The Will County Village of Monee will celebrate its sesquicentennial, 150 years, of incorporation this November.

The community, which now has a population of 5,084, was started as an Illinois Central railroad town by Augustus Herbert in 1853. It owes its early history, as many Illinois communities do, to being a station stop. Incorporation came Nov. 9, 1874.

The town’s name dates from Marie LeFevre Bailly, a woman of half-French and half-Ottawa descent. The 1833 Treaty of Tippecanoe made a gift of land to Marie’s four daughters. Bailly’s name was Mah-Ree, but the Ottawa had no letter “R.” So it became Mah-Nee and then was recorded on the treaty as Monee.

And while no historic images of Monee have come down to us, the village has commissioned a nine-foot statue of Monee, in her pioneer role as storyteller, that will be installed as part of the sesquicentennial.

Ruben Bautista, Administrator for the Village, said this year’s Fall Fest in Monee will greatly expand to take in Sesquicentennial events. Fall Fest occurs annually each September on the weekend after Labor Day. This year’s celebration is scheduled for Sept. 6-8.

The Monee Historical Society, 5210 W. Court, will be open as part of the event, Bautista said. The Fall Fest will include a parade, a carnival, arts and crafts for sale, music and an antique car show. Of special interest will be the location of the Moving Vietnam Wall, a replica of the larger memorial in Washington, D.C.

Monee, Bautista said, is reaching out to area police forces and to American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts to encourage their participation.

The village also has a traditional Christmas celebration the first Saturday in December. Santa arrives on a fire truck, and there is a tree lighting at city hall.

Monee is, thus, a town with a strong and relevant history, but it is also an area with a bright economic future. It has served for many years as a bedroom community for folks who work in Chicago, but it also is generating significant jobs on its own.

Monee was one of 11 sites nationwide selected as a fulfillment center for Amazon. It’s the final stop where items are placed on the truck and driven to your home. Amazon employs a whopping 5,000 people, 3,400 of them full time. Amazon, Bautista said, has done a great job supporting community activities.

Monee also is home to the United States’ site of Voortman Steel. Voortman, a firm from the Netherlands, produces I-beams. Their employment could double.

“These are good jobs, some involving robotics to cut steel,” Bautista said.

Another Monee employer is Home Depot, which has a warehouse.

The community’s population basically is stable. Single-family homes predominate. There is an older historic section of homes, including Victorians, near the intersection of Oak and Main. There is some housing construction under way. Bautista said eight building permits in the Eagle Faire Subdivision were issued during the last year.

<strong>Municipal improvements</strong>

Meanwhile village government and services are getting a huge upgrade in many areas. That’s the result of husbanding money from several years of good budgets and grants. The village began setting aside money in 2015.

“We have been frugal,” Bautista said. “There was a long stretch of time when we did not have any major projects.”

Then came the time when Monee couldn’t afford not to do something.

The village’s main park, Fireman’s Park, is in the midst of a $6 million upgrade. The park, 10 acres, was originally a gift from the fire department. Monee is served by a fire protection district, a separate government, with mostly part-time and volunteer firefighters.

The park will get better drainage. The football field and the baseball field will be improved, with the baseball diamond being reconfigured. A state park OSLAD grant will help. Diana Kroll is the parks and recreation director. Bautista praises her as a person with her hands on the pulse of the community.

The former Riverside Medical Center building in Monee has been purchased and will become the new village hall. The current village hall will serve as the administration building for the parks department. Monee has its own parks and recreation department. It is not a separate government.

Additional recreation nearby includes the Monee Reservoir, which offers boating, fishing and kayaking, along with many other outdoor activities.

Other major projects in the works or projected this year include an estimated $10 million to construct a new public works facility; $5 million in roadwork; $2.5 million for water mains and $2.5 million for sanitary sewers. Monee has its own water system. For sewers, Monee owns the lines, but contracts with Aqua Illinois for treatment. Last year, the village upgraded sidewalks with American Rescue Plan Act money.

Dr. Therese Bogs, a dentist, is the mayor. Bautista said she is an excellent person to work for. The village has its own police department, 21 officers under the direction of Scott Koerner, the former commander of the state SWAT team.

Bautista explained that the officers are the eyes and ears of the community. Several police officers have befriended and helped senior citizens in need at the Golf Vista Estates senior village.

<strong>Community with a heart</strong>

Monee is also a place with a big heart in other ways. The community’s churches have come together in the Monee Alliance of Churches. That started in 2013. The churches help with the Fall Fest. The also aid in the annual community cleanup and cooperate in vacation Bible schools.

They have an annual Love Monee weekend that includes a food pantry, free haircuts, a community garden and book giveaways.

Bautista related a story about how Monee is here to help. Three years ago, there was a resident who had accumulated $9,000 in various code violation tickets. His yard had an abandoned vehicle. The grass was not mowed. The roof needed work. There was a half-finished ramp.

Convinced that there must be more to the story, village officials intervened. It turned out that the resident was a grandfather raising a wheelchair-bound grandson. The owner had paid someone to build a ramp. The contractor took the money and never completed the work.

Volunteers pitched in. In addition to church members, Amazon employees and athletes from Governors State University joined in. The roof was repaired. Gutters were cleaned. The ramp was finished.