THE HERALD–NEWS Three park or museum facilities in Will County will get more than $1 million in state grant money for repair work, improvements or new exhibits. The Forest Preserve District of Will County’s Isle a la Cache Museum is one of the 47 museums set to receive funding through the state’s Public
Museum Capital Grants Program, which is administrated by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. The Isle a la Cache museum will receive about $270,000 to cover the renovation and reconstruction of the facility’s Native American longhouse, which first opened in 2003 and needs to be replaced. “This grant allows us to re-
place an 11-year-old structure, something the district would not have been able to do otherwise,” Lynn Kurczewski, superintendent of public programs and education for the Forest Preserve District, said in a district news release. The funding also will go toward accessibility upgrades, a campfire circle, landscaping and a garden. The museum,
501 E. Romeo Road, offers visitors a look into 18th century history, when Illinois was home to French voyageurs and native Potawatomi, according to the news release. Grant money was open to any museum operation by local governments or located on municipality-owned land. Other Will County projects funded through the state’s
museum grants program are: • Joliet’s Bird Haven Greenhouse is set to receive $741,000, covering the total project costs of installing a glass ceiling, shade cloth and new growing houses. • Just over $104,000 will go to Hidden Oaks Nature Center in Bolingbrook to construct a wood pavilion with a fireplace, tables and seating.
Will County Board expected to Job fair led to 75 employment offers vote on courthouse plan this week By LAUREN LEONE–CROSS lleonecross@shawmedia.com
JOLIET – The county will inch closer to a new courthouse downtown with the Will County Board’s expected vote this week on a $1.3 million contract outlining preliminary design work. Representatives of the Darien-based Wight & Co. architectural firm will present their scope of services Thursday at the board’s monthly
The U.S. Route 6 (Maple Road) project will impact the property at the northwest corner of the U.S. Route 6 (Maple Road) and Gougar Road in the Village of New Lenox and the City of Joliet, Will County. IDOT requires the acquisition of Permanent Easement and Temporary Easement in order to construct the turning radius at the north corner of the intersection, to connect the proposed 7 foot sidewalk to the existing Spring Creek Greenway Trail at the northwest quadrant of the intersection, and to re-grade the ditches along the west side of Gougar Road. IDOT is seeking public comments on the acquisition of this Permanent Easement and the Temporary Easement at the Hadley Valley Forest Preserve. This is the first opportunity for the public to comment on the additional public land needed for this project.
Jay Rowell
To place a classified ad in the Herald News, call 877-264-2527.
The county bought the building, 158 N. Scott St., for $850,000, last year. It is estimated the county will save $250,000 a year in lease expenses alone by shifting the recorder of deeds office there. Moving the coroner’s administrative office also frees up space in the Emco Building at 57 N. Ottawa St. The Emco Building currently houses the state’s attorney’s office and could one day serve as space for the public defender’s office.
IDOT is seeking public comments on impacts the U.S. Route 6 (Maple Road) at Gougar Road project will have on Hadley Valley Forest Preserve which is owned and operated by the Forest Preserve District of Will County.
Illinois Department of Employment Security director “We connect job seekers with skill sets that employers are looking for. Then we send those resumes to the employer and ask them who they want to interview,” he said. “That’s why so many people end up getting hired at these events.” Rowell said “thousands” of individuals have been hired through the state’s online job-link portal since it was launched in 2012. Last year, the department helped 12,400 veterans find work, according to a news release.
meeting. The company’s work includes a concept plan, construction cost estimates, county population projections and tours of other courthouses. Building a new courthouse could cost between $140 million and $200 million. The County Board also is expected to vote Thursday on an agreement to move the county’s recorder of deeds and coroner’s offices to the former Social Security Administration building downtown.
Hard copies of the Section 4 (f) de minimis documentation will be provided at the following locations during normal business hours. DATE: 06-12-14 to 06-26-14 TIME: 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday thru Friday PLACE: Illinois Department of Transportation Bureau of Programming 201 West Center Court Schaumburg, IL 60196 OR Forest Preserve District of Will County 17540 West Laraway Road Joliet, IL 60433 The Section 4(f) de minimis documentation is available on the Department’s website at: http://www.dot.state.il.us/section_4.html Electronic copies can be provided by emailing a request to carlos.feliciano@illinois.gov. Written comments can be submitted at the IDOT office, mailed to the IDOT office, or submitted electronically to carlos.feliciano@illinois.gov. Comments must be received by 06-26-14 to be considered part of the public record. This documentation will be accessible to handicapped individuals. Anyone needing special assistance should contact Carlos Feliciano at (847) 705-4106. Persons planning to visit either site to review the documents and need a sign language interpreter or other similar accommodations should notify the Department’s TDD number (847)705-4710 at least five days prior. All correspondence regarding this project should be sent to: Illinois Department of Transportation Bureau of Programming Attn: Carlos A. Feliciano 201 West Center Court Schaumburg, IL 60196-1096
adno=0234046
• Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Several dozen unemployed veterans were offered jobs on the spot at a Joliet job fair earlier this month, thanks to the state’s hiring portal that pre-matches companies with potential employees. The job fair, hosted June 5 by the Illinois Department of Employment Security, resulted in 75 job offers, out of the 166 interviewed, said Jay Rowell, the department’s director. The department’s pre-registration and outreach efforts helps set the event apart from “your normal job fair,” Rowell said. “With a typical job fair, you encourage some employers to attend the event. They have whatever job openings they have and then you invite job seekers,” he said. “There’s really no screening or matching done prior. You have to hope that someone with the right skill set meets with the right employer at the booth that needs that skill set.” For the job fair at Joliet Junior College earlier this month, employers were required to give the department a list of openings and skill requirements in advance, he said. That allowed staff to link worker resumes with employer openings before the event through the state’s help-wanted hiring website, IllinoisJobLink.com, he said.
“With a typical job fair, you encourage some employers to attend the event. They have whatever job openings they have and then you invite job seekers. There’s really no screening or matching done prior. You have to hope that someone with the right skill set meets with the right employer ...”
lleonecross@shawmedia.com
Public Comment
By LAUREN LEONE–CROSS
9 LOCAL NEWS | The Herald-News / TheHerald-News.com
Will County museum, park facilities get grants