Peoria, Ill. – The Peoria Historical Society was recently awarded a $950 Opportunity Grant from the Community Foundation of Central Illinois. The grant money will be used to purchase materials to replace the garage roof at the Pettengill-Morron home, located on Moss Avenue in Peoria. The project is a partnership between the Peoria Historical Society (PHS) and the PCCEO (Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity) Initiative at Illinois Central College. 

“We are very thankful that the Community Foundation awarded us this grant,” said Mark Johnson, PHS President. “Preserving the Pettengill-Morron Home – along with the John C. Flanagan Home – is a critical part of the Peoria Historical Society’s mission. This grant goes a long way to helping make that possible.” 

The roots of the Peoria Historical Society can be traced as far back as 1839. Incorporated in 1934, the purpose of the Society is to enhance the quality of life in the Peoria area by: collecting, preserving and displaying items relating to our history; encouraging and supporting historical research and education; and promoting and sustaining public interest in the history and contributions of our people and organizations. 

For more information or home tours, please contact the Peoria Historical Society at (309) 674-1921 or visit www.peoriahistoricalsociety.org.

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What happens when the lights go out at the Zoo? Come to the Zoo and find out. Meet animals up close, learn what a night house is, and which animals are nocturnal. Bring your family or invite your friends to come along for one of these special tours: Friday, August 29 or September, 27.  Zoo After Dark tours begin at 7:00 pm and run until 9:00 pm. The cost of the tour is $20 per person. Minimum of 10, limit of 20 participants.

For questions or to register, call the Peoria Zoo at (309) 681-3513 or check our website at www.peoriazoo.org.

Have you ever wondered… “How much do rhinos eat in a day?” or “Where do giraffes sleep?” All this and more will be answered during the Peoria Zoo’s Behind the Scenes tours scheduled for August 30 and September 27 at 9:00 am.  The hour long tours will take you into areas the public doesn’t normally get to see.  You can learn more about the animals and how we care for them. Cost of the tour is $22 per person and includes Zoo admission.

For questions or to register, call the Peoria Zoo Education office at (309) 681-3559 or check our website at www.peoriazoo.org.

Peoria, Ill. – July 15, 2014 – The Peoria Area Association of Realtors^® (PAAR) reports that after a slow start to the home sales activity in 2014 due to weather, the second quarter home sales were up 3.2 percent and the median sales price increased 1.5 percent, up to $126,825 over $125,000 in the second quarter of 2013. The average sales price also increased 3.5 percent to $152,384, compared to $147,301 in 2013, due in part to increased sales in upper price ranges.

Real estate sales activity didn’t pick up until May, nearly two months later than usual, but was in full swing by June, evidenced by an 11.7 percent increase in home sales as compared to June 2013. Home inventories stayed low at 2513, up one percent compared to the same time last year, making it more difficult to find the right home for all buyers in some areas. Homes took a bit longer to sell – 88 days on average compared with 84 in the second quarter of 2013. Month’s Supply of Inventory is up 5 percent, to 6.3 months.

“After the brutally cold weather slowed home sales activity to a crawl during the first quarter, we are happy to see the market rebound, said Tonya Burris, PAAR Board President. “Although sales activity did not pick up until May, nearly two months later than normal, we are now in the full swing of the summer sales season and have caught up with 2013. Activity is picking up in the upper price tiers of $500,001 and above with the number of sales increasing 21.5 percent in the 2^nd quarter. Rents continue to climb – making buying a home a good value – and interest rates are generally lower than a year ago, to the surprise of some and the delight of others.

“One of the big stories in central Illinois,” reported Burris, “is the new home construction business which appears to be booming. Usually renewed activity in new home construction signifies recovery and market growth. But this year there is a unique twist to the story; a huge percentage of the properties under construction are rebuilds in Washington, East Peoria and Pekin, where over 1500 homes were destroyed by the tornado in late 2013. Although there is a demand for custom-built properties throughout the area, the availability of contractors and other trades is extremely limited with so many involved with rebuilding those communities. For those interested in building in the next 12-18 months, we suggest getting on your contractor’s waiting list as soon as possible.”

June 2013 to June 2014 Statistics —

• The June 2014 closed sales were up 11.7 percent over June of 2013.
• The June 2014 Median Sales Price was down 4.9 percent to $131,250 from $138,000 in June 2013. June’s Average Sales Price was down 1.4 percent to $156,493 from $156,655 in 2013.
• The New Listings in the Peoria region decreased 1.6 percent to 814.

The Fuller Center will provide basic weatherization (weather stripping, caulking, indoor window film, water heater wraps, etc.) and furnace checkups at no charge to a limited number of Veterans in the Tri-County area.  The weatherization program is made possible by grants from The Kroger Foundation and Ameren-Illinois with additional assistance from Fritch Heating & Cooling.

The maximum household income to qualify is $2500 a month and applicants must be homeowners.
The Fuller Center provides a variety of services to Tri-County Veterans, including home repairs, yard cleanups as well as weatherization.

To receive an application, call 309-363-3737 or apply online at www.ivfullercenter.org.  Deadline is September 1 or until limited spots are filled.

