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KANKAKEE – If Kankakee County area residents felt like there was a little less space to spread their wings throughout 2024, there is good reason.
There were more people here.
No, the Kankakee County population hasn’t radically jumped as the area still hovers just below 106,000 – 105,882 according to World Population Review.
So where are the additional faces coming from?
They are tourists, said Nicole Gavin, executive director of Visit Kankakee County, the county’s tourism office.
Hotel occupancy rose from the 51% level of 2023 to 61% in 2024, according to Gavin. The 10-percentage-point increase was based on the entire year. The increase factors in time periods when tourism is traditionally lower, which pulls down occupancy from peak seasons, most notably summertime events.
Those summertime events, Gavin said, such as late July’s Merchant Street MusicFest in downtown Kankakee, the Bourbonnais Friendship Festival in late June and Momence Gladiolus Festival, held in August, – the chief three annual events – are significant tourist attractions and continue to bring together local people as well as out-of-town visitors.
She also noted the addition of the Bradley 315 Music Fest in the early days of June, brought in just over 14,000 music lovers in its inaugural three-night music event on the grounds of Northfield Square mall.
The 315 Music Fest’s fourth day featured games, contests and crafts.
On Labor Day weekend, there was the return of the Kankakee-hosted Kankakee River Valley Regatta powerboat races.
The 2024 event marked the first regatta here since 2013, an absence of 11 years.
While the regatta did not attract the post-race crowd organizers had hoped for with live music, food and drink, she said there are discussions to find a way to keep people on the site post-race.
And while Gavin believes the regatta, the pending Kankakee East Riverwalk, the Bourbonnais Grove and the 315 Music Fest, will grow in popularity – the music has already gained signed commitments from notable musical groups such as Alabama, Daughtry, Flo Rida, Chingy and Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry – officials believe there are room for more events and more attractions.
“It takes time to build, but there is a lot of momentum building,” Gavin said.
Gavin said concepts such as a craft beer brewing trail is possible. There could be some type of trail regarding the number of exterior building murals.
“As people come here for certain things, we want there to be other things for them to do, for them to explore,” she said.
A potential ace the region may be holding is the 126-acre Bradley Sports Complex for hosting youth baseball and softball.
The $45-million-plus development bordered by St. George Road and Aspen Ridge Golf Course is set to open in April or May. So far, 678 teams have signed up to play at the complex in the months of May, June and July. In the same timeframe, 293 have booked tournaments at nearby Diamond Point Park.
Business travel
Tim Nugent, Economic Alliance of Kankakee County president and CEO, said while the Kankakee River, forest preserves and music festivals gain much of the attention for bringing in visitors, people shouldn’t forget the impact from business and industry.
“When you say tourism, you think attractions. ... It’s not only about leisure travel. It’s also for business,” he said.
Nugent said companies such as CSL Behring, Nucor Steel, Riverside Healthcare and Olivet Nazarene University are just a few of the entities which host business travelers.
“We have many active business which bring in people for training, for equipment upgrades, for potential employment. Label it what you like, it’s big business,” he said.
Nugent said when it is all added up, it means millions to the local economy and governmental bodies through sales taxes.
“Anything that generates people coming through our county means revenue,” he said. “All of this adds money to our economy.”
Gavin said state data shows 34% of local tourism revolves around outdoor activities. The county is home to the Kankakee River State Park and the Perry Farm property.
She said the area, while losing a couple golf courses including Shore Golf Course near Momence and the Bon Vivant course at Bourbonnais, still has many places to enjoy the outdoors.
The 18-hole Kankakee Elks Country Club course was recently named one of the state’s top 50 courses. It came in at 44.
“We have a lot of hidden gems,” she said.
One such gem is the Haigh Quarry, just east of Bradley along North Street as it extends out of the village boundaries.
She said scuba diving has become an area attraction thanks to the quarry. She said underwater pumpkin carving has become a thing, oddly enough.
When it comes to attracting those from miles away, perhaps “oddly enough” is good enough.