Hamilton journal news
Nurtured into new life
Tammy Mitchell sat on the parquet floor of the yoga studio, trimming a flourishing fern plant as soft music played in the background.
In another office, Adam Lontai sat at his desk while working on an architectural plan. From there he can look out the windows and draw inspiration from the kaleidoscope of autumn leaves that are part of the landscape.
Both Mitchell and Lontai are in the Woodridge Professional Building, 2619 Heading Ave., formerly the Crittenton Center. It was built in the 1930s as a retreat for young unmarried women with babies.
Today the building and its five acres of woodland continue to offer repose and inspire creativity to those who prefer a place of work without the distractions of traffic and other trappings of daily life.
“This is not a place where just anybody would come and set up an office,” said Barb Kerns, vice president and co-owner of the Bailey Group Inc. She and her husband, Dan Kerns, took over the building in 2004. “This is a niche, and as you can see from our tenants, it’s ideal for certain types of professions.”
Barbra Kerns is a media specialist at Bradley University, and Dan Kerns teaches at Richwoods High School. So all their work on the 18,500-square-foot brick building with 18-inch thick walls, 50 rooms, 13 restrooms, seven showers and three tubs, had to be done outside of office hours.
In addition to replacing and adding walls and more than 50 window panes, the couple installed geothermal heating and added a back patio and circle landscaping. A pergola and two pieces of sculpture stand at the front of the grounds.
The building was designed by Peoria architect Frank Emerson to house the young women and their babies and adequately provide for their care. The dormitories have been converted into office space, the size of which varies according to the needs of the tenants.
“We have been all over the place in Peoria, and we love it here,” said Tammy Mitchell, co-owner of Heading Om Yoga Studio with Lisa Zell, describing their various locations. “This is the perfect place for us.”
Lontai, the building’s first tenant, said the location is ideal for him: “I like the place and the convenience. It’s a nice walk from home.”
The tenants also include licensed massage therapists Connie Abraham and Mary Willi, and an artist.
The building is part of West Peoria’s tax increment financing (TIF) district, which also includes Western Avenue around what is now the Radisson Hotel, and the area around Rohmann and Heading avenues, including Haddad’s.
“The Radisson was going to be the first (building) in the TIF district, but they changed hands,” said West Peoria Mayor Jim Dillon. “The Kernses are the first to get in as a TIF. They’ve done a beautiful job with the building, and we encourage people to go look at it and consider it for office space.”
Dillon said the building is a perfect example how a TIF can be used.
“This is what the TIF is all about - taking an old building and making it useful. It was unique because the Crittenton Center IT never paid any taxes, as a not-for-profit.”
Catharine Schaidle can be reached at 686-3290 or cschaidle@pjstar.com.
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if there was ever any doubt that specific interests owned congress, it evaporated this week. with the buy out of the awful debts of the corporate good daddies of wall boulevard, congress showed its true nature. it practices the oldest profession on earth. this was exactly the type of crap that motivated caligula when he made the roman senate a whore house centuries ago.towards those of you that may have forgotten it was legitimate three years ago that our congress passed the bankruptcy abuse prevention and consumer guard act of 2005 . this take was passed at the behest of the same banking community that right now wants you the american taxpayer to buy its own bad debts and insolvancy. how ironic. 
opponents of that bill regularly pointed out that the banking industry spent more than $100 million lobbying it. i guess this congress only demands that down consumers act responsibily and not our pitiful enrage fail street interest daddies. perchance the ceos of these corporations who be suffering with not acted responsibly should be required to take classes in financial responsibility get pleasure from the victims of our new bankruptcy act. and congress if you are prosperous to deception like whores lets suppose it bona fide.
