Joliet holds open house on future development around Gateway Center

The public will have a say next week on plans for future development around the Gateway Center in Joliet.

The city and the Regional Transportation Authority will hold a community workshop on what is called the Downtown Joliet Equitable Transit Oriented Development Plan.

The plan aims to create strategies to enhance development around the train station, bus depot and boarding areas that make up the Joliet Gateway Center, the hub of the public transit in the city, at 90 E. Jefferson St.

The workshop will be an open-house format, and people can stop by anytime between 6 and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 11, to provide input, according to a news release from the city.

Surrounding parking lots will be available for free parking, the city said.

“We hope people will pop in to provide input and share their ideas,” City Planner Jayne Bernhard said in the release.

To encourage attendance, the city will open the new Joliet Railroad Museum, which is located on the second floor of the train station, for the evening.

The RTA provided a grant for a study on future development opportunities in the area around the Gateway Center, including the former Lyons Lumber property now owned by the city.

The Gateway Center is located on the east end of downtown and is kitty corner from Duly Health and Care Field, where the Joliet Slammers play. The old Union Station, no longer a train station but used for banquets, is located west of the new train station and on the other side of the railroad tracks that separate the facilities.

Follow the project on the city website at joliet.gov/etod.