Journal Star reporter Christina Avery covers breaking news and trending topics throughout the Peoria area.

* Peoria-area businesses and residents are facing energy bill spikes of around 20% due to a summer rate increase by Ameren.

* Local restaurant owners are struggling to cover the higher costs, with some seeing their monthly bills double.

* Ameren has stated that the rate increase is due to supply costs and that rates are set to decrease on October 1.

PEORIA -- When Heather Wolbeck opened her most recent energy bill, she was shocked.

As the owner of The Queen of Squash on Glen Avenue, Wolbeck, like many Peorians, has spent the last two years using Ameren to power her restaurant. While a typical bill might run her around $1,500, Wolbeck put out a call for support after her July bill came in at around $3,054.

"My bill was double what it is normally," Wolbeck told the Journal Star in an email. "My personal money is still paying a large percentage of our overhead which includes utilities."

With summer temperatures blazing, residents and businesses around the Peoria area have seen their dues soar in recent months. Energy bills have spiked around 20% for Peorians, the Journal Star previously reported, after Ameren raised rates for the summer season from 8.2 cents per kilowatt hour to 12.8 cents per kilowatt hour.

Combined with widespread rising costs of living and changes in federal energy policy, the increases have left some, like Wolbeck, struggling to make ends meet and uncertain for the future.

While Ameren told the Journal Star rates are set to decrease back to the 8.2 cent baseline Oct. 1, restaurants in Peoria are already struggling to cope with the current bills. Wolbeck said she is extremely worried about the local community, especially after the recent closures of several local restaurants.

"It takes years for a new restaurant to get out of the red," she wrote. "Every month, I pray we are going to make it."

A cycle of difficulty

For Wolbeck, the increase in her bill was another burden on top of an already-challenging 48 hours. The day before she received the bill, the restaurant's main line refrigerated preparation table failed, costing her $6,000 to replace and leaving her with a combined $9,000 of unexpected expenses. Wolbeck said she called the City of Peoria for help funding repairs to the prep table, but was told no funding was available.

"We are the only restaurant option for many citizens and travelers with special diets," she said. "My house and other personal assets are held as collateral, so it is stressful."

To cope with the spike, Wolbeck has been reducing expenses and labor costs where she can, scouring vendors weekly to find the best costs per ounce or pound of food. Due to grocery costs, Wolbeck said, she had already been increasing prices on some entrees, and will be initiating the new prices soon.

She said she has also met with another energy company, and hopes to switch over to a new provider by October.

Wolbeck said she feels Illinois' change in energy policy was too aggressive, and thinks the state closed too many coal power plants too quickly. She pointed out corporations can "easily absorb" the higher costs, but families and small businesses have the smallest budgets and are noticeably affected.

"It just creates a negative economic cycle for our local community," she wrote. "If families are paying double for energy, they have less disposable income to go out to eat, see movies, concerts ... Our community is more vibrant with a variety of independently owned restaurants and small businesses."

Rates will decrease soon, Ameren says. Will they increase next year?

Ellie Leonard, an Ameren public relations strategist in Springfield, said the company takes seriously the impact the increases have on customers.

"We know customers are in challenging and tough times," Leonard said. "No one wants to see rising bills, rising costs so we want to try to help our customers in any way we can."

Leonard said Ameren is aware of concerns around the rates, and the company is planning to take rates back down to around 8.2 cents per kilowatt hour starting Oct. 1. In Peoria, however, the decrease will only apply to residents who have opted out of the city's municipal electric aggregation program with Homefield Energy.

Customers can look at the "electric supply" portion of their bill to discern whether their charges are coming from the aggregate Homefield Energy program or from Ameren's default program.

"If businesses are looking to lower their bills, they're going to want to see who is their supplier," Leonard said.

Ameren offers energy efficiency and cost-lowering programs to customers, including equipment upgrades and incentives, and plans to hold a business symposium in Springfield in October where businesses can learn more about energy efficiency.

As far as exactly what is driving the uptick, Leonard noted Ameren is an energy deliverer that owns the wires, not a supplier, meaning Ameren does not control supply increases due to a tight demand ratio. However, Ameren's vice president of regulatory policy and energy supply did not deny during a recent city council meeting Ameren has increased rates of energy delivery, too.

"We are not profiting from this rate increase," Leonard said.

It is hard to know at this point, she said, whether Ameren will increase rates similarly during the summer in 2026 and beyond.

"No one wants to see that take place," she said. "Ultimately we're here to help, so if you have questions about your bill or are looking for ways to decrease costs, definitely reach out to us."

'No way to really recoup'

At The Fox Pub & Cafe, just a few miles away from Wolbeck, owner Matt Rixner is also struggling with at least a 50% increase from past energy bills.

"Normally, we're $1,500 to $1,800 a month," he said, "and they've been closer (recently) to $2,500 or something. To have an extra 50% increase on that, when margins in restaurants are so low and they're lower than they've ever been, it's tough."

Where Wolbeck is already planning a price raise in her restaurant, Rixner said he is more hesitant, hanging in the delicate balance between bringing in enough profit to cover operation costs while not pricing out customers who are also struggling. Since Ameren raised prices, he said, The Fox has not seen as many diners as usual.

"Our prices aren't where they should be, but we can't raise them any more because people just won't come," he said. "I want people to come in and still feel like they're getting a value for coming out, but also it's pretty much just eating the cost at this point. ... there's no way to really recoup that."

Rixner said he and his wife used to go out to eat three or four times a week to support local businesses, but have also cut back.

"When they can go to the grocery store, and when people don't have money, it's an easy thing to cut out going to a restaurant," he said. "I get it. They have less money than they did. Their residential bills are higher."

In addition to working with an energy broker, Rixner said he put in new thermostats he can control from his phone to ensure heating and cooling systems are running efficiently. Rixner said he is looking forward to fall and winter, when rates are lowest each year due to the colder weather.

Rixner said The Fox will raise prices or cut hours if he has to, but hopes it won't come to that.

"You don't want to skimp on quality or else there's no point in even being in business," he said. "It's tough because the goal is also to deliver quality service."

With energy rates and high food costs, Rixner said, the past 1.5 years have been the hardest he has experienced in the restaurant business thus far. He said he understands the hardships many people are facing, but asks anyone with a few extra dollars to use it to support small businesses and restaurants who need it more than ever.

"It feels like a survival game at this point," Rixner said, "and I don't know that I've ever said that before."