I-55 and Route 30 still seen as prime retail potential for Plainfield, Joliet

Road construction at Interstate 55 and Route 30 gives local officials some hope for a shopping center plan that was stymied by the recession.

The northwest corner of the interchange at one time was to become The Boulevard, a large retail and restaurant development to be anchored by a wholesale club store.

A Clark truck stop on the site even shut down to make room for the future development. But the shopping center was never built. And one Joliet councilman said the site has become a blight at one of the main gateways to the city.

The property also is a gateway to Plainfield. Most of the property is in the village of Plainfield.

And Plainfield officials see the potential development paired with Route 30 improvements as a possible boon to the village.

“We think it’s perhaps the best commercial location in the village of Plainfield,” said Jon Proulx, director of planning for Plainfield. “It’s a great project to move forward for both Joliet and Plainfield.”

Joliet Economic Development Director Steve Jones agrees the site has potential, which may be slowed down by the current construction. At the same time, he said the road and interchange improvements will improve access and “really creates a red carpet for that site.”

Plainfield plans

Plainfield earlier this year approved a subdivision plan for the site.

Proulx said the subdivision plan will “facilitate future development,” but there is nothing imminent happening.

“We continue to work on this project. It’s not dormant,” he said.

The village in 2007 approved an incentive plan aimed at encouraging retail development of the property.

The plan calls for 380,000 square feet of retail development, including a national retailer that would serve as an anchor with a store at least 120,000 square feet in size. In turn, the village would provide assistance in infrastructure improvements needed to develop the site.

“This is a plan for 2007,” said Jake Melrose, economic development specialist for Plainfield, noting the retail landscape has changed since then.

But the property, owned by an entity called 55/30 Acquisition LLC, continues to be marketed.

“If someone wanted to pick up this plan and all the entitlements that come with it, we can consider it valid and move forward,” Melrose said.

Roadwork

The construction project started last year and is expected to be completed in summer 2017.

The project was designed to increase the capacity of Route 30 to handle traffic while also improving safety, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation website.

Route 30 has been widened west into Plainfield, adding middle turn lanes that will avert the traffic backups produced by motorists with long waits to make left turns. Traffic signals are being modernized at the interchange.

Road paving is expected to start later this month. Later, sidewalks, curbs and gutters will be put in place. Concrete medians will be added to Route 30.

Gateway blight?

While the site may have a future, Joliet Councilman Larry Hug wants the Joliet section of the property cleaned up.

The former truck stop included a huge interstate sign that still rises high over I-55 but as a framework only because there is nothing on the property to advertise.

Hug describes the site as “a jungle” overgrown with brush. He wants the old truck stop and sign removed.

“It just looks like an abandoned property,” Hug said. “Something must be done.”

But even Hug’s criticism of the property is based on its prime location at what he considers one Joliet’s “true gateways.”

“The term gateway is thrown around a lot,” he said. But I-55 and Route 30, with the Louis Joliet Mall and other development, is one of the major entryways to the city, he said. “It’s a true gateway.”