacement assistance."
Keplr moved its corporate offices to 112 E. Washington St. four years ago when Urban Equity Properties [UEP] took over the landmark insurance building. State Farm, which had moved out of the 13-story building two years earlier, essentially donated the building at a time when advocates were concerned it may remain dormant, or need to be torn down.
At the time, UEP, a Rockford-based property developer, planned to build upscale apartments at the site. It’s currently listed on its website as GJ Lofts and indicates that apartments are coming soon. A request for comment from UEP was not immediately returned.
Illinois WARN requires businesses notify the state of mass layoffs or 25 or more, or a plant closure.
