Archive for May, 2010

More on the IDOT-Vulcan Materials Settlement concerning Joliet Road

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

$40M settles Joliet Road closure dispute :: The SouthtownStar :: News

SUN-TIMES MEDIA WIRE

A company that produces construction materials will pay $40 million to the Illinois Department of Transportation after a 12-year legal dispute about a section of Joliet Road in McCook.

Vulcan Materials Co. does not admit liability in the settlement, which was reached after three weeks of negotiation, IDOT said Tuesday.

The one-mile stretch of Joliet Road from 55th Street to East Avenue was closed in May 1998 because the road was substantially damaged and unsafe for vehicular traffic. The one-mile stretch runs through the middle of two Vulcan open pit quarry mines, one to the north and one to the south.

IDOT experts concluded the roadway was destabilized from years of mining by Vulcan and any attempts to repair and reopen Joliet Road would require frequent and expensive maintenance, including lane closures, IDOT said. Vulcan at the time would not agree to state-requested mining setbacks and land contributions necessary to implement repair options.

The lawsuit was filed by the state in 2001. Vulcan has ceased mining activities in the two quarries and has announced plans to fill and develop the north quarry.

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IDOT and Vulcan Settle Joliet Road Lawsuit

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

Quoting from a press release and announcement through the PRNewswire:

Vulcan Materials Company today announced the settlement of a lawsuit filed against the Company by the State of Illinois and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT).  IDOT will receive a total of $40 million in full and final settlement of the lawsuit.  

Under terms of the settlement, IDOT will receive $20 million within 10 days. The remaining $20 million will be paid as Vulcan receives funds from its insurers, with the full amount to be paid no later than nine months from the date of the settlement.  While Vulcan believes that the settlement is covered by insurance policies and is taking appropriate actions to facilitate recovery from its insurers, the ultimate amount and timing of such recoveries cannot be predicted with certainty.

More information about how this section of Joliet Road is important to Route 66 is available in two recent blog post on this website, click here or here to see those earlier blog posts.

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Online Chicago Route 66 Driving Guide

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

Douglas Park Flower Hall

Douglas Park Flower Hall on Route 66 (Ogden Avenue) in Chicago

Back in 2003-04, a series of five articles titled Driving Route 66 in Chicagoland was published in the Federation News, the quarterly publication of the National Historic Route 66 Federation The series began in Autumn 2003 and took readers from Ogden and Jackson in Chicago down Jackson Boulevard to Halsted Street.

In the Winter 2004 issue, we continued down Jackson through Chicago’s Loop to Lake Shore Drive. Spring 2004 saw us driving west on Adams Street from Michigan Avenue to Halsted Street in Chicago’s Greektown neighborhood. In the Summer of 2004, we continued on Adams Street to Ogden Avenue. Finally, in Autumn 2004 we took a trip down Ogden Avenue through Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood and the suburbs Cicero and Berwyn.

All five of these Driving Tour articles are now available online on this website for viewing or printing. They are in Adobe .pdf format and they are scanned as originally published in the Federation News. They are a part of my ongoing archive of articles that have appeared in the Federation News since 2002.

Some changes have inevitably occurred along Route 66 since these articles were originally published, and I try to describe those changes on the archive page. However, the general info and directions in the articles remain as useful today as when originally published.

I of course would love it if everyone would like the more detailed information available in my book, Exploring Route 66 in Chicagoland, available on this website for purchase. Please buy the book! But for those of you that would like a free overview of the Route 66 driving corridor in Chicago, please use this free resource for yourselves.

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Posted in Chicago, Highway Links, History, Illinois, Route 66 Federation News, Tours, US | 1 Comment »

Al’s #1 Beef opens on Route 66

Tuesday, May 11th, 2010

Als Beef Adams Street Chicago

Als #1 Italian Beef, 601 W. Adams (Westbound Route 66), Chicago

A famous Chicago eatery now has a new location on Adams Street (westbound Route 66). Al’s #1 Italian Beef invented the beef sandwich back in 1938 in Chicago’s Little Italy neighborhood. Their sandwich started as a way to stretch scarce beef during the Great Depression, slicing it thinly and serving it with au jus gravy and a choice of hot or sweet peppers on a large roll. Their business began as delivery only, catering to the needs of workers at nearby hospitals and businesses. For years, their only location remained in Little Italy at 1079 W. Taylor Street. The menu expanded over time to include Italian and Polish Sausage, Chicago-style hot dogs, and their famous hand-cut French fries. New ownership began franchising Al’s in 1999, and the restaurant at Adams and Jefferson Streets is one of their newest.

Als Italian Beef at night

Als #1 Italian Beef at night

The building now occupied by Al’s Italian Beef on Adams Street was previously the location of restaurants named Angelo’s and West Loop Cafe. It is located near Union Station and an easy walk from Sears Willis Tower. The new Adams location features a fanciful giant soft drink cup over the entrance. I believe the largest drink on the menu comes in a somewhat smaller cup

For more information on Al’s Italian Beef, check out their website at www.alsbeef.com

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Restored Tower Revealed!

Monday, May 10th, 2010

International Tailoring Company Building, circa 2003

International Tailoring Company Building, circa 2003 when the clock tower was still sheathed in ugly corrugated metal.

The International Tailoring Building at 847 W. Jackson Boulevard (eastbound Route 66) in Chicago has been on the National Register of Historic Places since June 2008. It is currently undergoing an interior renovation as Tailor Lofts, to be used as off-campus student apartments for the University of Illinois-Chicago. More importantly for Route 66 travelers, the beautiful exterior restoration has brought the building back to its original look. For years, a four-story clock tower was sheathed in ugly corrugated metal.

The gleaming enameled terra cotta now shines again, and the four clock faces show the current time in all directions just as they did when the building first opened in 1916.

The restored International Tailoring Building as it looks today

The restored International Tailoring Building as it looks today.

The second decade of the 20th century was a volatile time in the Chicago garment industry. Most large clothing companies farmed piecework out to sweatshops that employed immigrants for low pay in deplorable conditions. In the aftermath of several worker strikes, companies like International Tailoring decided to build large modern factories and to hire the workers directly, thus putting the sweatshops out of business. This building is a legacy of that period in Chicago history.

The building was built in 1916 from designs by the architectural firm of Mundie & Jensen, formerly Jenney, Mundie & Jensen. This firm was established originally by William LeBaron Jenney, the architect and engineer responsible for building the Home Insurance Building in 1885, the world’s first skyscraper to use steel beams in its structural skeleton. The firm also designed the downtown building used for a Sears Store at the southeast corner of Van Buren and State (currently Robert Morris University), and the Union League Club at 65 W. Jackson.

Ron Warnick posted about the International Tailoring Building on Route 66 News when the building was first placed on the National Register in 2008. There is also a Wikipedia entry concerning the building. It is great to see a grand old building on Route 66 lovingly restored and revived for a great new purpose.

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Posted in Architecture, Chicago, Events, Highway Links, Illinois, US | No Comments »