State Rep. Ryan Spain recently attended a special program hosted by the Peoria Historical Society at the Pettengill-Morron House Museum to relive the history of the iconic Block & Kuhl department store. Spain, who also works for OSF Healthcare, spoke about the efforts of OSF to refurbish and renovate the famous Block & Kuhl Building, which was awarded a Richard H. Driehaus Foundation National Preservation Award in 2023.
From the National Trust for Historic Preservation: In the heart of downtown Peoria, Illinois, stood the former Block and Kuhl building, also known as “The Big White Store” for its seven radiant stories of white glazed terra cotta. Since opening in 1905, the city’s first steel-framed structure weathered decades of neglect and disrepair—until OSF HealthCare intervened in 2018.
For the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, the owners of OSF HealthCare, restoring the dilapidated building into a new headquarters that could accommodate more than 700 employees also meant revitalizing the downtown economy. Thus began a $150 million transformation project, led by preservation architects JLK and architecture firm Dewberry, to redevelop the 275,865-square-foot space.
For more about the Block & Kuhl Building – Click Here.