Several Peoria businesses put boards over doors and windows to protect their property amid civil unrest earlier this year. Now the city’s Community Development Department wants to see the remaining boards taken down.
“We’re all trying to get back to some level of normalcy in the community and with businesses, showing that the businesses are open for customers as much as they can,” said Community Development Director Ross Black.
According to Black, a sprinkling of about a dozen businesses spread throughout the city remain boarded. The city is encouraging those owners to take the boards down in the next two weeks.
“If there are still businesses that are boarded up by Aug. 14, then we’ll go out and do the person-to-person outreach and just find out if there’s some extenuating circumstance or something that is causing them to leave the boards up,” Black said.
In announcing the request Friday, Black said the department sought the most efficient way to reach business owners and encourage them to comply.
“The great majority of businesses that did have boards up at one time or another have taken them down,” he said. “We’re just (trying) to encourage those businesses that have not done that at this point to try and get it done as quickly as possible.”
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