Will County News

T he Illinois Department of Transportation is holding a public meeting on Tuesday, November 10, 2015 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Stone City V.F.W. in Joliet, Illinois on IDOT's Phase I Study to address safety and operations along IL-53. Specifically, IDOT is studying the stretch of 53 from Rt. 52 (Doris Avenue near Nowell Park) to West Arsenal Road in Wilmington. The purpose of the meeting is for IDOT to " obtain public input on the transportation issues in the study area, describe the project development process, and provide information on additional public involvement opportunities "  according to the Illinois Route 53 Study Website .

At a June 17, 2015 of the Elwood International Port Authority, Salvatore Di Bernardo, Executive Vice President of Ciorba Group, Consulting Engineers, gave a presentation on a Houbolt Road Bridge over the Des Plaines River.  After the presentation, audience members working in the logistics and rail industries in Will County and Village of Elwood officials discussed how a potential Houbolt Road Bridge might affect truck traffic in Will County:

Will County is inviting citizens to share their thoughts on the county's transportation future. Will County is creating a long-range transportation plan--Will Connects 2040-- which will delineate how the county will use transportation resources. Will County gained population during the housing boom.  Furthermore, Will County is home to two intermodals that together comprise the largest inland port in North America.  At the open house, the public will be able to provide input on how to prioritize solutions to the increased traffic. The dates and times of the open houses are: April 28, 4-7pm Joliet Junior College 1215 Houbolt Road Concourse C*1031 Joliet, IL 60431 April 29,4-7pm Wilmington City Hall Council Chambers 1165 S. Water Street Wilmington, IL 60481 May 5, 4-7pm New Lenox Village Hall Community Room 1 Veterans Parkway New Lenox, IL 60451 May 12, 4-7pm Governors State University Hall of Honors One University Parkway University Park, IL...

By Ann Baskerville According to the Illinois Department of Transportation's South Suburban Airport Land Acquisition webpage , Loyola University Chicago has sold 90.72 acres to the State of Illinois for the Peotone Airport.  The parcel is located at Egyptian Trail and West Eagle Lake Road and was sold for $900,000. The land was donated to Loyola by the late Mary and Anthony Rudis , well-known conservationists and airport opponents who were some of the largest landowners in the Airport Footprint.  As this 2004 Chicago Tribune article discusses, Mr. and Mrs. Rudis donated the land without restrictions on its use. Will County News contacted Loyola for comment on the decision to sell the land and received the following response from Steve Christensen, Communications Director for Loyola: "When the University was originally notified of this bequest, we considered using the land for an ecology station. Since that time, the University acquired nearly 100 acres in Woodstock, Illi...

Public hearings on the Illiana Corridor Project Tier Two Draft Environmental Impact Statement are scheduled for: Tuesday, February, 18, 2014 5:00--8:00 p.m. Lowell Middle School 19250 Cline Avenue Lowell, Indiana 46356 Wednesday, February 19, 2014 5:00--8:00 p.m. Local 150 Training Facilities 19800 West Arsenal Road Wilmington, IL 60481 If the event in Lowell is cancelled due to the Town of Lowell school closings, the alternate date will be March 5, 2014, an will be held at Hebron High School--509 S. Main Street, Hebron, Indiana 46341. If the event in Wilmington is cancelled due to Wilmington schools closing, the alternate date will be March 6, 2014 and the hearing will still be held at the Local 150 Training Facility. According to the Illiana Study Team: "The Tier Two Draft EIS is a compilation of stakeholder outreach and comprehensive information about the project's purpose and need, proposed plans and alternatives, and potential effects on environmental re...

CMAP--The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning--has released public comment CMAP received regarding the proposed Illiana Expressway. CMAP received 965 comments on the Illiana.  169 comments supported including the Illiana Expressway in CMAP's GOTO2040 plan.  796 comments were opposed to the Illiana Expressway being included by CMAP in the GOTO2040 plan. Read all public comments submitted to CMAP here (this is a large document and will take a few minutes to load).

According to the group No Illiana For Us, representatives from the Illinois Department of Transportation and consultants working on the Illiana Corridor Study will attend the Tuesday, August 6 Will Township Board meeting at 7 p.m..  The Will Township building is located at 30317 South Will-Center Road in Peotone.

Can the Illinois Department of Transportation use eminent domain to force landowners to sell their land to the State for the Peotone Airport?  That question will come before a judge in Will County Court tomorrow, February 26, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. in Joliet, Illinois.   The Illinois Department of Transportation's  right to use eminent domain at Peotone prior to an FAA record of decision is being challenged in Will County court by a Chicago law firm, Ryan and Ryan.   Ryan and Ryan are representing Carolyn and Richard Barbour, landowners in the proposed airport's footprint.  The lawsuit argues the State does not have the right to use eminent domain to gain ownership of the Barbour's land because IDOT has not received Federal Aviation Administration "FAA" approval to create and construct the Peotone Airport.   Susan Shea, Director of Aeronautics for IDOT, will be required to testify. For more on the "Peotone Airport", visit Peotone Airport News .