PEORIA, Ill. – Peoria Mayor Rita Ali says the city has an “amazing history,” and wants to keep it that way with investments.
“Investing in Peoria’s Future” was the theme of Rita Ali’s 2025 “State of the City” address, given Thursday afternoon in the Civic Center ballroom.
Ali says the city has made great investments in education, healthcare, and business, but says there are negative outcomes without investing in infrastructure and the people of Peoria.
The biggest focus of the speech centered on the need to develop more housing in Peoria. Ali stressed that point by bringing the developers of future housing on stage, such as Churchview Garden Homes and Grey Oak, to discuss their projects for a few moments.
Ali says without more developers and investors coming in, the city’s housing shortage crisis could grow over the next five years.
“There’s lots of opportunity in Peoria, Peoria’s a city of great opportunity, but we can’t do it alone, the city can’t do it alone,” Ali said. “And we need to attract developers to Peoria.
Ali announced after the speech that a new senior housing development is planned for South Peoria, MacArthur Flats, with groundbreaking expected next year. The city council this week also authorized the purchase of Expo Gardens, with the intent of developing housing on the land.
Ali says investments have also helped reduce crime in Peoria.
Ali says compared to this time last year, shooting incidents are down 36% and shooting victims down 41%. She credits investments in License Plate Readers and camera systems for helping not only reduce crime, but arrest those committing crimes.
The mayor did note that the city still has issues with addressing youth violent crime. But adds that initiatives such as Walk and Talks by Peoria Police are building trust in communities.
Other public safety investments pointed out by Ali include the building of Fire Station 16 in Richwoods Township, and conducting recruitment events in seven different states that led to 39 new hires.
Infrastructure investments pointed out by Ali include $75 million in road projects, such as the Adams and Jefferson Streets two-way conversion project, and the Pioneer Parkway and University intersection improvements.
Ali also focused on investments made by the city towards business growth and development, noting that around $125 million has been spent in the past year. She credited Distillery Labs with driving a lot of entrepreneurial business. Other downtown projects include the soon-to-be renovations made to the PNC Bank building, and $30 million from Caterpillar for its downtown campus.
The mayor also noted that the city will try to streamline the permit process in the future, calling it restricting and redundant.
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