Reflections on a year that has passed us by all too quickly….
It feels like we were all just gathering for our annual July Fourth celebration, which by the way had 183 people in attendance according to Paul Masick, our resident statistician. But we all know better than that to assume time has stood still for us.
The one topic that continued to dominate our conversations this past year was traffic. Speeding, in particular. The city has installed a number of traffic calming devices throughout the neighborhood over the past 24 months. Yet we still see people driving with no regard for safety or courtesy to others. We continue to have conversation with our city councilors and staff in hopes of slowing down those who view residential streets as their own expressway.
Our summer started in a grand manner with another great tradition, the Moss Avenue Sale and Festival, which celebrated its 37th anniversary this past June. It was a warm, sunny day that saw strong attendance, bringing visitors to our neighborhood to experience our hospitality and lifestyle. The net proceeds from the sale will be put to use to help fund the Hanging of the Greens and a number of other neighborhood initiatives to help improve the quality of life found in our neighborhood.
In late August, Scott Lewis Construction approached us all with a concept for developing the vacant land at the corner of Moss Ave. and Union St. His vision, at that time, was to build 8 brownstone townhouses, the first truly new construction in the neighborhood since the rebuild of Westminister Presbyterian Church. Scott and his team continue to work with the city on the development of their plan to best fit the character of our neighborhood.
Thank you to all who make this neighborhood a great place to live. From our board of directors to the many volunteers who invest their own personal time, we are blessed to have neighbors who care about the neighborhood we all live in.
Happy Holidays!
At recent meetings on the West Bluff, I realized the great change in conversation as various developments are announced and indeed go forward.
William Moss, brother of Lydia Moss Bradley, came to Peoria in the 1830’s. In 1843, William and his father Zeally built and occupied a small brick house at 901 Seventh Street, now Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, that came to be called Peoria Mineral Springs. Three large springs and an underground cavern behind the house soon became a major source of water for Peoria. About 1858 the City developed other sources and the huge output of the springs flowed into the lowlands, forming Goose Lake. The lake was drained in 1867 for home sites and the spring water then went into the Peoria sewers, as it still does.