East Peoria leaders want fresh air to be a permanent attraction at Levee Park after placing a ban on smoking and vaping at the new public green space adjacent to City Hall.
The city council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a code amendment prohibiting smoking, and the use of electronic cigarettes and other smoking devices.
“It’s basically making the ordinance the same for Levee Park that it is at EastSide Centre,” said commissioner Seth Mingus. “We want to keep it family-friendly and don’t want smoke in there.”
Commissioner Mark Hill noted there’s nothing in the code language that would prevent anyone from smoking in their own vehicles at or near the park with the windows rolled down.
“That’s just kind of a leftover vestige from that provision, and at this point it hasn’t caused us any problems,” said city attorney Scott Brunton. “I think we’re trying to encourage people to go to the parking lot.”
The city held an official opening for the downtown park in September. The project went through a decade of planning and development. Construction of the $3 million park was funded by a combination of donations and state grants.
The city has announced that Levee Park will be the new home for the East Peoria Farmer’s Market that starts its 2026 season on June 5. The farmer’s market will be held from 4-7 p.m. every Friday.
In other business, the council unanimously approved spending nearly $287,000 to purchase a 2027 Mack Granite tandem dump truck along with a complete equipment installation from Vanguard Truck Centers.
“In a bad snowstorm, we usually have try to have at least eight trucks up and running, but in our whole fleet, we have eight, nine, 10, just depending on the condition of our vehicles. This is just a replacement of one,” said commissioner Dan Decker. “We’re proud to have a very good plowing track record, and this will help us with that.”
