< Previous38 I N T E R S E C T IL L I N O I Susinesses have met their Waterloo, and it’s a win all the way around.Located just minutes south of downtown St. Louis, the town of Waterloo near the Mississippi River in southwestern Illinois o ers something for everyone, whether you’re seeking gainful employment or just a pleasant day trip.From the quiet walking trails and scenic lake of Konarcik Park to the lively community playhouse of the Capitol eatre, Waterloo belies its small-town stature and provides quality-of-life amenities normally found in much larger cities.Whether it’s touring the historic Illinois Caverns or enjoying the tastes and aromas of Been Tree Café, Waterloo is sure to delight both nature lover and co ee a cionado alike.C O M M U N I T Y P R O F I L E – W A T E R L O Oby R O N S TA R N E RBWaterloo: Where Businesses Meet Their MatchI N T E R S E C T I L L I N O I S 39A city of just , residents in Monroe County, Waterloo is no stranger to important historical events. From the French and Indian Wars of the mid- th century to the American Revolutionary War of the late s, Waterloo has seen more than its share of battles and conquests.But that’s a far cry from what you’ll nd happening in this bucolic town today. Tree-lined streets, an immaculate golf course and plenty of history bu s will be on hand to greet any visitor willing to spend the time to learn and absorb what Waterloo has to o er.A pro-business climate stands ready with incentives to facilitate economic development projects, and an a ordable cost structure means that any business will nd it that much easier to turn a pro t. According to Trulia, the median home sales price for homes sold in Waterloo between May and August of was $,. Meanwhile, median rent for apartments in the community was $ , per month. e cost of living index in Waterloo is . .Safewise.com ranked Waterloo as the th Safest City in America in , and just . percent of the city’s population live below the poverty line.City leaders and developers also believe in growth, as three master-planned communities o er some lots available for building. ree more planned developments stand to bring another homesites to the community in future years.And just in case you don’t have enough fun in Waterloo on a regular day, be sure to stop by for visits to the annual Waterloo Christmas on the Square, Mayfest or Porta Westfalica Festival. A pro-business climate stands ready with incentives to facilitate economic development projects, and an affordable cost structure means that any business will find it that much easier to turn a profit.40 I N T E R S E C T IL L I N O I Sooking to go to outer space? Take your gaze closer to home and look toward the banks of Rock River in Northern Illinois. e ,-resident Rockford region is home to four tier-one aerospace companies including GE Aviation, UTC Aerospace Systems and Woodward, and more than suppliers are located within a -minute drive to serve aerospace giants like Boeing and Airbus. e aerospace cluster in the region is bolstered by the Rockford Area Aerospace Network (RAAN), a consortium of companies working to make the Rockford area more competitive for aerospace investment. e local talent base fuels this cluster. e Rockford metro area boasts more than . times the number of engineers than the U.S. average, with more than ,. Additionally, more than , engineers live within miles of the city. And with several targeted aerospace industry training programs, there’s plenty of access to skilled workers. Engineering our Future is a partnership between Northern Illinois University (NIU) and Rock Valley College (RVC). e partnership allows students to earn a bachelor’s degree in engineering from NIU at the RVC campus for less than $ , and to earn work experience through internships with local employers. RVC o ers an aviation maintenance technology program where students learn everything form materials and process to fuel, lubrication, ignition and propeller systems. e program is housed in the Aviation by S AVA N N A H K I N GC O MMU N I T Y P RO F I L E – RO C K F O R DLRockford: Reaching for the StarsCoronado Theatre in RockfordPhoto courtesy of enjoy illinoisI N T E R S E C T I L L I N O I S 41Career Education Center at Chicago Rockford International Airport. In early August, Ingersoll Machine Tools built a mammoth machine (trademarked Mongoose) that will manufacture cryogenic tanks to be filled with liquid oxygen and hydrogen to fuel rockets. The company built the 51-feet-tall, 136-feet-long and 43-feet-wide machine for Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ space exploration company, Blue Origin. Landing large customers is nothing new for Ingersoll Machine Tools, which also built the rotating base for the world’s largest telescope in Hawaii.