10 Photos: What Do Joliet's Downtown Streets Look Like Now?

(The city of Joliet issued the following press release on Thursday.)

JOLIET — As part of the winter phase of construction for the downtown Chicago Street Streetscape project, traffic control and safety measures will be changing beginning, Thursday, January 9, opening Van Buren Street from Chicago Street to Scott Street, and Chicago Street from Van Buren Street to Clinton Street.

Clinton Street will remain open.

There is no daytime parking on Chicago Street from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. to allow continued construction activities. Evening use of the east parking lane is allowed for ADA drop off at the entrance to the Rialto Theatre. The downtown valet station will move from Clinton Street to Chicago Street south of Clinton Street.

Pedestrians are cautioned to only access the sidewalks using completed concrete access areas. The area between the curb and sidewalk is still under construction.

The existing closures of Chicago Street from Jefferson to Van Buren Street, and also from Clinton Street to Cass Street must remain closed until ComEd completes their vault reconstructions in these blocks. On street parking will not be allowed within these closures, and use of the City Center parking deck is highly recommended.

Safety fencing for pedestrian routes is in place throughout the construction zone but all businesses are open and pedestrian access to all businesses will be maintained at all times. Additional information will be released as construction phasing progresses.