Conley sees more manufacturing, revived Jefferson Street in Joliet’s future

Departing Economic Development Director Derek Conley looked back at four years in Joliet and speculated on a future for the city that he thinks will include more electric vehicle manufacturing and a Jefferson Street revival.

“I feel like I’ve had 10 years of experience fit into four years here,” Conley said, reflecting on the amount of development in the city since he arrived in 2018.

Conley’s last day on the job was Friday. He leaves to become economic development director for St. Charles.

His time in Joliet was eventful. Conley helped usher in a young group of entrepreneurs downtown, a growing number of fast-food restaurants on Jefferson Street and around Louis Joliet Mall, and The Lion Electric Company electric vehicle manufacturing plant that is expected to begin production later this year.

Not unexpectedly, the Lion Electric project was among the most memorable.

“What I liked about that project was the collaboration across all levels of government,” Conley said, pointing to the involvement of the state, county and city to attract the Canadian company. “It really was a team effort to get that project in Joliet.”

Conley expects more electric vehicle manufacturers, as well as supply plants coming to the Joliet area, with the arrival of Lion Electric.

Just as important to him over the past four years, Conley said, was the arrival of small- and mid-sized business. He pointed to the Tony Finer Foods store retrofitting the old Kmart at Jefferson Street and Larkin Avenue – a project being done with the help of city tax incentives – as another key development for the future.

Business owners like to develop where they see other businesses developing, and Tony’s has helped draw more interest to Jefferson Street, Conley said.

“I have a lot of high hopes for Jefferson Street,” he said. “That corridor has been getting more and more inquiries for development.”

Jefferson Street redevelopment may require demolition and new construction, he said.

“One of the things that makes Joliet great is that it is an older city with a lot of character, but that brings certain challenges,” Conley said.

His first impression of Joliet was the character of the city, he said.

Originally from Carbondale and working previously as an economic development specialist in Aurora, he had never been to Joliet before he came here for a job.

Downtown Joliet struck him as “a mini-Chicago,” he said, and developers coming to the city for the first time have had the same impression.

“I came into the downtown and thought, ‘wow, this town has a lot of character,’ ” Conley said. “I wanted to be here.”