“Rockford, Illinois, is back on the map of manufacturing. We don’t talk about that much, but there are some very good things happening here,” Tino Oldani, president and CEO of Ingersoll Machine Tools, told the Rockford Register.In July, UTC Aerospace Systems, a unit of Connecticut-based United Technologies Corp., announced it would open a new Intelligent Aircraft Technologies Lab in the city. The lab will be dedicated to accelerating development of more intelligent and connected aircraft systems to optimize airline operational efficiency, as well as providing new insights for design and manufacturing. UTC is one of the world’s largest suppliers of technologically advanced aerospace and defense products. Advanced manufacturing is another key Rockford industry; it has a long history of creating products for the automotive, aerospace, health care and medical device markets. A Rockford-based company since 1973, Rockford Ball Screw, manufacturer of ball screws and guide rails, recently expanded its facility by 30,000 square feet in the Southrock Industrial Park. Currently, the company has about 70 employees with plans to create up to 25 more jobs. Located within miles of four interstates and major railroads and the Chicago Rockford International Airport, the Rockford region is a business-friendly community with a high quality of life. It is the state’s fifth-largest city (pop. 147,051) and offers the excitement of city life with the sense of community one can only find in a small town. With a cost of living 18 percent below the national average, a 20-minute commute on average, quality K-12 and higher education institutions and its pro-business mentality, Rockford is an easy choice. Musicians at Anderson Japanese GardensPhoto courtesy of enjoy illinois42 I N T E R S E C T IL L I N OI Sith monikers like “City of Opportunity” in Mt. Vernon, and Jefferson County’s “Jobs Capital of Southern Illinois,” it’s safe to say businesses like calling the area home. Mt. Vernon in Jefferson County has long been known as a manufacturing and distribution hub for a variety of industries, most notably automotive components and heavy equipment due to the large number of suppliers in the area. The area is also a key location for health care and highway-based retail. Jefferson County is just a one-hour drive east of St. Louis, Missouri; ninety minutes from Paducah, Kentucky; and two hours south of Champagne, Illinois. The area is well connected with two interstates, three interstate exits and five Class 1 rail lines through the county — three of which intersect at Milano Railway Logistics, a transloading facility in Mt. Vernon’s industrial quadrant. C O M M U N I T Y P R O F I L E – M T . V E R N O N / J E F F E R S O N C O U N T YMt. Vernon and Jefferson County focus on helping businesses and the community grow. by S AVA N N A H K I N GWTaking Care of Business Courthouse in Mt. VernonPhoto courtesy of Jefferson County Development CorporationIn addition to being located at the junction of Interstates and , Mt. Vernon Outland Airport is another key logistical asset.“Je erson County is within miles of automotive assembly plants” says Jonathon Hallberg, executive director of the Je erson County Development Corporation. “Mt. Vernon Outland Airport has developed a niche market for just-in-time cargo ights of automotive components, working with regional automotive suppliers like Magna International, Innertech Automotive and Spartan Light Metal.” In , one of the area’s largest employers, Continental Tire the Americas, LLC, completed a $- million expansion and in the company reshored a retread facility to the location from Mexico. Over the last dozen years, the tire manufacturer has invested more than $ million in the facility and added around , jobs to its ranks of ,. “ at’s food on , more tables in Southern Illinois,” Hallberg says. With a population of about , in a -mile radius of the county, the area’s workforce pulls from eight surrounding countries. Employers can nd highly skilled workers through the area’s educational institutions. Recently, Mt. Vernon Township High School invested more than $ million in its regional vocational center. Rend Lake College also recently launched four new apprenticeship programs in industrial maintenance technology, basic machining technology, truck driver training and welding technology. “Most Midwestern communities inherited a strong work ethic from their agricultural past,” he says. “In the case of Southern Illinois, you can add mining into the mix. at made us idea for manufacturing and I think it is why our many manufacturing employers have done so well here.”Supporting local businesses is a priority for the region, says Hallberg, and the results of those e orts are easy to see through the region’s success stories. SSM Health opened a new $ million regional health center in and has invested another $ million since. On the retail front, Menards, a building supply store, invested $ million in its Mt. Vernon location and created some jobs. Over the last three years the county has seen about $ million in retail development.