Kankakee County keeps looking forward

BOURBONNAIS – Kankakee County is in good shape when it comes to education, the economy and local government.

That evaluation was the underlying theme on Tuesday at the 2025 State of the County Address at Chalfant Hall at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais. The annual luncheon event was hosted by the Kankakee County Chamber of Commerce.

Kelsey Post, president and CEO of the Kankakee County Chamber emceed the event, while board Chairman Rob Warmbir gave the welcome and Susan Wolff, associate VP Institutional Advancement for ONU, gave the invocation.

“Together, we have built a community that is vibrant, resilient and forward-looking, and I’m excited to share with you the progress we’ve made, the challenges we continue to face, and the promising future that awaits us,” said Kankakee County Board Chairman Matthew Alexander-Hildebrand, the final speaker of several who spoke to the large chamber gathering.

ONU was the presenting sponsor of the event, and Greg Chenoweth, president of ONU, said in his opening remarks how important Kankakee County and Illinois is to Olivet. More than 50,000 of its alumni live in Illinois with 5,000 right here in the county.

Alexander-Hildebrand added the county’s economy has demonstrated resilience and strength despite global uncertainty caused by inflation and supply chain disruptions. The county has realized growth in particular in manufacturing, agriculture and small business.

“Kankakee County is home to over 7,000 manufacturing jobs, nearly double the national average, which highlights the strength and competitiveness of our local industries,” he said. “These jobs have generated over $933 million in wages and benefits, contributing to the prosperity of our community in the broader region.”

Alexander-Hildebrand mentioned the small business success of a new pizza restaurant in Pembroke and commended Kankakee Mayor Chris Curtis for the city launching 200 new businesses from restaurants and retail shops to service-based industries under his leadership.

In Bradley, Alexander-Hildebrand said the David Bradley incubator in the former Roper building has created six businesses and over 140 new jobs with the help of a $4.1 million federal grant for building improvements.

“This repurposing of a long vacant site into a dynamic business hub is a shining example of how we can turn underutilized spaces into a thriving centers of economic activity,” he said.

Alexander-Hildebrand also championed the transportation infrastructure improvements in the county, including the Armour Road-Illinois Route 50 upgrades, Hobbie Avenue in Kankakee and ongoing projects on Career Center Road in Bourbonnais and 9000 North Road in Manteno.

“These transportation upgrades are part of a broader effort to improve access to our county, and they will serve as an essential part of the strategy to encourage economic growth, attract new businesses and expand our tax base,” he said.

Need for more rooftops

In order to sustain the growth in the county, Tim Nugent, president and CEO of the Economic Alliance of Kankakee County, said the number of new homes must be increased. In 2005 more the 600 new homes were built in Kankakee County, and were usually building 300 to 500 homes every year until 2009, when less than 100 were built.

“Unfortunately, that trend has continued for the past 15 years,” Nugent said. “Last year, all of Kankakee County, we saw only 78 new homes being built. ... Simply put, we need more rooftops.”

He said the reasons for the shortage of housing stock are many. A lot of homeowners are comfortable with their affordable interest rates on their mortgage, soaring costs for building materials and the supply and demand issues of the availability and affordability of a new home.

Nugent said a recent housing analysis showed the need is real.

“The study shows that we can build more than 230 new homes each year for the next five years, and we’ll be able to fill them all,” he said. “It also shows that we can build more than 200 rental units a year for the next five years, and we can fill all them, too. I’m calling all developers in the room, build them, and they’ll come.”

The Economic Alliance has offered the incentive of enterprise zones in the Kankakee County communities of Grant Park, Momence, Hopkins Park and unincorporated areas of the county. The enterprise zones offer homebuilders sales tax benefits on materials and discounted building permits.

“A builder can save $10,000 to $15,000 or more on a $250,000 home,” Nugent said. “... We continue to look for ways to market Kankakee County to attract new developments. We know as companies are located here, we’re going to attract new workers and new residents, and we want to have a place for them to live.”

It’s part of the plan to make the county not only attractive to businesses, but for residents, too.

More positives

Also speaking at the event were Kankakee County Health Administrator John Bevis; Sheriff Mike Downey; as well as video presentations by Nicole Gavin, of Visit Kankakee County; Donnie Benoit, board member of the Kankakee County Farm Bureau; LaDonna Russell, executive director of the Grundy Livingston Kankakee Workforce Board; and Michael Boyd, president of Kankakee Community College.

Bevis noted that the Kankakee County Health Department turns 40 this year, as the KCHD was established with a resolution on Dec. 3, 1985.

“The mission of the health department is to promote, protect and monitor the health of all people in our communities that we serve,” he said.

Bevis said that the health department’s budget was a mere $754,000 in 1985, and it is now $4.2 million. Employment has remained steady from 37 employees in ‘85 to 40 in 2025.

“I’m proud to say that 70% of that budget is grant funded,” he said. “We receive some tax money from the county, fees for services, but for the most part, we are doing the work ourselves for our community.

“... I have a great staff of individuals who are compassionate and dedicated to the work that they do, and I’m happy for the past 40 years that we’ve done and looking forward to the next 40 years to come.”