217 E. Court Street, Kankakee, Illinois 60901

217 E Court Street, commonly known as the Jaffe Building, is a wonderful property waiting for its next owner. The building was acquired by the Kankakee County Regional Land Bank in 2025. It occupies a prominent location in the heart of downtown Kankakee and housed Jaffe Drugs, an establishment that served the city for many decades. According to the Kankakee County Museum, Max Jaffe initially had a drug store on E. Cypress. The Jaffe Drug Store at 217 E Court opened in 1933.  This business was actively listed with Kankakee City Directory up to 2003, which is the last year in the museum’s archives. It closed not long after. The Jaffe family was active in many business ventures in the city and county and was instrumental in the founding of Temple B’Nai in Kankakee.

During the long period the business has been closed, the building fell into a state of disrepair. Given its condition, the land bank will be looking for qualified developers with concrete plans to rehab it and bring it back to productive use. (Access to the Jaffe Building is by appointment only). It offers high ceilings, big windows, a central location and 7200 SF of usable space. View the full listing on Loopnet: 217 E Court St, Kankakee, IL 60901 – Retail for Sale | LoopNet. Asking price is only $99,900.