“Our focus has always been on attending to the needs of our existing employers, especially with expansions and workforce development,” he says. “Business retention and targeted entrepreneurship are the keys to economic growth. e attraction component is important in ensuring (companies) consider you as an option, but the national market is competitive. We think that showing how well we’re taking care of our existing businesses might just be the key to attracting new ones.” I N T E R S E C T I L L I N O I S 43“We think that showing how well we’re taking care of our existing businesses might just be the key to attracting new ones.”— Jonathon Hallberg, Executive Director of the Jefferson County Development corporation44 I N T E R S E C T IL L I N O I St’s not Chicago, but it’s close. Kankakee County is just a short -minute drive south of Downtown Chicago. Being so near the city provides businesses and residents with all the bene ts of being in the big city, minus the hassles of urban life. “We feel being just on the perimeter of the Chicago metro area means that we are really well positioned to continue experiencing growth at this rate for the foreseeable future,” says Lisa Wogan, director of marketing and business attraction for the Economic Alliance of Kankakee County, which works with communities with the county including Boubonnais, Bradley, Kankakee, Manteno and Momence. Kankakee County is the summer home of the Chicago Bear’s training camp and is among the fastest growing metros in the Chicagoland region. Located along the I- corridor, the area o ers access to major markets via the interstate, three Class railways and the Greater Kankakee Airport, not to mention O’Hare International Airport and Midway Airport both of which are less than an hour away. While the area has been a manufacturing stronghold for years, it also has decades of C O M M U N I T Y P R O F I L E – K A N K A K E Eby S AVA N N A H K I N GIKankakee: Bearing Fruit for BusinessesKankakee RiverPhoto courtesy of visit kankakee countyI N T E R S E C T I L L I N O I S 45history in the life sciences, food processing, iron, steel and metals, and chemical manufacturing sectors. In fact the county has twice the average concentration of advanced food processers, metals/machinery manufacturers, logistics companies and bioscience firms than the national average.Several food processers have grown in the area recently, including Silva International’s $8-million investment in Momence. The supplier of dehydrated vegetables, herbs, mushrooms and fruits will nearly double its 190,000-square-foot headquarters and will use the space as a zero-oxygen warehouse. Plochman’s Mustard also recently expanded its Kankakee County headquarters in Manteno. And in early 2017, FutureCeuticals Inc, an innovative company that develops fruit, vegetable and grain-based powders and extracts as ingredients for various foods, invested $2 million into the 14,700-square-foot expansion of its headquarters in Momence. Nucor Steel decided in Nov. 2017, to build a full-range merchant bar quality mill at its existing bar steel mill in Bourbonnais. The $180-million expansion will have an annual capacity of 500,000 tons. The project is expected to be completed next year. “This new MBQ mill is right in line with our long-term strategy for profitable growth. It takes advantage of our position as a low-cost producer to displace tons currently being supplied by competitors outside the region. It also builds on our market leadership position by further enhancing our product offerings of merchant bar, light shapes and structural angle and channel in markets in the central U.S.,” said John Ferriola, chairman, CEO and president of Nucor. “Combined with our other full-range bar mills, we are now strategically located to supply all markets with high-quality bar products and exception service.”In April, Australian biotherapeutics company, CSL Behring, announced it would expand its operation in Kankakee by 1.8 million square feet. The new CSL campus will be called CSL South since it will be built just south of the existing CSL North campus. The south campus will be built around its new, nearly completed $240-million, seven-story building. The company has said it could take 10 years to complete the expansion. Currently the company sits on 138 acres and employs some 1,600 people making it the largest manufacturing employer in the county.Gov. Bruce Rauner visited the company in July and said the Kankakee location could become a biotech leader. “This industry has unlimited potential and CSL Behring will be leading the way. We want you guys thriving,” he said. Wogan says companies should look to the continued success enjoyed by businesses in Kankakee to get the full picture of what the area has to offer. “We have the utility infrastructure, the water, the power, the gas, the fiber, all of those things that industry needs and so far, we have the workforce,” Wogan says. “But again, we’re within the Chicago metropolitan area, so we’re within an hour of 6 million people. That’s an advantage we can’t really overstate.” 