November 12, 2024
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Joliet to use $3.5 million from state to help neighborhoods under I-80 bridges

City Council to vote on planning contract for use of state funds

By Bob Okon
The state has provided $3.5 million for neighborhood improvements in the area below the Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River in Joliet. The bridges will be replaced, and the state has acquired 80 properties needed for construction. Oct. 23, 3024

The state has provided $3.5 million for neighborhood improvements in the area below the Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River in Joliet. The bridges will be replaced, and the state has acquired 80 properties needed for construction. (Bob Okon)

New Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River will come with $3.5 million in state money for the neighborhoods below.

The bridges are part of the $1.3 billion I-80 project that runs through Joliet.

The state has acquired 80 properties, mostly houses, below the bridges in Joliet.

Those who are staying will have some say in how the $3.5 million in state money should be used to offset the effect of the bridges and improve the neighborhoods.

“The building of these bridges will affect people remaining in their houses by bisecting their community again,” Joliet City Planner Jayne Bernhard told the City Council Land Use and Economic Development Committee on Wednesday.

The state of Illinois has acquired 80 properties, mostly residences, in the Joliet neighborhood beneath the Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River, which will be replaced with new bridges in 2026. Oct. 23, 2024

The state of Illinois has acquired 80 properties, mostly residences, in the Joliet neighborhood beneath the Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River, which will be replaced with new bridges in 2026. (Bob Okon)

Probably unknown to most motorists using the I-80 bridges, they cross a residential area that co-exists in a neighborhood setting with houses underneath the highway.

The committee voted to recommend full council approval of a $392,000 community plan for how the $3.5 million should be used. The plan would be developed by consultant CDM Smith, which already has been working for the state on planning for the community below the bridges.

The area included in the plan runs on both sides of the river.

McDonough Street is the northern border. It extends to Center Street on the west side of the Des Plaines River. On the east side of the river, it goes to Chicago Street. Hickory Creek is on the south end.

Some ideas for the money already have been developed at four community meetings held between 2020 and 2022, Bernhard said.

The Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River in Joliet will be replaced as part of a $1.3 billion state project. (Eric Ginnard)

They include a bike-pedestrian path running to Varnado Park, which is located near the McDonough Street bridge over the river and several blocks north of the I-80 bridge. The ideas also include traffic-calming measures to slow down motorists on Water Street and no-truck signs to keep semitrailers out of the area.

The City Council is expected to vote on the planning proposal at its Nov. 19 meeting.

The replacement of the Des Plaines River bridges is one of the last phases of the I-80 project and is expected to begin in 2026.

The Illinois Department of Transportation will build new bridges while leaving the existing bridges intact until the project is completed. The plan is to complete the new bridges in 2028 and to demolish the existing bridges in 2029.

The I-80 project runs 16 miles from U.S. Route 30 in New Lenox to Ridge Road in Minooka.

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