A look at Will County’s big stories of 2024

The Joliet region has been a busy place, with a lot of business development, infrastructure projects and new housing coming in.

It also became a microcosm for some of the nation’s top issues – from gun violence and immigration to economic challenges.

Here’s a look back at top stories for The Herald-News in 2024.

Family killed in mass shooting

In the early afternoon on Jan. 23, seven members of the same family were found shot to death in their Joliet home on West Acres.

Romeo Nance, 23, of Joliet, was later charged in those murders, along with the fatal shooting of a Preston Heights man, and the nonfatal shooting of a 42-year-old man in Joliet.

“I’ve been a policeman 29 years. This is probably the worst crime scene I’ve ever been associated with,” Joliet Police Chief Evans said at the time.

Nance was charged, but he died after reportedly taking his own life following a confrontation with U.S. marshals in Texas after fleeing the state following the shootings.

Nance’s girlfriend, Kyleigh Cleveland-Singleton, was indicted by a Will County grand jury on three counts of obstructing justice. Her case still is pending in Will County court.

Migrants and immigration

Texas Gov. Jim Abbot was sending immigrants on buses to northern cities, including the Chicago area. Bus drop-offs brought an estimated 400 migrants to Will County in December 2023, and most if not all of the passengers are believed to have moved on to Chicago. The Will County Emergency Management Agency was working with municipalities in the county and had developed a plan to deal with migrant buses. The arrival of migrant buses spurred Will County municipalities to set new rules for what are called “unscheduled bus stops.”

The immigration issue will remain at the forefront as we begin 2025, as the Trump administration promises a mass deportation program immediately after the inauguration Jan. 20.

I-80 rebuilding project

One of the largest pieces of the Rebuild Illinois infrastructure program runs through Will County. The Interstate 80 rebuild continues on, but it reached some milestones in 2024. The Illinois Department of Transportation began its next phase of the $1.3 billion project that stretch 16 miles from New Lenox through Joliet and into Minooka. That phase included more work on bridge repairs and replacement. The project will continue until the end of 2028.

Other large area infrastructure projects that will be ongoing in 2025 include the Illinois Route 7 widening and the repairs to Joliet downtown bridges over the Des Plaines River.

The state plans to reconstruct the existing interchange at I-55 and Route 26 in Plainfield.

Church closures, parish mergers

Churches were tagged for closure this year under the Diocese of Joliet reorganization plan to shut their doors in June.

The diocese has placed two of the closed church properties for sale – the former St. Jude Church on McDonough Street in Joliet and St. Anne Church on Dearborn Street in Crest Hill.

St. Jude was merged with St. Paul parish in July and has since been renamed Queen of the Apostles. The new parish is located at 18 Woodlawn Ave. St. Anne has merged with St. Ambrose to form the Saints Anne & Ambrose Churches of Crest Hill, 1711 Burry Circle Drive.

St. Joseph Parish in Joliet won an appeal to the Vatican to remain an independent parish and not have to merge with other churches. It will be seated at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Joliet. Two other churches – St. Anthony’s and St. Bernard’s – were closed.

Lion Electric suspends operations

Lion Electric, manufacturer of electric buses, came into Joliet with much fanfare and promise only a few short years ago. It began operations in November 2022.

State officials, including Gov. JB Pritzker and U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, joined local and county officials at the plant’s ceremonial grand opening in July 2023.

But 10 months later, the Canadian-based company announced that it was making layoffs at its plants, including at the Joliet location.

Then, in November, the company announced that it was suspending operations at the Joliet plant as the company continues to lose money and cuts back on jobs. The company leases 900,000 square feet at 3835 Youngs Road.

Downtown Joliet construction

The city of Joliet is making a major investment in redesigning the core of its downtown district. The City Council in July voted unanimously in favor of a $20.1 million downtown improvement project. The project includes a new city square and redesigned Chicago Street. The construction is expected to be completed in less than two years, in time for the centennial celebration of U.S. Route 66. The city is planning on seeing a high volume of tourism during 2026 for that 100-year anniversary.

July storms leave path of destruction

Over a three-day period in July, the Joliet region was slammed by severe weather, with some storms spawning tornadoes that damaged businesses and homes. The Marycrest subdivision was one of the hardest-hit areas. The storms hit Joliet, New Lenox, Crest Hill, Lockport, Shorewood and other communities.

