The Kankakee Riverfront Society, the not-for-profit organization spearheading The Currents of Kankakee and the transformation of the downtown Kankakee riverfront, invites residents and riverfront advocates to review preliminary concepts for the inaugural East Riverwalk during a virtual public open house on Tuesday, November 17, at 7pm. This online event will be hosted on Zoom and include a presentation by members of the Kankakee Riverfront Society and Hitchcock Design Group consultant team.

 

The presentation is the second of three public events that are associated with the preliminary design of the East Riverwalk. The East Riverwalk is the working name for the first segment of The Currents of Kankakee, the new riverfront district first described in the 2018 Kankakee Riverfront Master Plan. The East Riverwalk is planned for the southeast corner of Schuyler Avenue and East River Street on three properties that the City of Kankakee recently acquired. Please see the attached Project Synopsis for additional East Riverwalk facts.

 

Building on the information gathered from the online community survey, the 50+ successful onsite stakeholder interviews and insightful public open house feedback in mid-September, the consultant team has been collaborating with the Kankakee Riverfront Society to advance promising concepts for the East Riverwalk. During the November 17 event, the consultant will summarize the East Riverwalk Improvement Program and reveal two alternative East Riverwalk Concepts. They will also discuss a preliminary implementation strategy that, along with a preferred concept, will be refined for presentation to the public and City Council early next year.

 

Because of ongoing pandemic-related restrictions, Staci Wilken, Chairperson of the Kankakee Riverfront Society, urges the community to participate in the Zoom presentation on November 17. “From our community survey, we heard loud and clear that implementation of the 2018 Riverfront Master Plan is either very or somewhat important to the City’s future. The virtual open house is certainly the best way for the public to see what we have already accomplished and to visualize the upcoming transformation of the East Riverwalk properties.” 

 

Guests can access the event online at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85306789205 or by phoning in at 312-626-6799 using meeting ID: 853 0678 9205. During and after the presentation, you will be able to direct written questions to the presenters. They will subsequently post answers to the Project Website.   

 

The Kankakee Riverfront Society, Inc. (KRS) is a not-for-profit 501 (c) (3) organization dedicated to the implementation of the 2018 Kankakee Riverfront Master Plan. KRS includes City of Kankakee and Kankakee Valley Park District officials and other community leaders whose mission is to make The Currents of Kankakee an extraordinary riverfront experience that will transform the region’s image, raise its marketplace appeal and enhance its quality of life.

 

The Currents of Kankakee brand for the Kankakee Riverfront was created and is owned by the Kankakee Riverfront Society.

 

Preliminary Design of the East Riverwalk is funded by a Community Development Block Grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is administered by the City of Kankakee Economic and Community Development Agency.

 

Please see the attached Project Synopsis or visit the Project Website at www.hitchcockdesigngroup.com/kankakee-east-riverwalk/ for more information.

 

For more information about The Currents of Kankakee, please contact Staci Wilken by email at staci@kccvb.com or by phone at 815-935-7390; or Tim King by email at tking@hitchcockdesigngroup.com or by phone at 630-698-5960. 

 

cc:                    Mayor Chasity Wells-Armstrong, City of Kankakee

                          Jasmyne Humble, City of Kankakee

                          Barbi Brewer-Watson, Kankakee ECDA

                          Rachel Schramm, Kankakee ECDA

                          Staci Wilken, Kankakee Riverfront Society

                          Tim King, Lacey Lawrence, Rick Hitchcock, Hitchcock Design Group

 

Download the Press Release - Kankakee Riverfront Society Announces East Riverwalk Virtual Public Open House