About Us
The Economic Alliance of Kankakee County is a 501c6 public/private partnership tasked with encouraging and facilitating new investment in the Greater Chicago community of Kankakee County, Illinois. We approach our mission in the spirit of collaboration in order to move the needle in sustainable and equitable ways across the interconnected realms of business, workforce and community development.
Businesses located in our community – from Fortune 500/Global 500 corporations to startups – enjoy a low cost of doing business, responsive educational institutions and workforce training programs, robust utility infrastructure, a 45-minute labor force of 2.8 million, cooperative and aligned leadership with a renewed livability focus, and an outstanding transportation network – including direct Interstate 57 access, three Class I rail lines and the Chicago Southland’s largest regional airport.
Major primary business sectors within Kankakee County include life sciences, food processing, health care, business services, metals and machining, renewable energy, hospitality, and transportation and logistics.
To support new investment, commercial, industrial and residential investors can access a suite of financial incentives. The Alliance also leverages a number of business intelligence tools, providing current property availabilities, market data and other information on demand.
The Economic Alliance holds regular meetings of its board of directors, generally on the second Thursdays of the scheduled months at 7:30 a.m.; locations TBD. Meetings are open to the public.
Click to access recent Alliance Board reports:
2024
- Q1 2024 Economic Alliance Board Report, February 8, 2024
- Additional remarks by Rob Sumter, Market EVP, Chief Operating Officer, Ascension Illinois. View the Ascension presentation here.
- Q2 2024 Economic Alliance Board Report, April 11, 2024
- Additional presentation by Mayor Chris Curtis, City of Kankakee. View the City of Kankakee Report here.
- Economic Alliance of Kankakee County IMPACT Award recipient Francis J. Smith announced.
- June 2024 Economic Alliance Board Report, June 13, 2024
- Additional remarks by Village of Bourbonnais Mayor Paul Schore regarding the Community Campus. View the Village of Bourbonnais Report here.
- Watch the Community Campus Progression Video here.
- Q3 2024 Economic Alliance 2024 Board Report, September 12, 2024
- Remarks by Dr. Matt Vosberg, Superintendent of Bradley Bourbonnais Community High School. View Dr. Vosberg’s report here.
- Kankakee County Labor Shed Market Analysis is available. For more information contact Ladonna Russell, Executive Director of the Grundy Livingston Kankakee Workforce Board at lrussell@glkwb.com.
- Q4 2024 Economic Alliance Board Report, November 14, 2024
- Remarks by Ross Bruni, Executive Director of the Kankakee Valley Park District. View Mr. Bruni’s report here.
2023
- Q1 2023 Economic Alliance Board Report, February 9, 2023
- Remarks by:
- Illinois Rep. Jackie Haas (79th District) honoring Joe Franco with a proclamation from the Illinois House of Representatives for his work in community and economic development in Kankakee County and across the region.
- Nick Allen on behalf of Illinois Senator Patrick Joyce (40th District) honoring Joe Franco with a proclamation from the Illinois Senate for his work in community and economic development in Kankakee County and across the region.
- Erik Doersching, President & CEO of Tracy Cross & Associates, Inc. regarding the residential market analysis performed for Kankakee County.
- Remarks by:
- Q2 2023 Economic Alliance Board Report, April 13, 2023
- Additional remarks by:
- Matthew Kelley, Executive Director, Kankakee Area Career Center
- Lesley Cooper, Director, Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment, HLC Accreditation Liaison, Kankakee Community College
- Additional remarks by:
- June 2023 Economic Alliance Board Report, June 8, 2023
- Additional remarks by:
- Abner Garcia-Delgado, VP Manufacturing & Site Head, CSL Behring, Kankakee
- Amanda Kitchen, Division Director of New Center Operations, CSL Plasma
- Additional remarks by:
- Q3 2023 Economic Alliance Board Report, September 14, 2023
- Additional remarks by:
- State Attorney Jim Rowe, Kankakee County
- Sheriff Mike Downey, Kankakee County
- Additional remarks by:
- Q4 2023 Economic Alliance Board Report, November 9, 2023
- Additional remarks by:
- Phil Kambic, President / CEO, Riverside Healthcare shared about the history of the Hoover building and growth of Riverside Healtchare. The Hoover building is one of the first manufacturing sites in Kankakee County, and at one time the largest manufacturing site in the nation, employing more than 4,000 people. Built in 1907, the building served as the headquarters for the Hoover Brothers and Company, which was a manufacturer of automobiles and later vacuum cleaners. Today, Riverside Healthcare houses various services and departments at the site. See the Riverside Healthcare report here.
- Additional remarks by:
Contact:
Tim Nugent, President / CEO, tnugent@kankakeecountyed.org
Angela Morrey, Vice President, Business Development, amorrey@kankakeecountyed.org
Ben Wilson, Special Projects, bwilson@kankakeecountyed.org