Galesburg soon will be home to one of the largest retail liquor stores in downstate Illinois.
Northern Illinois-based chain Liquor ‘n’ Wine says it expects to open its ninth store as soon as Thanksgiving at 1576 N. Henderson St., the former site of Northgate Lanes bowling center.
Original plans called for the complete demolition of the former bowling alley and attached restaurant, however Liquor ’n’ Wine president and CEO Manish Patel said they found the building to be structurally sound, so they will use the frame for its new facility.
Patel said, “The plan was to demolish it and bring it to the ground, but we realized the quality of the structure is a lot better than current materials. So, we’re keeping the bare bones skeleton.”
The new store will be about 40,000 square feet, 10,000 square feet larger than originally planned. It will allow for increased retail space and more room for an event room available for rent to the public. Plans also call for the facility to have a bar and gaming area, along with an outdoor patio.
Patel said, “There will be no liquor store this large within 150 miles of Galesburg. There are a couple of bigger liquor stores in the Chicagoland area, but this will be bigger than anything in Peoria or the Quad Cities.”
Due to keeping the existing structure, Patel said they will no longer develop outlets for other retail stores on the site.
Liquor ‘n’ Wine currently has locations in St. Charles, Rochelle, Geneva, Dixon, Genoa, Ottawa, Sterling and Pontiac.
Northgate Lanes opened in 1958 and the 40-lane bowling facility closed in August 2019.