46 I N T E R S E C T IL L I N O I Sllinois is poised to lead the charge toward innovation thanks to its new statewide initiative. In October , Governor Bruce Rauner and the University of Illinois (U of I) System announced plans for the creation of the Illinois Innovation Network (IIN), a $ . -billion network of research universities, business and public sector partners. e innovation network will be led by the U of I System, with its three universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Spring eld, as well as its satellite campuses in Peoria and Rockford. e University of Chicago and Northwestern University in Evanston are also partnering in the initiative with more higher education institutions expected to join the network in the coming years. e creation of the network is a statewide e ort to develop a knowledge-based economy, grow the state’s talent pipeline and to facilitate the growth and development of innovation and entrepreneurship. e network will be focused on developing solutions in computing and big data, advanced materials, food and agriculture, and bioscience and health. Step one for the initiative is to build the Discover Partners Institute (DPI) in Chicago. e institute will be located within e , a -acre planned development by Related Midwest in downtown Chicago bordered by Chicago’s South Loop, Chinatown, Bronzeville and Pilsen. e facility will house up to faculty and , students each year once it’s fully operational. “At the helm of innovation and development, e is the perfect home for the Discovery Partners Institute,” said Curt Bailey, President of Related Midwest. “ e is a blank canvas in the heart of the city that will allow the University of Illinois System to create a global technology-based research institute downtown to attract and meet the demands of next-generation leaders. We look forward to working with DPI to create a transformative neighborhood with unique o ce space that will be home to industry leading companies, unparalleled transportation options, an accessible riverwalk and resident and retail options that will drive economic growth for the entire city.”Researchers and businesses will be able to work together to develop Illinois invests more than a billion dollars in building the next-tech talent pipeline.by S AVA N N A H K I N GIISparkINNOVATION OFSparkOFSparkSparkINNOVATION OFT A L E N T D E V EL OP ME N TI N T E R S E C T I L L I N O I S 47new technologies and collaborate on global solutions to attract both venture capital investment and talent to Illinois. The system anticipates the project could increase annual venture capital investment to $4 billion — a level four times higher than the state currently sees. “The original research that our scholars and students are pursuing offers profound opportunities for scientific discovery, technological advancement and economic development,” said University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer. “As an active partner in the Illinois Innovation Network, the University of Chicago is committed to expanding collaborations across Chicago and Illinois, developing new ideas that benefit our society that will create the next generation of new business ventures.”Chi-town makes an obvious choice for the location of the institute given the city’s global status and its deep connections and proximity to computing, engineering, health care, manufacturing and agricultural research communities. “Chicago is on the cutting edge of innovative research and development, and the Discovery Partners Institute will take our city to the next level,” said Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. “For researchers, students and businesses looking over the horizon to what’s next in discovery and innovation, Chicago is the future.”In June, the initiative received a major boost when state legislators approved an investment of $500 million. The state funding will go toward design and construction of the DPI and to several IIN hubs across the state. Once it’s established DPI will operate primarily through private donations, business partnerships and through its own revenue generation. Gov. Rauner said the investment “could be the biggest spark ever to ignite our economic growth engine.”“With state secured funding, all systems are ‘go’ for DPI,” said Rauner. “It can now get to work on world-changing ideas that investors will put money behind to create Illinois-based business and jobs. The state’s initial investment will be matched several times over by private sources of capital that form around our innovations. The result will be an economic engine for Illinois and the Midwest that surpasses Silicon Valley.” “For researchers, students and businesses looking over the horizon to what’s next in discovery and innovation, Chicago is the future.” — Rahm Emanuel, Chicago MayorArtist renderings of The 78, future home of the Discovery Partners Institute, in downtown Chicago.All renderings courtesy Related MidwestNext >