A Peoria landmark for the past 40 years, a 160-room hotel originally known as Jumer’s Castle Lodge, 117 N. Western Ave., will soon be transformed into an upscale, supportive living center for senior citizens.

Petersen Health Care, 830 W. Trailcreek Dr., Peoria, purchased the former site of Jumer’s Castle Lodge, also known as Peoria Castle Lodge, in November.

A company that operates assisted living and independent living facilities in Illinois and Iowa, Petersen Health Care, plans to develop Courtyard Estates of Peoria on the former hotel site.

Following a $7 million renovation of the former hotel site, Courtyard Estates of Peoria will open in the spring of 2011, offering a 104-unit apartment facility to the senior citizen community. The senior citizen living facility will include both independent housing and assisted living options.

According to the Petersen Health Care website, www.courtyardestates.net, residents of the Courtyard Estates of Peoria can "enjoy affordable luxury amenities such as a beauty parlor, fireplace room, ice cream parlor, cable television, daily activities and more." The website also stated that three-home cooked meals will be prepared daily for its residents, and weekly housekeeping services, laundry and a 24-hour emergency call system will also be available for those living in the facility.

The construction involved in transforming the former hotel site into Courtyard Estates of Peoria will begin in January, said Pete Mangieri, owner of Mangieri Companies, Inc., the company in charge of renovating the facility.

"(We’re) starting the first of January and finishing up the middle to the end of May," said Mangieri.

According to Mangieri, the actual construction involved in the renovation of the facility "is not as big a job as a lot of people thought it would be."

"It’s really only a $2.5-3 million construction project," said Mangieri. "We’re not doing much in there at all. We’re just replacing windows, changing door sizes from 30" doors to 36" doors, putting new finishes in the bathrooms, new showers and those types of things.

"The wall stays the same, the paint stays the same, the trim, carpeting, all that stuff — it just really stays the same. There’s nothing wrong with the hotel rooms at all. We’re just getting them modified for supportive living."

Also part of the renovations, the indoor pool in the facility will be filled to make room for a dinning hall.

Currently, Mangieri Companies, Inc. is trying to obtain a building permit from the City of Peoria, so they can start the renovations.

"We’re trying to get someone over there in the next couple of weeks to do a little demolition work, but we’ve got to get the clearance from the city," said Mangieri.

During a December 2 meeting, the Peoria Zoning Commission unanimously recommended Peoria City Council approve a zoning change at the site and allowed Petersen Health Care to request several waivers of the city’s land development code, including a request to plant a tree in front of the property and a request for the city to help pay for a sidewalk along Manor Parkway. Peoria City Council is scheduled to vote on the commission’s recommendation this week.

In 1970, James Jumer built the Jumer’s Castle Lodge on the site of Kramer’s Drive-In. He later went on to open a chain of five hotels in Illinois and Iowa. Jumer’s regional hotel chain filed for bankruptcy, in 1999. In 2004, Jumer’s went through a $3.5 renovation and became a part of the Radisson hotel chain. A drop in business forced its owners to drop its affiliation with Radisson, in early 2009. The hotel closed a year ago.

The hotel was known for its castle-like Bavarian architecture, German-style restaurant and collection of antiques and artifacts.