Peoria’s need for more residential development to address historically low available housing emerged as a focal point of Mayor Rita Ali’s annual State of the City address on Thursday.
“Peoria, like many cities across the nation, is facing a serious housing crisis,” said Ali, noting the lack of options affects all price ranges and income levels.
“The deficit has resulted from a lack of investment over decades in quality affordable housing, and without swift action, our housing shortage will grow exponentially over the next five years. In my opinion, it should be our top priority, in conjunction with community safety," she said.
Ali weaved the theme of “investing in Peoria’s future” throughout her speech, advocating for continued commitments to neighborhoods, public safety, infrastructure, workforce development, strong city finances, and business and economic growth.
“Business is happening in Peoria. We lose some here and there, but we gain many more than we lose,” she said.
After speaking for nearly 30 minutes before a large luncheon audience at the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce event held at the Peoria Civic Center, Ali gave five stakeholders from different aspects of the housing sector to discuss their ongoing efforts.
Wyllys Mann, senior vice president of development for the Upper Midwest at Pivotal Housing Partners, heralded Pivotal’s Churchview Gardens project on the city’s South Side before announcing an upcoming MacArthur Flats project.
“Part of my job is to read plans — housing plans, revitalization plans, comprehensive plans — in city after city. A lot of them have good ones, ambitious ones, virtuous ones; Peoria does, too,” said Mann. “But what sets them apart is that Mayor Ali and her team are not sitting around anywhere. The nonprofits, like Peoria Opportunities Foundation, aren't sitting around anywhere. The business leaders, the politicians in this city aren't sitting around anywhere. They're doing the hard work to bring investment to the Peoria.”
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Peoria Area Executive Director Lea Anne Schmidgall spoke about the agency's work in building 12 single-family affordable homes on the site of the former McKinley Elementary School.
Christine Kahl with Phoenix Community Development Services said the downtown Madison Apartments III for previously homeless young adults is providing a community benefit, while the Phoenix Manor development of 55 units of permanent supportive housing is “on track.”
Local developer Mark Wagner provided additional details on the Chic Flats and Chic Apartments projects, while Tommy Arbuckle III added the Twelve Oaks development will bring another 4-5 affordable duplexes into the fold.
Ali also reiterated her support for the city acquiring Exposition Gardens to foster residential development, again calling it a “rare opportunity.”
“Peoria is also a great place to learn, which is why I believe that our upcoming purchase of Expo Gardens for housing development will not only generate new revenues to the Peoria School District, the city and other taxing bodies, but will attract families to this area serviced by Richwoods and Northmoor schools,” she said.
Ali announced the city will be bringing on Jacob Xavier, a Harvard Bloomberg City Hall fellow, whose hiring on a two-year term will be paid for by a stipend from the Bloomberg organization. He will be tasked with helping the city explore additional housing solutions.
Safety and 'Peoria Connects'
Ali said the police department’s efforts to reduce violent crime are working, specifically noting that shooting incidents are down 36% from last year and that all 2025 homicide investigations have been solved and closed.
The mayor announced a new city-led initiative called “Peoria Connects” as a way to encourage businesses, nonprofits, and neighborhood organizations to seek community improvements.
“That includes projects like building community gardens, installing neighborhood signage and supporting commercial renovation grants that help local businesses make much needed improvements,” she said, adding Peoria has awarded nearly 50 neighborhood mini-grants totaling more than $200,000 for community-driven improvements.
Ali also emphasized a need to assist workforce development efforts to meet the city’s employment needs with 2,000 job openings across fields such as health care, transportation, construction, and manufacturing. And, she pointed to a total value of $88 million in road work projects in progress throughout Peoria as a sign of the city’s commitment to quality infrastructure.
She urged everyone in attendance to help city leaders in shaping a bright future for Peoria.
“The state of the city, the state of our city, is not just in the hands of City Hall,” she said. “It takes all of us working together to make Peoria the thriving community that we all want to see.”
