Mayor Breaks Tie, Evil Intentions Coming To Old Joliet Prison

JOLIET, IL - Tuesday night was a pivotal moment for the Joliet City Council. Several area haunted-house theme businesses wanted Joliet not to approve a sublease agreement at the Old Joliet Prison for Evil Intentions. The award-winning Elgin-based haunted house attraction reached out to Joliet officials months ago about turning the old women's prison building into a Halloween attraction that can open this fall. When it came time to vote, there were four yes votes. There were also four no notes. Everyone's attention turned to Joliet Mayor Bob O'Dekirk. With little hesitation, O'Dekirk cast the tie-breaking vote in favor in the Evil Intentions contract.

"I certainly understand the efforts," the mayor said. "This has sat abandoned for 18 years and I really credit staff. Within a matter of months, since the second fire in July, the decision was made that we were going to take action on this prison. It was a nuisance. It was blight. People were going to get hurt or killed inside of that, and it was not being attended to by the state of Illinois.

"With all due respect, I know that I've had spirited arguments with Councilman Hug about this, there were no better options. I think we're doing it intelligently and moving forward. I had no idea that this was going to be a battle of haunted houses but apparently it's turned into that. So I'm happy that we're going to get people on site. It's moving forward and I agree with Steve Jones that this is one step in the process before we determine what's actually going to happen at that (entire) prison site."

Joining the mayor, the other council members in favor of Evil Intentions using the old Joliet Prison were: Jan Quillman, John Gerl, Terry Morris and Bettye Gavin. The four council members who voted against the proposal were led by Pat Mudron and included Mike Turk, Don "Duck" Dickinson and Larry Hug.

Before the vote took place, Joliet's Economic Development Steve Jones urged the council to vote for the project. He said that if the vote failed, the prospect of having the Joliet Prison facility open by September as a Halloween attraction was dead in the water for 2018.

Some of the other haunted house operators who attended Tuesday night's meeting implored to Joliet to open up the Joliet Prison property to other vendors to give them a chance to submit a proposal as well.

Jones countered that a two-week evaluation was not practical. He said that Evil Intentions has been in discussions with Joliet since August and has been on the abandoned prison property at least five separate occasions to conduct inspections of the buildings and the grounds. Evil Intentions only aims to use the area that's known as the old women's prison property, on the east side of Collins Street.

Jones said he fully expects that Evil Intentions will draw "thousands of people" to the prison property starting this Fall. "If we do open this up, I think we take 2018 out of the game," Jones warned the City Council prior to the vote.

Steve Jones

When asked for his opinion, Jones told city council members "we proceed with Evil Intentions. My recommendation is that thing be approved. It's a work in progress."

Joliet Corporation Counsel Marty Shanahan also emphasized the addition of Evil Intentions has one great benefit that everybody seems to be overlooking.

"They're going to keep eyes on it for the city," Shanahan said.

In recent years, the deteriorating prison property, owned by the Illinois Department of Corrections, has been the site of multiple arsons, vandalism sprees and late-night trespassers.

Main image via city of Joliet website, other images via Joliet Patch