Chicago Street project coming soon

The long-awaited Chicago Street reconnection project is expected to start this month.

The project will bring Chicago Street through an existing courthouse parking lot and create a straight connection from Interstate 80 to the main street downtown. Business people and planners for years have said the reconnection would help drive more business downtown.

"We're probably going to start mid to late March," said Joliet Public Works Director James Trizna. "It's all weather dependent."

Mayor Bob O'Dekirk mentioned the pending start of the project as one of the positive developments in Joliet during his State of the City speech last week.

The parking lot will continue to stay open during the first two months of the project.

"That parking lot's going to stay in existence until the beginning of May," Trizna said.

The first job will be storm sewer work at Washington and Scott streets, he said. The work may involve a lane closure but the route will remain open.

Trizna said the city in the coming weeks will announce details of the project and its impact on traffic.

The plan has been for the reopening to be completed by late 2020.

Chicago Street now stops at the courthouse where traffic headed downtown curves onto Washington Street and connects with Scott Street.

The new route will take traffic straight through the one block area from Washington past Jefferson Street into downtown.

Outgoing traffic headed to I-80, however, will be detoured onto Ottawa Street before connecting with Chicago Street south of downtown,