THE WORKING CONCEPT

Click here to view an overview of the entire site. To view images, click here.

The Woodford Center for History and the Arts will be established in the old Libby Canning Factory site in Eureka, Illinois, the county seat of Woodford County, Illinois. The vision for The Woodford Center for History and the Arts includes the following components:

§ A Museum (8,000 sq. ft)

§ An Art Gallery (2,200 sq. ft.)

§ A Restaurant (8,000 sq. ft)

§ The Welcome Center – (roughly 2,000 sq. ft.)

§ Meeting Room/Classroom/Seminar Space (roughly 2,000 sq. ft.)

§ Retail Space with a Coffee Shop (18,200 sq. ft.)

§ A Courtyard (7,200 sq. ft.) – adjacent to the Restaurant and the Art Gallery

§ Additional “green space” for landscape gardens, sculpture, and fountains.

The potential cultural impact of The Woodford Center for History and the Arts on the area that it will serve is phenomenal. A rural county of central Illinois, Woodford County has a population of 35,000 residents, and Eureka, the county seat, boasts a population of 4,800 residents. The facility may well draw national attention to the community as it brings people back to the historic factory site that once helped give economic life to the town and county.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

Communities across America are starting to realize the financial benefits that they can accrue through the wise use of heritage tourism as an economic development initiative. The various components of The Woodford Center for History and the Arts will capitalize upon the historic location where they are housed and will tell the history of the canning factory, the history of the town of Eureka, the history of Woodford County, as well as the history of central Illinois, in general. With proper marketing, the site can become a regular stop on the many tour-bus lines that bring visitors through central Illinois communities every day.

Both the city of Eureka and Woodford County will benefit from an increase in sales tax revenues as the retail space, the coffee shop, and the restaurant will generate new revenues that will certainly stimulate the local economy. It is likely that visitors who patronize these sites will also spend both time and additional dollars at other business enterprises throughout the county. In addition to the tax revenues that will be generated by the site, there will be many new jobs established within the community once all of the components of The Woodford Center for History and the Arts are established.

It is also likely that the renovation and beautification of the abandoned canning factory site will also enhance the value of adjacent residential properties. In addition to benefiting the homeowners, the increase in property valuation will also directly benefit the town of Eureka.

The creation of additional parking spaces in the area of downtown Eureka will also have a positive impact upon other businesses in the area whose patrons will likely utilize the parking offered by the WCHA. Several other businesses locations are within an easy walking distance of the WCHA site.

Return to Main Page