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On July 1, 2005 without prior warning, Methodist Medical Center in a diabolical move demolished the Peoria Universalist/Unitarian Church, 908 Hamilton Boulevard -- a century-old, unique work of art. See Story
Today it is just another parking lot. Flat. Ugly. WE WILL NOT FORGET!
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For addresses, Emails,
and telephone numbers, click
here.
For useful links,
click here.
To see the original
newspaper ad, click here.
Great fiction from Illinois writers: Downstate Story
Peoria's Medical Maffia: free speech in Peoria
Historic preservation is the only valid base for saving inner city and deteriorating neighborhoods.
See www.archfoundation.org and follow the links to the documentary "Block by Block," to see how Denver, Atlanta and Hartford, Ct., did it. Denver called a moratorium on demolition, and it paid off big.
Here's what could have been done with wise leadership in Peoria:
As the building looked
prior to "deconstruction," demolition
prior to "deconstruction," demolition
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• PRE-DEMOLITION INFORMATION: (Didn't save it.)
- The historic
Universalist/Unitarian Church building, 908 Hamilton
Boulevard, is now owned by Methodist Medical Center.
• It could be demolished by Aug 1, 2005 unless the hospital decides to re-use it.
• The building is structurally sound, has excellent acoustics, and would make a good auditorium for meetings and concerts, or medical museum, or both.
• Designed by architect B.L. Hulsebus in Classical Revival Style, the 1911-vintage building is a unique work of art.
• Lydia Moss Bradley contributed to its building. Jane Addams, Clarence Darrow and Bertrand Russell spoke to Peoria audiences in the building.
• Peoria cannot afford to lose another of its historic structures, which alone keep it from looking like everytown, USA.
Methodist has stated it will pay $50,000 to move the building elsewhere in downtown Peoria. Private donors will match that amount. That's a second-best solution to saving it, but worth looking at. Now what's needed is a good location.
Methodist Medical
Center
221 NE Glen Oak,
Peoria, IL 61636
672-5569 or 672-5562
and ask them to save and re-use this unique part of Peoria's heritage.
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For information on the history of the building and its architect, the effort to save it and links to Methodist, the city of Peoria, and other organizations, look below.
AFTERMATH: UUs built a new church in the suburbs, went $500,000 over budget. That's what it would have cost to completely renovate the historic building. They chose a "virgin" site, where in the fall of 2006, six oak trees had died from "construction injury, drought, disease or a combination of causes," the church newsletter reported.
Methodist
Medical Center of Illinois:
Pays CEO
$500,000 a year.
Spends $1 million
yearly on advertising.
Latest tax
return: www.guidestar.org
Email: mbryant@mmci.org
or click on www.methodistmedicalcenter.org
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Minutes of the Historic Preservation Commission of Peoria, from August 20, 2003.
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Peoria
Mayor Jim Ardis:
mayor@ci.peoria.il.us
Letters Sent to the Peoria Historic Preservation Commission (Ignored)
Links:
National Trust for Historic Preservation Contains a wealth of information on historic preservation, including links to funding sources. NEW: 2005 Great American Main Street awards announced. Peoria is NOT mentioned.
Sacred Places Focuses on saving historic churches.
Unitarian/Universalist Association of America Send an Email to protest what happened in Peoria
Historic Peoria Information on landmarks and people from Peoria's past, including the UU church building and its members.