| Serious development finally began in the 1970s,
as the village's proximity to two trunk line interstates resulted
in both industrial growth (a Mobil oil refinery, two petrochemicals
plants, a gigantic soybean oil production facility, and numerous
support businesses for the freight hauling industry) and residential
development.
The village also saw an influx of population from eastern Kentucky
in the wake of the closure of many of that area's coal mines. Beginning
in the 1990s, development in Channahon took on a more middle-class
bent, with subdivisions sprouting in the former gravel quarrying
and dairy farming areas near the I&M Canal in the village's
western areas, and a widely acclaimed public golf course opening
in the hilly southeastern area of the village near I-55.
A major natural gas pipeline to the Chicago area from Canada had
its southern terminus built in Channahon in 2000, bringing even
more jobs and desperately needed tax revenue to the now fast-growing
village. Because the village had no downtown area, the Village of
Channahon is currently working with Platinum Properties, LLC, and
several other developers. The new town hall acts as a landmark to
the new downtown area. The downtown area will host upscale stores
and homes, (ranging from the $300's to $1,000,000+), along with
St. Anne Parish. Throughout the first three quarters of the 20th
century, it was primarily a working-class bedroom community for
neighboring Joliet. However, with the village's new ordinances and
minimum starting price requirements, along with recent upscale developments
such as Ravine Woods, and Copper Leaf Estates, the village has taken
on a more upscale approach to its developments. |
