The road to being a high-tech center has had its twists and turns in central Illinois.
The Peoria NEXT consortium made up of engineers and other tech types from area resources such as Caterpillar Inc., universities, hospitals and government agencies such as the Peoria Ag Lab was greeted with great fanfare back in 2001.
Richard Florida, author of “The Rise of the Creative Class,” came to town in 2004, drawing more than 1,000 people to a forum on creativity at the Peoria Civic Center.
The Peoria NEXT Innovation Center opened at 801 W. Main St. in 2007, not only providing an incubator for startup businesses but a high-tech symbol for central Illinois.