PEORIA MAGAZINE October 2022

Madison Theatre, Peoria

Peoria City Hall

Obed & Isaac's, Peoria

Frances W. Little House, Peoria

Rock Island Depot/River Station

St. Mary's Cathedral, Peoria

The group recently convened for lunch at one of the chosen – Obed & Isaac’s, 321 NEMadison in Peoria, which began as a place of worship, as so many grand structures do – to talk about what went right on the central Illinois architecture/ community building scene for so long and, of late, what has changed. First, they had to settle on what “significant” means in the context of architecture. As Corso put it, “It can be your trusty friend. It doesn’t have to be the most beautiful building.” For many, “just think about Peoria without it” became the litmus test for their selections. Case in point is the Civic Center. Leaders from that time have noted that if there had been a public referendum on its construction, it likely would have failed. Philip Johnson himself reportedly was not happy with the finished product after budget cuts were made. Sometimes, it takes a while for a place to grow on a community. Second, they don’t view Peoria as an aberration, architecturally speaking, certainly among cities its size. “I feel l ike we’re average,” said Misselhorn. “A lot of it is economically

dr iven.” Meanwhi le, the nat ion collectively seems to have turned inward, more focused on the “me” rather than the “we,” opined Corso, turning statement-making projects, public and private, into rarer gestures, especially outside of maj or metropol ises . Function often trumps form. Still, there was some picker’s regret here. The Downtown museum block, now 10 years old, got some on-second thought love fromthis group. Some cited the likewise youthful General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport terminal as an overlooked gem, as well. Meanwhile, “if things had gone as planned four or five years ago, wemight be including theCatworldheadquarters,” said Misselhorn. “It might have been a game-changer, donewith an appropriate budget by a world-class design firm. Maybe that would be on our list.” That doesn’t let Peoria completely off the hook. At some point, urban planners decided to accommodate vehicles at the expense of pedestrians, which may have been taken to extreme in some parts of central Illinois. Sprawl and vast parking lots dominated, at

great expense to local taxpayers. There were even efforts to “suburbanize” downtowns, to ultimately regrettable effect in many communities. In Peoria, “we built roadways for a city of 450,000,” instead of the city of 112,000 that Peoria actually is, said Corso. Meanwhile, there’s the “self-esteem” issue, said Misselhorn, the feeling that “we can’t have nice things,” that it’s something other communities do. Often it takes visitors to remind the locals what we have here— the stunning scenery of the Illinois River valley, Peoria’s rich and often unrecognized history, so many “wow” buildings and homes at affordable prices. Of course, architects also tend to deliver what their clients want, and often higher-level architecture is not on the radar. “Get it built faster and for less money” is the common expectation, said Misselhorn. It wasn’t always so. At the turn of the 20th century, Peoria industrialists built palaces to live in. Those who came here tomake their fortunes, not uncommonly immigrants withwider experiences and perspectives, demanded the same of their public spaces — their government

32 OCTOBER 2022 PEORIA MAGAZINE