Gay History of Peoria
I talked to a friend and former owner of the Club Peorian, Roger Heim. By far the most identified gay establishment in Peoria and the largest dance/show lounge, the Club opened in 1976, and was burned to the ground on December 14, 1994, by arson. The club was originally an old hotel. In the 40's it was a live club with rock and roll and country and western music and re-incarnated in the mid 70's as a gay bar. Prior to the Club, there was the Quench room on main Street in the early 60's, this ominous tavern just blocks from Bradley University was the longest lived gay bar in Peoria's history, up until the late 1990's changing over to a straight bar. One of the first official gay bars also was the Mail Box. It opened in the mid 70's under the name Aunt Charlie's, and soon changed its name to The Mail Box with a 50 cent cover charge. After that came "The Talk of The Town" in the late 60's early 70's The Puff Lounge in the 80's straight during the day with a clientele of mostly lawyers and businessmen and after 10pm the gays took over. Today Peoria has just lost a longstanding club; "The Red Fox Den" to local renovations, but there is still things to do and places to go.

Well, if it will play in Peoria, it will play anywhere and by now I bet you think you know everything there is to know about Central Illinois but hold on to your hats, there is more. Peoria was a gambling Mecca in the 20's until the prohibition hit and then with the river trade, some bars and clubs were able to tunnel in liquor via the river for gambling establishments. Yes, Peoria was full of booze, gambling and hookers. Some folks say not a lot has changed.

Visions Video Bar
Before Visions, the owner, Todd Scholl opened a full scale dance bar called DV8, several blocks from where he is now. Because of its location and the straight peoples desire to populate it, Todd decided to relocate and open a smaller venue for his gay clientele and that is how his vision became Visions. This video bar is located at 629 Main Street in downtown Peoria, the only gay bar in the downtown area. Peoria is renovating and expanding rapidly and because of that expansion, Visions is one of the last downtown bars to have an outdoor beer garden.

When you walk into Visions, the walls are filled with 24" television monitors and behind the bar is one of the biggest projection screens I have seen outside of a theater. You will hear the latest in dance, techno and hip-hop music videos. A lighted dance floor enhances the experience as well as "The Anita Mann Show" every Thursday night, free internet access DJ Michael Laumacher from "C"Street in Champaign, IL on Fridays and DJKC on Saturdays.

Robyn, Visions manager takes pride in keeping things fresh and loves a party! So much so, that every month she throws a theme party. From Studio 54 to the Rodeo, and the 80'retro theme to Men in Uniform, there should be something at Visions that will float your boat. So when you are in Peoria, take a little time to play with the staff at Visions.

Among some of the more interesting things to do in the Peoria area, there is an original paddle wheel boat that still takes passengers on excursions up and down the Illinois River. You can hear the calliope playing songs from days gone by as traffic zooms across the modern expansion bridges.

Par-A Dice Casino
Another modern spectacle with an old fashioned gimmick is the Par-a-dice Hotel and Casino. The Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino was verified as having the Loosest Quarter Slots in the state of Illinois! Visit Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino and enjoy Quarter Slot Games such as Super Stars Spin, Cleopatra, Freedom Stars, Five Times Pay, Triple Lucky Seven and more! Don't forget to play everyone's favorite machine - Double Diamond!

Over one hundred $1 slot machines at Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino have been verified as having an average hold percentage looser than the published average dollar slot hold percentages of all other casinos in the state. Only at Par-A-Dice can you get...More Hollar for Your Dollar! More Sizzle for Your Single! More Thrill for Your Bill!

Whether you're a serious gambler or just a pleasure seeker looking for a unique entertainment experience, Par-A-Dice has what you're looking for. Try your luck at blackjack, roulette, craps, Caribbean Stud Poker and Three Card Poker. Right now at Par-A-Dice, the jackpot for Caribbean Stud Poker is at $30,273.18!

The casino is located along side the Hotel on the east side of the Illinois River and it is open dockside daily from 10:00 AM until 6:00 AM. As a dockside facility, you are free to board the casino at any time and admission is always free. As a matter of fact, every Tuesday is men's day all day. All men will receive a 25% discount in the Par-A-Dice Island Buffet, a 15% discount in the gift shop, and free valet parking from 9:30am to 3:30pm. So come on down to Peoria boys and drop come coins!

