Downtown Joliet Festival Drew 9,000 People Last Saturday

JOLIET, IL - Some Will County residents still remember when downtown Joliet became a ghost town back in the 1980s. So for many of them, the concept that downtown Joliet, a place they haven't visited regularly for years, is on the upswing, is hard to grasp. But these days, Joliet Junior College has a fancy state of the art glass building for its culinary arts program. The University of St. Francis has a downtown campus presence. MyGrain Brewing just opened Joliet's first microbrewery over at historic Union Station. And more community events celebrating Joliet's diversity are becoming a drawing card for crowds. On Saturday, September 9, 9,000 people packed Chicago and Clinton Streets for the Fiesta En La Calle festival. The second annual street party event had backing from Joliet's Region Chamber of Commerce & Industry. It raised money for the Spanish Community Center of Joliet, an organization in need of more funding as of late.

The following businesses were singled out by the Joliet Chamber for playing a large role in last weekend's successful Fiesta En La Calle event:

• D'Arcy Buick-GMC, the grand presenting sponsor
• Midland States Bank, entertainment sponsor,
• Chicagoland Speedway, entertainment sponsor
• Hawk Auto, food court sponsor
• Abri Credit Union, food court sponsor
• First Midwest Bank, beer tent sponsors
• Unidos Marketing, beer tent sponsors
• ExxonMobil as hospitality sponsor
• NuMark Credit Union as the koozie sponsor
• Nicor Gas sponsored the Kids Zone

Images via Joliet Region Chamber of Commerce