Ripley’s is looking to buy items from the public at its
“Bizarre Buying Bazaar” in Peoria, August 8 & 9

ORLANDO, Fla. – (July 15, 2014) Not sure what to do with that two-headed stuffed cow that’s been taking up space in the basement? Ripley’s Believe It or Not! has a solution for you. Ripley’s Bizarre Buying Bazaar is coming to the Peoria Riverfront Museum on Friday, August 8 and Saturday, August 9 from 10 am to 6 pm. Peoria is the eighth stop on a road trip through the U.S. and Canada to find and acquire items worthy of being part of the world-famous Ripley’s Believe It or Not! collection. This dog portrait – made from actual dog hair – was purchased at Ripley’s Bizarre Buying Bazaar in Orlando Edward Meyer, Ripley’s VP of Exhibits and Archives, will review all items that come in and will make on-the-spot offers for items worthy of becoming Ripley’s Believe It or Not! exhibits. For more than 35 years, Meyer has traveled the world collecting unusual stories and unbelievable items for the company. He has acquired over 20,000 different museum artifacts, as well as countless stories for its cartoon and books. What is Ripley’s looking for at the Bizarre Buying Bazaar?  “We’re hoping to find oddities, artifacts, relics, strange things from science and nature, unusual artwork – the weirder the better,” says Meyer. This thumb sculpture – made from decades of fingernail clippings – was recently purchased at Ripley’s Bizarre Buying Bazaar in Panama City Beach, Fla.  Meyer has purchased more than 100 items from the public at Bizarre Buying Bazaar events – everything from a rare New Guinea widow’s finger chopper and a motorcycle created from cow, alligator and other animal bones, to a lamp made from a taxidermy chicken. Items offered but not purchased included a $400,000 Lamborghini and what may be a Stradivarius violin worth an estimated $2.5 million. Even if Ripley’s doesn’t acquire an item, its owner may still get an oddpraisal ­– that means Meyer won’t necessarily tell people what an item is worth, but will give them an idea of how unusual it is. “This is our first Bizarre Buying Bazaar held in the midwest,  so I’m excited to see what kind of oddities we can find,” said Meyer. Meyer will also give a lecture on the secrets of finding strange artifacts and the stories behind many of the items in the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! collection. His lecture takes place at 2 pm on Sunday, August 10, also at the Peoria Riverfront Museum.   Oddity owners planning to attend the Bizarre Buying Bazaar are encouraged to RSVP to Angela Johnson at Johnson@ripleys.com in advance and provide some details on the item to allow Ripley’s research team the opportunity to see what they can find out about the particular item(s) of interest in advance. The Bizarre Buying Bazaar will be held on Friday, August 8 and Saturday, August 9 from 10 am to 6 pm at the Peoria Riverfront Museum, located at 222 SW Washington Street. Images of items purchased at Ripley’s Bizarre Buying Bazaar events are available at:   https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0fck33o9vmmkq2/EzatkMdbmv

When:  Wednesday, July 16, 2:00 p.m.
Where:  Easter Seals, 507 E. Armstrong Ave, Peoria, Main lobby
What:  Ameren Illinois to present $35,000 grant to Easter Seals for the Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnostic Clinic

Representing Ameren Illinois:  Stan Ogden, Vice President, Customer Service and Marketing Operations

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a complex neurodevelopmental disability that typically appears during the first two years of life and affects a person’s ability to effectively communicate and interact with others.

The Easter Seals ASD Clinic provides a unique regional service, and delivers over 35% of all comprehensive clinical ASD evaluations in Illinois.  A clinical evaluation of ASD is the gateway for appropriate schools services, private health insurance reimbursement of services, and expanding community services.  Easter Seals has the first CARF Accredited program in central Illinois for behavioral services and supports for individuals with autism, and is the largest single provider of early intervention services and direct autism services in downstate Illinois.

Go to:   <http://ci.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ILPR_homepage>

 The Peoria Park District will present their annual Youth Music Festival, “The Best of Disney”, Thursday, July 24 at 6:30 p.m. at the Glen Oak Amphitheatre. Join us for a fun filled evening with the young musicians from the Peoria Park District’s Summer Band and Orchestra when Mickey strikes up the band playing the best of Disney music from Broadway, movies and television.

Admission is just $3.00 at the gate, students with ID are FREE.

For more information, contact Linda Huff, Fine Arts Coordinator, at 681-2861 or visit www.peoriaparks.org.

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 The Peoria Park District will host the 8th Annual Jack Sweney Youth Tennis Tournament and Carnival on Thursday, July 24 starting at 9:00 a.m. at the Bradley Park Tennis Courts to conclude the 2014 free Jack Sweney lesson program. Last year, approximately 140 children took advantage of the free lessons and equipment, and more than 70 children participated in the end-of-the-season tournament and various tennis games.

This free lesson and equipment program takes place throughout the summer due to the support of the Sweney family and a grant from the Jack C. Sweney Peoria Youth Tennis Fund of the Community Foundation of Central Illinois. The objective of this program is to reach many of the at-risk youth in Peoria with the opportunity to learn and play the sport of tennis, and promote it as a lifetime sport.

For more information call (309) 681-2866.