Cullinan and Joliet prepare for Rock Run Crossings

Cullinan Properties and Joliet are taking more steps for the eventual development of Rock Run Crossings, the proposed 265-acre development at Interstates 55 and 80.

A Cullinan spokeswoman recently said the company has begun preparing for demolition of vacant houses and barns on the property as it plans for initial business openings in fall 2020 for the development, which would include retail, restaurants, hotels, office space and homes.

The developer is going to the Joliet Plan Commission on July 19 for approval of a preliminary plat, although it is not a plat outlining the plans for the development. The plat, however, would be used for creating a Tax Increment Financing District, which would provide property tax incentives for the development, city planner Jim Torri said.

“These lots that would be created would not have anything to do with final development,” Torri said.

The city in 2017 hired a consultant to study the site's eligibility for TIF incentives, which use property tax increases created by new construction to offset the costs of development.

The project also became eligible for other tax incentives in June when the state added the site to the Des Plaines River Valley Enterprise Zone.

Cullinan spokeswoman Anaise Berry described the preliminary plat as “clearing up some obsolete platting for the multi-parcel site.”

The preliminary plat includes 14 parcels and the entire site, which is in the northeast corner of the crossing of Interstates 55 and 80.

The city and Illinois Department of Transportation have been working on improved access to the site, which would include an expanded interchange at Route 59 and new east-west routes to Houbolt Road.

The City Council on Monday will vote to pursue a federal grant that could provide up to $25 million for the interchange and related road improvements.

The future of the project hinges on improved access and interchange expansion.