Ved Pal points out some of the features on the third floor of the new Moline Banquet & Conference Center in downtown Moline. The center is located in the historic Leedy Building, 1530 5th Ave. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Ved Pal said he couldn’t be happier. The area businessman pointed out some of the many features on the third floor of the renovated Leedy Building, located at 1530 5th Ave., Moline. “I’m just so happy today with everything in here,” said Mr. Pal, who along with his wife, Babli Saini, are owners of the […]
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Ved Pal said he couldn’t be happier.The area businessman pointed out some of the many features on the third floor of the renovated Leedy Building, located at 1530 5th Ave., Moline.“I’m just so happy today with everything in here,” said Mr. Pal, who along with his wife, Babli Saini, are owners of the building.Area residents got to see sections of the renovated building during a soft opening celebration Saturday, May 17. The building’s second and third floors are reopening as the new Moline Banquet & Conference Center, which will also be known as the Moline Club. The three-story building (with about 7,000 square feet per floor) will host events, meetings and gatherings on the upper two floors. The first floor will have four units available for retail space.
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The Ved Pal and Babli Saini family hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday, May 17, for the renovated Leedy Building, located at 1530 5th Ave., Moline. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
This piano sits in the corner of the new Moline Banquet & Conference Center in downtown Moline. The center is located on the second and third floors of the historic Leedy Building, 1530 5th Ave. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
The third floor of the newly opened Moline Banquet & Conference Center in downtown Moline was set up and decorated for a reception Saturday, May 17. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
The Leedy Building is located at 1530 Fifth Ave., Moline. The top two stories of the building are becoming the new Moline Banquet and Conference Center. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Priyanka Saini is shown near the large oak fireplace on the historic Leedy Building’s second floor in downtown Moline. That renovated building soon will get a new life as an event and banquet center with room for tenant businesses on the first floor. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
This Fannie May store sign is still in a first floor window of the Leedy Building. The candy company was located in the building for many years. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
The second floor event area still has the large oak fireplace and historic wood trim.
This large, grand chandelier is one of the features inside the building.
During last weekend’s soft opening, visitors got to see the third floor, which was set up for a reception event. It was decorated with about 20 tables decked out in white and blue decorations and set up for the Sunday party. The floor also includes a large piano in the corner, a grand chandelier and the dining area serving lunch to visitors.Two of those visitors were Jared Dick and Shirisha Bhosale of East Moline. The couple is set to get married on July 26. A few months ago, they looked over the new banquet center while it was a work in progress. They eventually decided to hold their wedding reception at a different location, but wanted to stop by for the soft opening and get a look at the finished product. They liked what they saw.“It’s really a beautiful place. … I love it here. Just look at all this light coming in,” Ms. Bhosale said as she pointed out the large windows letting in all that light on the third floor.Many other visitors also liked what they saw in the renovated and historic building. Priyanka Saini, Mr. Pal’s daughter who now is managing the new Moline Banquet & Conference Center portion of the building, said Saturday that she has been busy booking events for the center. Many of those events are wedding receptions scheduled for next year.During the grand opening, members of the Saini family also held a brief ribbon-cutting ceremony on the first floor to welcome the reopening of the renovated Leedy Building.However, most of the focus centered on the decorated third floor with its large windows and many other features. Calling the space beautiful, Mr. Pal remembered a time when the floor and the entire building was a mess.The family bought the building in 2018. They spent a lot of money, time and tears renovating the structure, and then disaster hit. On Sept. 10, 2019, a fire heavily damaged the Leedy Building. The fire was so large that fire departments from surrounding communities were called in to battle the blaze, and 10,000 gallons of water were used to put out the fire, Ms. Saini said.“We had to start again with this building. … There was a lot of frustrations,” said Mr. Pal.He added the latest renovation was very expensive, but declined to give a price for the massive work.Several visitors at the soft opening commented on all the work that went into the building. They also said the building brought back a lot of memories. Some of those focused on the former Fannie May candy store once housed on the first floor. Other memories focused on the many events, dances and gatherings that were held on the top two stories of the building.“This building has history. … Everybody I talked to wants to come back here,” Ms. Saini told the Quad Cities Regional Business Journal in an earlier interview.The history surrounding the three-story Leedy Building goes back more than 100 years. It was built in 1912 for the Moline Commercial Club, a men's organization founded in 1895 by Charles Deere, the son of John Deere. The building served as the YWCA from 1927-1978, and Fannie May Candies was a longtime fixture in the corner street-level space. Sundeen Clothing Co. was also an original tenant.“The Leedy Building has historical significance, not only because of its age, but also because of the people associated with its origins. … Like the Reliance Building near it, the Leedy Building was among the first structures in Moline built with fire-proof construction,” said Moline Centre Program Manager Kirk Marske. “The building was also home to the Moline Commercial Club … which operated like chambers of commerce of today.” Ms. Saini said she respects the history of the Leedy Building, but also wants to focus on its future. Part of that future will be attracting people and groups to revisit the building and schedule events in the new conference center. For more information, contact Ms. Saini at (309) 506-1230 or email her at [email protected].
