Demolition Of Empty Will County Courthouse Moving Forward

JOLIET, IL — The efforts by a small group of local citizens hoping to save the vacant former Will County Courthouse from being torn down are now in their final stages. Will County Executive spokesman Michael Theodore said that on Thursday, in a 7 to 4 vote, the Executive Committee voted down a resolution calling for an investigation of reusing the empty courthouse.

The vote means that it will not be taken up again by the full Will County Board, Theodore informed Joliet Patch. Without movement on this resolution, the only official direction given by the Will County Board has been in favor of demolition, he noted.

“The County Executive’s office is proceeding with the previously outlined timeline for demolition. The County Executive’s Office follows the policy direction of the County Board, which has voted five times to approve steps to demolish the building," Theodore announced.

Theodore provided the following timeline on the history of efforts by Will County government to bulldoze the empty courthouse.

Built in 1969, it's been dubbed "the world's ugliest courthouse."

• 4/18/19 – Will County Board votes to support the abatement, demolition, and site restoration of the building.
• 9/15/22 – Will County Board votes to approve abatement work, which is the first step of the demolition process.
• 9/17/22 – Will County Board votes to include $2.5 million to demolition in the FY23 budget
• 1/19/23 – The current Will County Board votes 21-1 to approve a $170,000 design. engineering contract for demolition. The design engineering prepared the scope of services for demolition.
• 9/7/23 – The Will County Board Executive Committee votes against a non-binding resolution to investigate an adaptive reuse of the structure.

What's next?

Nine bids have been received and are being reviewed. The Will County Executive's Office is nearing completion of that review and is planning to award a bid to the lowest, most qualified bidder.

Based on the current review timeline, Jennifer Bertino and her staff expect to approve a contract in September. Demolition start time is dependent on the plan outlined by that bidder.

In June, Joliet Patch broke the news that Mayor Terry D'Arcy and Bertino and her staff are moving ahead with plans to create a new Will County and city of Joliet government campus on the site once the demolition of the empty courthouse is successful.

Related Patch article:

New Will Co. Government Campus To Replace Torn Down Courthouse?