U-Haul wants to overhaul Joliet hotel property

The troubled Joliet Plaza Inn near the Jefferson Street interchange with Interstate 55 could be replaced by a U-Haul rental and storage facility.

The Joliet City Council on Tuesday will vote on a plan to replace the hotel property with a U-Haul truck rental and indoor storage operation.

Once a premier hotel site because of its proximity to I-55, the property at 4200 W. Jefferson St. has changed hands over the years as new owners have tried to revive the hotel, which in its better days also featured a restaurant and bar.

The City Council in 2020 agreed to hold off on a vote that would have declared the property a nuisance when new owners laid out their plans for redeveloping the property.

Along with the challenges of competing with newer hotels built by major chains coming to Joliet, the property sustained serious damage in a 2014 storm that shut down an entire wing along with the swimming pool.

The hotel still is operating but only partially used.

The U-Haul plan includes tearing down the existing hotel building and constructing two new buildings for the truck rental and indoor storage operation.