In what came as a surprise to some, those who attended Tuesday’s Joliet City Council meeting noticed that the usual seat occupied by Joliet City Manager Jim Capparelli was vacant.
During a closed session portion of the pre-council meeting on Monday evening the council voted to ask for Capparelli’s resignation. Rod Tonelli, board chairman of the Joliet City Center partnership will be the new interim city manager.
Capparelli’s contract expires on July 12. The Council was open to the city manager remaining in the position as a search for his replacement is conducted but, Newly elected Mayor Terry D’Arcy said Capparelli opted to submit his resignation Tuesday morning. Capparelli was Joliet’s city manager since January 2021.
Additionally, the Joliet City Council Tuesday once again unanimously tabled a quarry blasting proposal near a residential neighborhood. The council back in January postponed vote on the controversial first amendment to the annexation agreement for six parcels of land near 800 Richards St. and 620 Sandall until after the April election, which some residents claimed was nothing more than a political ploy. No reason was given for why the proposal was tabled again Tuesday night.
The parcels are owned by VM Land and First Midwest Bank, which recently merged with Old National Bank, and the annexation agreement would allow P.T. Ferro construction company to continue and expand their clean soil operations by allowing aggregate explosive assisting blasting as opposed to the current method of hydraulic crushing.
If approved, the proposal would allow the area to continue operating as a flagstone quarry and a clean construction/demolition debris disposal site. The use would allow mining, rock crushing and outdoor industrial processing of mined materials. But the proposal stipulates that the blasting can only occur between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
If approved, Joliet residents in the southeast side of town are concerned they will live under constant noise, which they say would have a negative impact on their quality of life.
The quarry blasting proposal was tabled with no future agenda date determined.