Downtown Joliet was hit hard on July 14, damaging several buildings. The region was declared a disaster area by President Joe Biden, and residents and businesses could apply for relief from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Saint Joseph Hospital gets new owners

A new owner is set to take over Ascension Saint Joseph – Joliet hospital in Joliet in the early months of 2025.

Prime Healthcare is purchasing the hospital located at 333 Madison St. along with numerous other hospitals owned by Ascension throughout Illinois. The sale was announced in July. Hearings were held in the fall.

The sale of the hospital was greeted positively by the local nurses union, which has had contract and labor battles with Ascension ownership over the past few years.

Lockport’s Central campus reopens

Almost 10 months after shutting its doors following a ceiling collapse in a third-floor classroom in 2023, Lockport Township High School District 205 reopened its Central Campus to freshmen in August. The district rented out the shuttered Lincoln-Way North campus for the 2023-24 school year so that freshmen had a place to learn in person.

The district lost its referendum bid in March to do massive renovations on the 115-year-old building and instead had to do a scaled-back project.

Joliet District 86 building 2 new schools

Joliet Public Schools District 86 broke ground in September on two new junior high schools. The district plans to replace existing Gompers and Hufford junior high schools. The new buildings are being constructed on grounds next to the existing schools.

Hufford and Gompers junior high schools were built in 1956 and 1958, respectively.

Construction on the two new schools is expected to be completed over two years.

New interchange at I-55 in Joliet

The city of Joliet has high hopes for development of more than 300 acres of land at Interstates 55 and 80.

The rebuilt interchange at I-55 and Route 59 opened in October, the realization of a plan that began 17 years ago. Developers and the city hope to unlock the potential of a site labeled the crossroads of mid-America.

The development plan is called the Rock Run collection and looks to include restaurants, hotels and major retailers. A new Hollywood Casino has been under construction since late 2023.

Man convicted in mother, toddler’s murder

Four years after a young mother and her toddler were killed in their Lockport home, the father of the child was convicted of those murders.

On Oct. 11, a Will County jury found Anthony Maggio, 30, of Crestwood, guilty of the Oct. 2, 2020, first-degree murder of Ashtin Eaton, 32, and the first-degree murder of their daughter, 14-month-old Hazel Bryant. Eaton was found strangled, and the child was suffocated in her bed.

Maggio is seeking a new trial claiming constitutional violations.

Illinois AG report on Joliet police released

Three years after launching an investigation into the Joliet Police Department, the Illinois Attorney General’s Office released the findings Dec. 12.

The report, conducted by the attorney general’s civil division beginning in 2021, outlined what it said was a pattern of engaging in unreasonable force and is a violation of constitutional rights, according to the attorney general’s office.

In addition, the report said the Joliet Police Department engages in “discriminatory policing against Black people,” and its policing practices also raise concerns “about unlawful discrimination against Latino people.

Current Joliet Police Chief Bill Evans, who was hired to lead the department in May 2022, said the report does not reflect the current state of the department.

“This is not the Joliet Police Department of today, but rather a picture of the past,” he said in a written statement.

Mayor Terry D’Arcy responded: “This report was initiated under the prior administration, when relations between City Hall and the police department were tenuous at best. This is a new day in Joliet, and we are making significant changes in how we work together to serve our residents.”

Democrats dominate in Will County elections

Will County Democrats bucked a national trend and were swept into office at both county, state and federal levels in the Nov. 5 general election.

Annette Parker was the lone Republican to win a countywide office, winning a very tight race for county clerk against Democrat Michelle Stiff.

Homer Glen couple charged after toddler dies

A Homer Glen father and mother have been charged in connection with the death of their 2-year-old child who died after becoming “unresponsive” in a residence containing garbage and evidence of drug use, police said.

Edward Weiher, 49, and Alexa Balen, 27, have been charged with possession of cocaine, possession of heroin and two counts of endangerment of a child – one felony count for the incident that resulted in the toddler’s death and one Class A misdemeanor charge for the endangerment of Balen’s 6-year-old daughter from a previous relationship.

The couple was denied pretrial release and remains in the Will County jail.