Mayor John Noak delivered the 35th Annual State of the Village address recently at the Romeoville Athletic & Event Center hosted by the Romeoville Area Chamber of Commerce to a crowd of nearly 400 attendees. The address laid out the Village’s strong financial footing as well as many projects and the diligence of the various departments that serve the community.
The Village will again lower their portion of the property tax bill for the 10th year in a row while also planning to roll out another property tax rebate for the coming year. The 2024 $75 rebate per home was the largest property tax rebate in Village history. For 2025 it was noted that the rebate will be an even higher dollar amount per home. With strong retail sales, continued job growth, and continue rising of property values this means a strong financial base from which to pass a balanced budget.
There were over 800 active business licenses by the end of 2024, 69 of which were for new businesses including Sable Creek Winery, Kiddie Academy, Ross, Five Below and Mercedes-Benz of Romeoville. Businesses already in the community re-invested, spending a collective $2.6 million on improvements. A few examples include Romeo Plaza (135th & Rt. 53), Scene 75, and Pop’s Italian Beef & Sausage. Soon to join these flourishing Romeoville businesses are Marriott Townplace Suites (Weber & Lakeview) and QuikTrip (Weber & Normantown). Preparing to break ground, is Monarch Grove, a 180-unit, three-story senior living community along with development of an additional Class A multi-family development at the corner of Weber Rd & 135th St. Additional businesses to look forward to including Wing Snob (Weber & Grand), Earth Movers Credit Union (Weber & Airport), Sephora (inside Kohl’s), and Scooter’s Coffee (Rt. 53 & Greenwood). Mayor Noak also announced a partnership with the American Legion as they build out space for a new American Legion Hall at 721 N. Independence Blvd.
A strong financial footing means the Village can continue to invest and modernize different departments for the benefit of our residents through new equipment, new initiatives, and new amenities. Be it using online systems to streamline permits and requests or the addition of more cameras in the parks, the departments are keeping up with advancing technology and using it for safety and efficiency. Also, training and recruitment are vitally important. The Police Department started a Cadet program for students between the ages of 14 to 20 who are interested in law enforcement.
The students could one day become the new wave of Romeoville Police Officers. The Fire Department’s Fire Academy continues to be an admired institution in the fire service, training nearly 1,500 students in 2024. The Academy received a $380,000 grant in 2024 from Endeavor Health for continued support of workforce development aimed at recruiting, training, and launching firefighter and EMT careers with a focus on young adults from diverse communities.
The Recreation Department opened the dog park and sled hill at Romeo Crossing Park while continuing work on Phase III of the park, which will bring an adaptive sports field and playground area, as well as a challenge fitness course and restrooms.
Conservation continues to be a priority in Romeoville, Mayor Noak said.
“The Village partnered with the Will County Nature Foundation and the Will County Forest Preserve District for a native plant sale last year to encourage residents to incorporate them in their home landscaping.” Additionally, the Village is ensuring new developments use only native plants in their landscaping. New pollinator gardens were planted in town and Mayor Noak reaffirmed the community’s commitment to preserving the Monarch butterfly by taking the Mayor’s Monarch Challenge, a series of actions aimed at saving the habitat of these iconic butterflies.
In addition to the number of projects discussed, Mayor Noak also noted that several projects are in the final phase, and they hope to have more announcements over the coming weeks and months.
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