The governor along with state and local officials celebrated the completion of a $73 million project to preserve the rapidly eroding shoreline at the Illinois Beach State Park near Zion.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and local and state officials gathered on Monday to celebrate the completion of the Illinois Beach State Park Shoreline Stabilization Project.

The $73 million investment provided for the preservation of several miles of natural Lake Michigan shoreline in three areas of the park.

Pritzker said the state park is “one of the many natural beauties that make our state special,” with dunes and swales, sprawling marshes, forests of oak and vast arrays of animal life and vegetation — including the last remaining natural shoreline in Illinois.

“And I am so proud and grateful that we could come together to protect it,” Pritzker said.

“Thanks to all those who tirelessly worked to execute this project – Illinoisans will continue to visit the lakefront here for generations to come, and we’ll keep this habitat and the local economy flourishing,” he added.

Officials say Illinois Beach State Park required immediate intervention to restore the natural lakefront, which was eroding at more than 100 feet per year and putting rare habitats at risk.

The new offshore stone breakwater structures shelter the Lake Michigan shoreline from wave energy and preserve the surrounding ecosystems.

The breakwaters assist in retaining the newly placed sand, slowing down the littoral process, and enhancing public access to the beach.

“Illinois Beach State Park is a natural treasure, and this project ensures its beauty and ecosystem are preserved for future generations,” said Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton. “Protecting our environment is not just about today but about creating a legacy of stewardship that will benefit our communities for years to come.”

Illinois Department of Natural Resources Director Natalie Phelps Finnie said it was a “very real possibility” prior to the project that the shoreline and the landscape beyond it would “vanish forever.”

“By working together, we were able to preserve precious natural shoreline and irreplaceable habitat,” Finnie said.

“In addition to the ecological benefits, this restoration is already attracting more visitors and special events to Illinois Beach State Park, to the Illinois Beach Hotel, and to the surrounding communities, driving more tourism dollars into this region,” she said.

The park remained open to the public throughout the construction of the breakwaters, which led to careful coordination with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to ensure safety and accessibility as 35,000 truckloads of sand were hauled within the park.

The general contractor, Michels Construction, collaborated with landscape architecture firm Living Habitats to install various habitat features at the park, including 10 tern nests, limestone ledges, 36 vegetated ecoblocks, 15 pieces of driftwood habitat salvaged from the area, five rock spurs, custom 3D-printed ecoblocks and 4,000 tons of cobblestone.

Beach Park Mayor John Hucker said the beachfront at the state park has always been a great place to visit for kids of all ages. “It is great to see the improvements completed so future generations can enjoy the beach and all that park has to offer.”

The Illinois Beach State Park Shoreline Stabilization Project marks the first project in the Midwest to achieve Waterfront Edge Design Guidelines (WEDG) Verification.

The WEDG Verification is a national rating system that recognizes resilient, ecological and accessible waterfront projects.

The project was also selected for the 2024 Best Restored Beach award through the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA).

State Senator Mary Edly-Allen, D-Grayslake, called the state park “one of our community’s greatest assets.”

“Over the years I have witnessed the landscape change and evolve, so to now see it revitalized to this magnitude gives me great joy. As a member of both the Senate Environment and Conservation Committee and the Appropriations Public Safety & Infrastructure Committee, this project highlights the investment in assets that cannot be replaced – our environment. I hope the one million annual visitors to the park can see how committed Illinois is to preserving and protecting our environment,” Edly-Allen said.

“Illinois Beach State Park is situated within a larger 4,500-acre complex of globally significant habitat,” Lake County Chair Sandy Hart said.

“Along with other public landowners such as the Lake County Forest Preserves, the Village of Winthrop Harbor, and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and in partnership with private landowners, a bi-state public-private partnership is caring for this rare dune and swale habitat, which has been designated a Wetland of International Importance. The State’s investment in Illinois Beach State Park will accelerate the protection of this critical landscape,” Hart said.

PEORIA (25News Now) – 2024 was one of Illinois’ busiest construction seasons ever.

With an increase in the state’s gas tax, Illinois spent $249.5 million for 10 major projects in IDOT’s District 4. The gas tax is at 47 cents per gallon for Fiscal Year 2024-2025.

The new eastbound McClugage Bridge is one of the major projects on the list.

“Once the deck is complete, then the contractor can focus on finishing the pavement approaching on the new bridge, installing all new fences and railings,” said IDOT spokesperson Paul Wappel. “There’s still a lot of work to complete, but we hope to open the bridge to vehicle traffic in early December.”

Weather pending, East Peoria’s Streets Department Supervisor Rick Semonski said the nearly $14 million Springfield Road project will finish before the end of October. He said it would not cause any issues for the annual Festival of Lights parade and the famous Winter Wonderland.

“Crews are milling and paving now, which is getting close to one of the final steps,” Semonski said. “The final steps, of course, would be cleanup, striping, and there’s some concrete work to wrap up.”

If all goes according to plan, the project from start to finish would only have lasted six months.

Below is a list of projects the Illinois Department of Transportation provided 25News, which outlines the statuses of the projects. Comments from IDOT spokesperson Paul Wappel are listed in bold.