The Peoria Civic Center
The Peoria Civic Center is located in the heart of downtown Peoria, next to historic City Hall. Within walking distance of nightclubs, major hotels, fine restaurants and entertainment, including the river front, the Civic Center is convenient to major Peoria Area attractions. It is the cornerstone of entertainment and convention activities in the Peoria Area, offering an Arena, Theater, Exhibition Hall and Meeting and Banquet space. Peoria's central Illinois location and its friendly Midwestern atmosphere attract clientele looking for first-class facilities at reasonable rates.

As the premier entertainment facility in downstate Illinois, the Civic Center Arena plays host to a variety of concerts, family shows and sporting events each year. Locally, the Peoria Rivermen, an ECHL team, and the Bradley University Braves basketball team call the Arena home. Arena bookings go beyond entertainment to include conventions and trade shows of many types.
For more information on planning your convention, meeting or event in the Peoria area, call the Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Convention Sales Department at 1-800-747-0302.

Peoria Groups and Organizations

Peoria ArtsPartners
ArtsPartners of Central Illinois promotes non-profit arts organizations of the Peoria region to members of the community and to visitors, and to increase the vitality of arts and culture in the area.
ArtsPartners develops and implements community-wide arts marketing activities; by facilitating collaborations among the arts organizations; by creating and nurturing partnerships with the business community, the media, local agencies and educational institutions; and by offering professional development seminars to the arts community.

During the past year ArtsPartners has promoted the arts as a vital component of the Peoria area's cultural development. Some of their past accomplishments in clued the Welcome To Peoria signs at twelve entrances to the city. New street banners, 60 of them saying: Discover Peoria Arts in Music, Dance, Drama and Exhibits, that complemented the Discover Peoria theme in several of the new Welcome Signs. In addition to the beautification of the community, Artspartners published and promoted an economic piece, The Arts As Big Business, based on a Bradley University study that indicated the arts contribute over $35.2 million dollars a year to the local area economy.

ArtsPartners is going strong and plans to do many things in 2005. they will continue to enhance the visibility and image of Peoria arts, further develop the relationships and programs of the media, Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Chamber of Commerce, library, schools and other groups and agencies that can be instrumental in helping promote the arts.

Peoria Friends of PWA's
Retired Executive director Frank Bauer took some time and gave me some insight as to the history of the largest HIV/AIDS organization in Peoria. His story started out like this. "In 1989 a young man came back from NY infected with HIV and talked to the Health dept. in Peoria. Out of these conversations came the organization known today as Friends. In June of 1990 the organization was formed and in Sept, 1990 they received their 501C3 not for profit status. Mary Nash was the first part-time administrator when they moved into the Methodist medical facilities in 1992 and have been their guests ever since. The intent in the beginning was that no one would ever die alone; they could always have company, help with house cleaning, go to the store, and be a helpful force and not a judgmental force. Avoiding stressful circumstances such as disconnection notices and eviction notices are taken care of by Friends and this is all done by the extraordinary group of people who continue raise money by grass roots fund raising.

Friends represent an 11 county area in Central Illinois. With the federal and state cuts, we are funded 46% by the Ryan White Fund, and 4% by the United Way. The other 50% for operations are by fundraising, such as "Dining with Friends" and ongoing fundraiser for us is BINGO on Thursday nights with big, big prizes. We have contacted the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus for a spring fundraiser. Our annual J. Martin Sills award dinner, "Celebration - A gift of life" offers us way of funding and Methodist Hospital donates office space. Worlds AIDS day, we will have a collaborative with minority AIDS council Illinois HIV/Aids Clinic at UIC and Peoria Co. Health Clinic Friends, and we are also planning a gift giving for wills and trusts in addition to a membership drive. Currently we are doing a feasibility study on housing for HIV patients, men's daycare. For more information, visit us at our website www.friendsofpwa.org

DNA
Differently Normal Association is a not for profit organization benefiting and advancing the GLBTQA community of Central Illinois by organizing and promoting diverse social events, providing networking opportunities and cultivating public awareness and understanding.

DNA's two annual events are being organized with the diversity of our community in mind. Spring Fling is a more causal concert like atmosphere including live music and entertainment, while Fall Ball is a formal dinner and dance catering to those who like to get dressed up and have a grand time. Our goal is to provide one if not more events that appeal to everyone. As Spring Fling motivated us to add Fall Ball we anticipate more events to follow for example art shows or pride events...the wheels are spinning and your input is essential.

We look forward to serving our community and only with your support will we succeed. Let's make Peoria and the surrounding areas a great place to be and unite with pride.
http://www.differentlynormal.org