The future Joliet City Square and Chicago Street redesign is on schedule, city officials said, even with the stumbling block that arose this week over a “Dome of Unity” planned as a centerpiece sculpture for the downtown gathering place.

“It’s actually a little bit ahead of schedule,” Mayor Terry D’Arcy said when asked about the project’s progress.

The public will be able to judge for itself in just a few months.

The city plans to have the annual “Light Up the Holidays” parade, held each year on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day, on Chicago Street as usual, with the Christmas tree lighting in the new square.

Not everything will be done by then, but the square will be accessible, said Lisa Dorothy, the city civil engineer who is project manager for the site.

“I definitely want to be ready to have the parade on Chicago Street,” Dorothy said. “And, I want to be able to have the Christmas tree in its new location.”

[ Photos: Construction continues on the city square project in Downtown Joliet ]

That new location for the Christmas tree will be in the square across Chicago Street from the Rialto Square Theatre, a spot not far from the old location in what is now the bygone Van Buren Plaza.

Dorothy noted that the landscaping, which includes trees and flowers, for the square will not be planted until the spring.

But there should be green space in the square this winter, even though it will not be natural green space.

“We don’t have grass. We have astroturf.” Dorothy said. “There’s astroturf and hard pavers.”

The city chose astroturf over grass for what is planned to be a gathering space with many events and activities that draw public traffic, which could wear down a natural grass surface.

The stage also is not likely to be fully equipped with audio-visual equipment until the spring.

But the square should be basically ready by the end of this year for whatever wintertime relaxation people may pursue in the new public space created on Chicago Street across from the Rialto and just across Clinton Street from the Joliet Public Library’s downtown branch.

“That is the goal – that it will be available for the public to walk through and enjoy," Dorothy said.

City Center showcase

The plantings in the spring will dress up the square for the Route 66 100th anniversary activities that kick off in April.

Joliet is one of five cities along historic Route 66 chosen as satellite cities for an April 30 kickoff event for the anniversary, which is expected to draw tourists from across the country and around the world. Route 66, which passes through downtown, already is a global tourist destination.

The main location in the city for the April 30 festivities is the Old Joliet Prison. But D’Arcy said the city wants to make downtown and the new square part of the celebration.

“We’re going to work in festivities for the City Center square because we have something to be proud of,” D’Arcy said.

Joliet has hired Cultural Affairs Director Ann Sylvester, whose responsibilities include planning events at the square.

“I envision a lot of fun stuff coming to the City Center,” D’Arcy said.

One thing that was to come was the “Dome of Unity,” a sculpture chosen among 50 entries when the city invited proposals for a centerpiece to add a bit of art to the square.

But pushback on social media, including resistance to the $197,000 price tag for the sculpture, put a City Council vote on the “Dome of Unity” on hold. The council was to vote this past Tuesday on the sculpture.

It’s not clear whether the city will move ahead with the “Dome of Unity,” although it was selected by the city Arts Commission after a public process that included what the city said were nearly 3,000 online votes by the public to determine the finalists in the sculptures that were considered.

Dorothy said the square construction can be completed with a sculpture being added when it’s ready.

“The foundation and uplighting is going in,” she said, referring to lighting to highlight a future sculpture. “We are going to be able to put the pavers in. When the artist is ready, we’ll just lift up the pavers.”