Bullish on Jobs? We are.
February 21, 2012The Kankakee-Bradley MSA is ranked #9 nationally in terms of job growth, according to Christian Science Monitor. The region is “staging a comeback with some of the strongest job growth in the nation. The central Illinois metro economy saw a 5.8 percent bump in employment in trade, transportation, and utilities sector last year. Education and health services also performed well, with a 5.7 percent rise.” The article notes that “the village of Bradley has grown 24 percent in the past decade.”
Read the more here http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2012/0210/Bullish-on-jobs-These-10-cities-are/Kankakee-Bradley-Ill.-4.6-percent
Posted in Economic Alliance Blog | Tagged Jobs | Leave a commentPreferred Illiana B3 alignment benefits Kankakee County
February 21, 2012The Illiana Corridor committee — the organization tasked with planning a highway that would connect Interstate 65 in Indiana to Interstate 55 near Joliet — made its preliminary recommendation February 8 of a preferred route. The 47-mile “B3” route selected from eight initial prospects would run about two miles north of the Kankakee and Will County line, according to Mike Lammey, Kankakee County’s transportation planner.
“This is a huge step. This is groundbreaking,” Economic Alliance CEO Mike Van Mill told The Daily Journal last week. “To have it this close to our boundary is a great benefit.”
Van Mill calls the route a major driver for regional development.
The Illiana Expressway is conceived as a bypass for trucks around the congested metropolitan highways, providing access to one of the nation’s largest inland port/intermodal freight areas in Elwood as well as the proposed South Suburban Airport.
The Economic Alliance rallied support for the project locally in 2010, successfully generating resolutions of support from all Kankakee County municipalities, in addition to the Kankakee Regional Chamber of Commerce.
According to the IC committee, the proposed expressway, connecting I-65 between Cedar Lake and Lowell, Indiana, to I-55 at Route 129 near Wilmington and just south of Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, offers the best balance of performance – best financial viability, least environmental impact, greatest local support, highest multipurpose corridor compatibility and lowest risk.
The next public meetings are scheduled for February 22 in Crown Point and February 23 in Matteson.
For more information on the Illiana Expressway project, visit http://www.illianacorridor.org/
Posted in Economic Alliance Blog | Tagged Illiana | Leave a commentCity of Kankakee wins Governor’s Sustainability Award
November 8, 2010Twenty seven Illinois companies and organizations have been honored for their significant achievements in protecting the environment, helping sustain the future, and improving the economy. The Governor’s Sustainability Awards were presented by the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center during a luncheon in Champaign. ISTC is a unit of the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability at the University of Illinois.
Since 1987, ISTC has presented Governors awards to organizations in Illinois that have demonstrated a commitment to environmental excellence through outstanding and innovative sustainability practices. Any Illinois public or private organization is eligible to apply for an award. Organizations who are winning for the first time received the Sustainability Award. Those organizations that have won in past years and are continuing their environmental efforts are awarded a Continuous Improvement Award.
“These businesses and organizations have shown that it is possible to create and maintain conditions under which people and the environment can exist in productive harmony, and fulfill the social and economic requirements of present and future generations,” said Manohar Kulkarni, ISTC Director.
Posted in Economic Alliance Blog | Leave a commentAmbassador Steel closing in Rochelle, investing in Bourbonnais
November 5, 2010ROCHELLE — Just when the city seemed on a roll for attracting new businesses, one company has decided to close its doors.
Ambassador Steel, located at 1020 S. Main St., recently announced to its employees that it will close its Rochelle facility. According to a written statement, the decision is based upon a “strategic realignment based upon moving production capacity to best meet future goals and market needs.”
The company, which is based out of Auburn, Ind., and owned by Harris Steel, Inc., declined to comment on the closing, a timeline for when the doors will finally close and what will happen to the employees of the Rochelle factory. Harris Steel, in turn, is owned by Nucor Corp.
According to the release to employees, the company will be investing additional equipment at its Bourbonnais facility and a company official will be meeting with each Rochelle employee individually over the next two weeks to “present and discuss options available.” They reassured workers that the closing was not a reflection on the performance of Rochelle employees
Posted in Economic Alliance Blog | Leave a commentExelon and ETA Agree to Develop Reliability Interregional Transmission Extension (RITE) Line
November 3, 2010
Chicago — Exelon, Electric Transmission America (ETA) and American Electric Power (AEP) have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop an extra high-voltage transmission project that will become a significant backbone of the next generation transmission system in the Midwest. ETA is a joint venture between AEP and MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company.
The 420-mile line will strengthen the high-voltage transmission system connecting Illinois to Indiana and through to the border with Ohio, improving overall system reliability while also establishing the infrastructure needed to provide Midwest states access to more sources of renewable energy and meet their state-mandated renewable portfolio standards.
“Not only will this project strengthen the overall transmission system, it also will support the integration of new renewable energy sources and provide a roadmap to help reliably manage the expected retirements of some fossil fuel units, while enhancing broad regional cooperation and planning. This is another way Exelon is helping to drive the nation’s transition to a clean energy future,” said Chris Crane, president and COO of Exelon. “Furthermore, if the RITE Line(SM) project is approved, it will result in positive economic impacts to Illinois, including job creation and increased economic activity.”
The project will consist of a 765-kilovolt line from the Ohio border through Indiana to the northern portion of Illinois. ComEd, the delivery company in northern Illinois and a subsidiary of Exelon, is expected to lead the building of the Illinois portion of the project. ETA and AEP will lead the project in Indiana. The project will be built in stages over three to four years, likely between 2015 and 2018, depending on the timing of approvals from federal, regional and state regulators.
The project is the first commercial effort resulting from the recently completed SMARTransmission Study, which was part of an effort to design a conceptual 20-year transmission plan that ensures reliable movement of electricity and provides an efficient transmission system for the Midwest. The study was led by ETA and co-sponsored by a group of several Midwest utilities, including Exelon.
The RITE Line project is expected to cost $1.6 billion and is subject to FERC, PJM (the regional transmission organization) and state approvals. The ultimate cost of the line will be dependent on RTO and state siting requirements, routing of the line, and equipment and commodity costs. Of that amount, $1.2 billion is related to the Illinois portion of the line, and the rest is related to the Indiana portion.
These investments will be made by Exelon, ETA and AEP. Cost allocation to utility customers will be determined later, based on a proposal by PJM and approval by FERC.
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