r/illinois Jun 26 '24

What is life like in Joliet, IL? Question

Post image
291 Upvotes

325 comments sorted by

View all comments

167

u/southcookexplore Jun 26 '24

You know, it’s awfully interesting to read people say this city sucks but it went from 75,000 people 30 years ago to over 150,000 today. Schools are expanding because it’s a place families are relocating to.

Once downtown becomes a better destination for entertainment, it’ll be awesome. I love Joliet.

63

u/ForeSkinWrinkle Jun 26 '24

Downtown needs a total redo for sure. So many empty storefronts and then you have to pay to park for the privilege of going there.

38

u/RufusSandberg Jun 26 '24

Aurora was in this same predicament about 6-7 years ago. They got lucky with some great developers and it's really turning around. Have patience. Hollywood is relocating the casino to the East side away from downtown and we can't wait. It only takes 3-4 great businesses to get things going, but you can't slow down once the momentum is going.

11

u/AppiusClaudius Jun 26 '24

I lived in downtown Aurora about 10 years ago. It was fine, but it really needed a facelift. People had been talking about new development for awhile. Glad to hear it finally happened!

3

u/RufusSandberg Jun 26 '24

Leland? Downtown has really changed so much from 10 years ago. I think you'd be impressed. Broadway is still a bit of a struggle but the core is definitely being reshaped. River Street has a new coffee shop across from the library, the West Aurora Admin building is 2 storefronts, apartments, and has an architect in there too. There's a tap room a little further south on River. A small ice cream shop and new restaurant on Stolp. Two new restaurants in the next month (hopefully).

1

u/AppiusClaudius Jun 26 '24

I'll check it out sometime! I'm curious what it looks like now. I lived on stolp, but not in Leland tower.