Kankakee County has grown by 1,000 residents every year since the 2000 U.S. Census. A decade ago, there were 104,000 people, and the estimated population in 2010 is 114,000. For that reason, officials with the Economic Alliance of Kankakee County are trumpeting the region as an ideal place for businesses to relocate and expand. The workforce is plentiful and well trained, there is plenty of good land available, and the county is close to Chicago. Officials are getting aggressive about recruiting new business to the county. “We're going after industries and trying to find those that are looking to expand into the Midwest, using our proximity to the Chicago market as an asset,” says Mike Van Mill, president and CEO of the Economic Alliance of Kankakee County.

Life Is a Highway
Van Mill points out that Kankakee County is lucky to be situated in a region that boasts a strong highway system. The region is bisected by Interstate 57 and is minutes from Interstates 55, 65 and 80. There is also easy access to U.S. Highways 45 and 55, as well as Illinois Routes 1, 17, 50, 102, 113, 114 and 115. That convenient highway system was a big factor in 2008 and 2009 when Walmart established two new supercenters at opposite ends of Interstate 57. In addition, substantial development has been occurring these days along I-57 at exit 308, where the Greater Kankakee Airport is located.

To Air Is Human
Speaking of Greater Kankakee Airport, it is the largest airport serving the South Chicago area in 2010. It has 50,000 arrivals and departures a year, averaging more than 135 flights daily. Greater Kankakee is primarily a general aviation facility, with many customers storing their private jets and airplanes in the airfield's 120 hangars. There are two upgraded runways, with the main runway set up to handle a Gulfstream V aircraft, the largest business jet currently being made. Local businesses that use Kankakee Regional Airport include Armstrong World Industries, Cognis, Crown Cork & Seal, CSL Behring, Dow Chemical and Thoro-Matic. Other companies that frequently use the airfield are Cigna Healthcare, Kmart, Sears, Spectra Group and Target.

The Caboose of This Story
Van Mill points out that if any industry is looking to ship goods by rail, Kankakee County is only an hour's truck drive from Chicago and the Windy City's wealth of railway cargo carriers.