A report presented to the Illinois Central College Board of Trustees begins to provide a clearer picture of how the Central Illinois community college plans to handle student housing needs in the aftermath of the closure of its on-campus facilities.
The report from ICC vice president of student success Jon Neidy outlines details on alternative housing options, partnerships, available housing support staff, and possible next steps for managing summer plans and student transportation.
A Fall 2025 student housing survey sent by email received 78 responses out of the 249 students likely in need of alternate housing. Of those 78, 42 were already working with ICC staff on finding alternative housing, 12 were working on their own and 15 were still seeking additional help from the school.
Twelve students responded they had already secured an alternative housing option, while four said they didn’t need housing and one student is still deciding on housing options for the fall. Approximately 35% – 86 students – did not respond to the survey.
The need for alternatives follows the March announcement of the closure of the 20-year old WoodView Commons Apartments. Bruce Budde, ICC’s executive vice president for administration and finance, told WCBU at the time the closure was due to mounting cash flow issues and repair needs for Illinois Central Student Housing LCC, the independent entity managing WoodView.
In early April, the institution’s board of trustees called a special meeting to say they were “blindsided” by the announcement.
Neidy’s report from the last regular board of trustees meeting says, since March, the college held eight different informational meetings and sent out 13 mass emails in an effort to prepare students for the upcoming housing change.
One of those emails included a list of the potential housing providers identified so far, which include: Methodist College Apartments, Bradley University’s St. James Apartments for athletic teams and other specific sponsored programs, LaHood Property Management rental units, Leman Property Management rental units, University Properties rental units around the Bradley area and Peoria Hilltop properties. In total, the report lists more than 200 potential beds for former WoodView lease holders seeking other options.
With many options for housing at a considerable distance from ICC’s main East Peoria campus, officials also met with CityLink to discuss possible transportation options for displaced students.
ICC president Dr. Sheila Quirk-Bailey called the meeting “very successful.” She said the organization reviewed loops that would be made from both Bradley University and Methodist College to get students to ICC campus.
“There are bus stops at Bradley, very near the dorm where the students will be staying, as well as in the parking lot for Methodist College,” said Quirk-Bailey. “So it’s all going to work out very well. We will wait and see how many bus riders we have once the semester starts.”
Quirk-Bailey said, if the number of bus riders is high, CityLink would be open to having a direct shuttle run a few times a day from the Peoria schools to the East Peoria campus.
The board of trustees also discussed financial assistance options available to students unexpectedly looking for a new residential option in their last years before graduating. Trustees specifically asked vice president of institutional advancement Mike Unes about the possibility of using emergency funds for students.
He said previous arrangements with Methodist and Bradley had worked in this fashion.
“If their deposit is due before financial aid comes in, they will sign and say, ‘okay, we’re going to forego that and wait,’ or we’ll pay it and then recover that once financial aid comes in,” said Unes. “So we’re looking at that on a case-by-case basis.”
Trustee Gale Thetford voiced concerns about the alternative housing’s location at other schools in the region.
“I was not elected to increase enrollment at Methodist College and Bradley University,” she said. “So it’s my hope that we don’t lose some of those first and second year students who ultimately decide they kind of really like being at Bradley. I prefer that they wait to go to Bradley and Methodist College.”
Thetford said she hoped staff would continue to work to find long-term housing options closer to ICC campus.
According to Neidy’s report in the board’s agenda packet, next steps for the college’s housing efforts include collaborating with the Peoria Housing Authority.
