Thank You!

A BIG thank you to everyone who stopped by our table at Railroad Days or attended the 9th Ward Community Meeting last week!

We were so excited to see all of you, and appreciate you for taking time to bring your questions, ideas, and energy to this wonderful project.

9th Ward Community Meeting Recap: July 29, 2026

What We Shared:

• Hotel Florence and Annex are being turned into a 50-room boutique hotel with restaurants, amenities, and bars; and the Front Erecting Shop into an event venue focused on youth and artist development programming.

• This project is a partnership between Celadon, a local developer, and the State of Illinois through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the owner of the Hotel and grounds.

• Our team is in the middle of the design process, focused on a construction start of March 2027.

• The project will be a 100% historic restoration, in conjunction with the State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service.

Some Things We Heard:

• Historic preservation and emulating the time period of the architecture is a baseline.

• Hotel Florence is an icon in the neighborhood and keeping that character is important to the community!

• People want connection to this history through education, grabbing drinks, attending a show, or visiting family members.

• One person recommended haunted house tours! Spooky!

Follow Along & Share Widely!

We know there will be things to figure out: parking, public access to historic spaces, all the way down to the brunch menu.

We'll share periodic updates on the progress through other public meetings, email blurbs like this one, and social media posts via Facebook and Instagram.

If you have a community group you'd like us to speak at or hear from, please reach out at hello@farrside.com. Please share with your friends and neighbors. 🫶

With thanks from the Farrside, Celadon, and our design partners!