Name This Peoria Landmark

Correct answer: CJ Summers: Venture

Honorable Mention: Kara Harris: K-Mart

Yea, I’m biased. Used to love going to Venture as a kid, though in it’s later years it definitely began to show it’s age. I don’t shop at K-Mart for no particular reason.

When googling “Venture K-Mart Peoria” I ran across this comment in Springfield’s Journal-Register regarding what to do with the empty shopping center that Venture and later K-Mart anchored:

Home Depot would be an interesting idea…Perhaps a Value City or Weekends only Furniture Store…Whatever goes in there must serve the people around it. The area has depreciated greatly, so who would want to build a $300,000 home with pay day loan stores as your neighbor, not me. As far as a green section that is needed but not that much space. Lets face it Springfield the business is booming of the westside, who knows why. The property values west of the K-mart site are dropping…have you driven thru there lately, houses for sale a dime a dozen. Another idea would be something to do…How many times do we drive to Peoria, St. louis, or even Chicago to entertain ourselves. Look what was done with Chicago’s Navy pier or Lacledes landing. Pull the tourist there for something entertaining while they are visiting the Lincoln sites.

I wonder… how many times do Springfield residents drive to Peoria to entertain themselves?

Mapgirl had a good guess… I suppose I cropped it a little too close. Try this:

Aggatucci’s.  I think you all know where it’s located.

Historic Peoria:

In 1926, Jim Agatucci opened a small grocery store at 2607 N. University, which at that time was a gravel road. It consisted of only a small room that is now the space behind the bar and extended out about fifteen feet to the first small wall close to the kitchen. Jim continued to run the store until President Roosevelt repealed prohibition in 1933, when he applied for a liquor license.

The City granted Agatucci’s its license shortly after the downtown drinking establishments, resulting in their receipt of license number 13. To this day, Agatucci’s still has number 13, making it the holder of the oldest liquor license in Peoria under the same name.

Griffin Heating and Cooling “Providing comfortable living to the Peoria-area for over 40 years!”

2700 SW Washington, at the intersection of Sanger St.

I didn’t take the original photo with the intention of it being a Landmark; I just thought it was a funny sign. Infact, after a few guesses I had to drive back down there and figure out exactly where the sign came from because I never wrote it down. Got a picture with and an address the 2nd time.

The final trip out of Peoria was on May 29, 1978 December 31, 1978 to Chicago.

Kartville, 919 N. Swords Ave., West Peoria, Il. 61604 [map], generally known as Kartsville (with an ’s’) in my family.

Batting Cages – $.50 per session (10-15 balls)
Dune Buggy – $2 for 1 person, $3 for 2 people
Go Carts – $2.50 per person, 4 laps. (approximately 5 minutes)
Miniature Golf – $2.50 per person
Bumper Boats – $2.50 per person

Afternoon spent with the kids – Priceless (sorry, couldn’t resist!)

Odd- their website lists different prices than what I paid over Labor Day weekend.

A classic from the days of yore – the Towne House Motel at 1519 N Knoxville.

Here’s another view:
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Kara Harris is as crazy as I.

“I found it! I found it! It’s at the corner of Sanger Street and SW Monarch St”

I assume that this is the property of IDOT, but I really have no idea.