Pritzker swings through Southern Illinois Wednesday

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS - Gov. J.B. Pritzker made several stops during a visit to southern Illinois on Wednesday.

Benton

Benton was first on the list where Pritzker was joined by representatives from the Illinois Department of Transportation as well as local officials and community leaders to announce the next phase of the I-57 widening through southern Illinois, another cornerstone project of the governor's historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program.

The latest improvements are part of $268 million being advanced through Rebuild Illinois to fix and improve I-57 in the region, improving safety and mobility while creating thousands of construction and permanent jobs.

"Today I'm proud to announce the most significant investment in I-57 since its original development," Pritzker said. "This major upgrade comes after we've already completed a successful, six-lane expansion along the Johnson City stretch of I-57 in 2020 and launched the ongoing West Frankfort renovations.

"Thanks to Rebuild Illinois, we're unlocking the federal funding necessary to take this from a four to a six-lane highway - enhancing safety, creating jobs, improving the reliability of the freight network, and supporting the economic development potential of the region."

Alto Pass

Pritzker then made his way to Alto Pass, where he and Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director John J. Kim today announced $16,878,529 in grants have been awarded to five communities across the state through IEPA's Unsewered Communities Construction Grant Program.

This project will allow underserved communities to have a safe and dependable wastewater collection and treatment system.

The announcement was made at the Village of Alto Pass, where a total of $4.4 million in state funding from IEPA and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity was awarded to replace the failing infrastructure within the community.

"Alto Pass is the first recipient of the EPA's Unsewered Communities Construction Grant in Illinois - but many more communities will follow. Thanks to Rebuild Illinois, we are making $100 million available to build wastewater collection and treatment facilities for communities without them," said Pritzker.

"We also have provided an additional grant program to help communities plan their future design so they can build the solution that works best for them - over 30 communities have already received these planning grants earlier this year."

Pritzker then made his way to Carbondale where he toured a warming center and helped unload donations ahead of the holidays, before his final stop at the groundbreaking of the Walker's Bluff Casino Resort.