Peoria council adopts downtown sign-code and zoning tweaks, approves city-led projects to kick-start revitalization

The Peoria City Council on Jan. 14 approved zoning and sign-code updates aimed at supporting downtown revitalization and voted to authorize two city-led redevelopment projects intended to catalyze private investment.

Planning Director Chris Hawkes and Engineering Services Director Jeff Current presented a package of targeted changes to Old Town zoning and a downtown-focused sign code, and staff described two city investments: a roughly 4,800-square-foot barbecue venue and a 1.5-acre Jefferson House mixed-use incubator. Council ultimately approved the package by a 7–0 roll-call vote.

Staff described the amendments as surgical and tailored for downtown: clarifying definitions, simplifying district names into Downtown Commercial Mixed Use (DCM) and Downtown Residential Mixed Use (DRM), and adjusting signage rules to encourage pedestrian-oriented, creative signs while limiting impacts on adjacent residences. Key sign changes include allowing projecting (blade) signs to extend into the right of way with a permit and license, removing a 3-foot projection cap, increasing allowed projecting sign area from 12 square feet to 36 square feet on principal downtown frontages, permitting neon or LED projecting signs on primary streets with automatic dimming controls, and creating a separate allowance for canopy signage so it does not consume a business’s existing sign allotment.

Planning staff also proposed operational controls for sidewalk "A-frame" signs: permitted with a right-of-way license, set back at least 1 foot from the curb, maintaining 4 feet of unobstructed pedestrian clearance, and a 20-foot minimum separation between A-frame signs to avoid concentration.

Jeff Current gave project updates: the barbecue venue’s permit drawings were in review and a mid‑March groundbreaking was planned; Jefferson House moved back into design development with an updated schematic and an anticipated April permit submittal. Staff said both projects are on budget and on schedule, with the barbecue venue sized at about 4,800 interior square feet and 1,500 square feet of covered outdoor dining.

Councilmember questions touched on design uniformity and compatibility with downtown design guidelines; staff said guidelines and updated development standards would guide architectural materials, colors and scale and that the code changes had been vetted through multiple public outreach steps, including a Dec. 5 Planning and Zoning Commission hearing. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval 5–0.

Formal action: Council adopted Ordinance 2025-01 (docketed as item 16R) implementing the downtown code and sign changes and approved proceeding with the city-led projects. Staff said the broader downtown entitlement effort will continue and that construction for a City Hall front-yard improvement and other infrastructure work is planned to begin in summer.

What to watch: staff expects to return with a complete zoning case for approximately 6,700 acres of the Peoria Innovation Core within about a year, and to mobilize construction of selected infrastructure projects in July. The Jefferson House will provide small incubator retail and restaurant spaces and a public plaza intended to attract foot traffic to the core commercial streets.

Sources: presentation and materials from Planning Director Chris Hawkes and Engineering Services Director Jeff Current; Planning and Zoning Commission recommendation.