Peoria County

• Eastbound War Memorial Drive (U.S. 150) at Adams Street (Illinois 29) in Peoria: The current extended lane closure is Illinois American Water. IDOT said they are not sure how long they will be there.
• Adams Street (Illinois 29) between Lorentz Avenue and Eureka Street in Peoria:  Will stay the same until the new McClugage opens to traffic.
• I-474 at Airport Road (exit 5) near Peoria:  Stage 1 of the project is complete, and the contractor is working on Stage 2 now. Weather permitting, they hope to get the Stage 2 deck poured this year, but the overall completion of the project is not until October 2025.  This project is currently well ahead of schedule.
• Illinois 8 just east of Oak Hill; closed:  The road is scheduled to reopen by early November.
• Illinois 91 north of Dunlap; closed: This reopened the Friday before Labor Day (Sept. 30).
• I-474 near the I-74/Illinois 6 interchange: The contractor is currently building crossover pavement that will be used over the next two years to reconstruct the bridges on I-474.  Traffic control is expected to remain in place until just before Thanksgiving.

Tazewell County

• Illinois 78 over I-74:  Currently finishing up stage 1 completing earthwork and Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) and will be switching to stage 2 in about 2 weeks which entails removing the second part of the bridge. The estimated project completion is the end of December, weather permitting.
• U.S. 24 between Cummings Lane and Main Street in Washington: On Monday, October 7th, we will have a traffic shift on US 24 in Washington from Cummins to Main. The road will still be down to one lane in each direction, but we will switch from traffic using the inside (passing) lanes to the outside (driving) lanes. Currently, we are down to one lane in each direction, with traffic using the inside (passing) lanes.
• Ongoing construction to realign the intersection of Nofsinger Road and U.S. 24 in Washington will require lane closures on U.S. 24 that started in May. This stage of the project will reduce U.S. 24 to one lane in each direction between Cummings Lane and Main Street. Work is expected to be completed in October.
• I-155 near Hopedale and at Queenswood Avenue, Broadway Road; Allentown Road, Illinois 122, and Armington Road: The Queenwood Road and Broadway Road bridges over Interstate 155 project in Morton began in August. The project involves replacing bridge joints and resurfacing the bridge decks, and will require lane closures on both bridges through the end of November.
• Cedar Street Extension (Illinois 116/8) in East Peoria: This is part of the ongoing overhaul of the Cedar Street Bridge (Illinois 8/116) across the Illinois River. A new traffic configuration began in August. This is the first of 3 adjacent consecutive projects over the next several years. Currently, we have 2 ramps closed, and we will be closing all 4 ramps on 10/14 for 2 weeks. Hopefully, by the end of November/early December, (weather permitting) we will reopen all traffic on Cedar Street. In Spring 2025, there will be minor closures to paint the bridge.

McLean County

• U.S. 24 2 miles east of Chenoa: Stage 2 is underway. The contractor has completed driving, piling, and currently pouring the abutments. Beams will be set once curing is complete. The project will be complete by the end of November.
• Illinois 9 east of I-55/74 in Bloomington: Contractor continues to replace PCC curb and gutter, driveway entrances, and side roads. The city of Bloomington is nearing completion of the water main relocation, so the contractor can begin the reconstruction of White Oak Road. A pre-pavement meeting is scheduled for next week, as the contractor plans to begin Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) surface removal next week on Market Street and pave new HMA the following week. The estimated completion date is June 2025.

Woodford County

• U.S. 24 west of Eureka: Work on the U.S. 24 bridge continues with two-way traffic shifting from the eastbound lane to the westbound lane, controlled by temporary signals. This configuration is expected to last through October.

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(WIFR) – With about a month left before the Nov. 5 general election, some northern Illinois voters have a chance to cast their ballot in the House of Representatives District 67 race. Incumbent Democrat Maurice West and Republican candidate Glen Oland will face off in a rematch.

In 2022, West beat the Republican challenger by 10% of the vote. As the two face off again, West believes he can build on his successes as he looks to win a fourth term.

“I want to ensure that the west side and south side of Rockford is getting the same opportunities as the east side of Rockford,” says West. “I want to make sure that Loves Park, Cherry Valley and New Milford know I’m not just not a Rockford rep, I’m a rep for even the smaller municipalities in my District.”

Oland believes it is time for change, specifically when it comes to the SAFE-T Act.

“We are the only state in the nation that has that law,” states Oland. “I want to repeal that, and it’s a terrible thing to have to repeal stuff but that’s kind of where I’m at right now.”

Both candidates also prioritize bringing jobs to the district but, they have much different ways going about it.

“Once we get more people in the work force, now there’s more income tax coming in, there’s more of a tax base, now we can talk about lowering our taxes, now we can talk about lowering crime, that’s how we flank these issues,” explains West.

“He is always tax and spend, that’s not going to be the answer. Lowering taxes makes more jobs happen, and lowering taxes makes it so companies can be more profitable and so they can hire more people, and that’s the way it works, it doesn’t work the other way,” says Oland.

Stateline residents are reminded to make sure they are registered to vote in the Nov. 5 election. If you are unsure whether you’re registered, the Illinois State Board of Elections has a Registration Lookup Tool on its website. If you’re registered, it will also tell you your Election Day polling place. If you need to register to vote, you can find more information here.

Early voting is underway in Illinois and continues through Monday, Nov. 4. For more information on early voting, click here.

Copyright 2024 WIFR. All rights reserved.