Joliet zoning board gives green light to plans for Jefferson Street

Separate plans for Jefferson Street development-a new three-story medical building and a cannabis dispensary in a former Bakers Square restaurant-advanced through the Joliet Zoning Board of Appeals on Thursday.

The approvals came despite one Joliet resident’s argument that the cannabis dispensary will contribute to the degradation of Jefferson Street.

There was no opposition to the future Duly Health and Care medical building that will occupy a site last occupied by a Ford dealership that moved out in the late 1990s.

Mitch Goltz with GW Properties, which will develop the GW site, said the medical building will add to the appearance of Jefferson Street.

“There will be a lot of improvements, a lot of new landscaping and development filling a large hole on Jefferson Street,” Goltz said.

The zoning board’s vote was the last city approval needed for the Duly building, which is planned for a 2024 opening on the site at 2000 W. Jefferson St.

The board’s approval of a special use permit for the cannabis dispensary, however, serves as a recommendation to the City Council, which will have the final vote in August.

Joliet resident Jack Hermanski cautioned against approval of the dispensary.

Noting that Jefferson Street was called the “Golden Mile,” when businesses rushed to open there in past decades, Hermanski said, “Over the years, it’s taken a hit. It’s very diminished. There are a lot of empty buildings.”

The former Bakers Square restaurant at 2211 W. Jefferson St. is one empty building, and there is a strip mall nearby that also is vacant. But Hermanski said the cannabis dispensary is not the answer.

“Jefferson has alcohol, tobacco, and now we’re looking at cannabis,” he said.

Craig Krandall, the attorney for Emerald Coast, which would operate the cannabis dispensary, said it would be a “positive influence, not negative on the area.”

Krandall said Emerald Coast will improve the building, which will be protected by security that will address other issues raised by Hermanski.

The dispensary will have a security staff and cameras, “that will provide a direct feed to the local police if desired,” Krandall said.

Joliet now has two cannabis dispensaries, both of which operate under the Rise brand. One is located outside the Louis Joliet Mall. The Jefferson Street dispensary would operate under the Bloc brand.

The zoning board voted, 4-1, to recommend approval of the special use permit to the City Council.

“This is a legal company in the state of Illinois,” Chairman Ed Hennessy said. “I I see no reason to object to it.”