SPRINGFIELD, IL – State Senator A.J. Wilhelmi (D- Joliet) introduced legislation this spring to extend the term of the Joliet Arsenal Development Authority (JADA) Board and increase its membership. Today, Governor Quinn signed Senate Bill 3214 into law.

The Joliet Arsenal was built in the early 1940s and was in commission during World War II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars becoming one of the largest employers in the Joliet region. The Arsenal was decommissioned in 1976 and declared excess property in 1993 by the U.S. Army. In 1995 the Joliet Arsenal Development Authority was created with the purpose of land development and job creation on the abandoned land.

Wilhelmi’s legislation creates a new Will County At-Large position on the JADA Board, which currently seats nine members. All members of the Board must be residents of Will County. Four members of the Board are appointed by the Governor and six members by the Will County Executive Branch which must include residents of Joliet, Wilmington, Elwood, Manhattan and Symerton.

"Expanding the Board’s membership will bring additional perspective and insight to our cause," Wilhelmi said. "So far, the Board is responsible for bringing in over 5,000 jobs to the region and bolstering our local economies. By adding another member to the Board, I am confident that we will build upon these successes."

Also included in the bill was a 10-year extension of the board from August 2010 to August 2020.

"The Board has had tremendous success over the past 15 years with innovative economic development and important job creation, and we look forward to allowing JADA to continue its impressive record of success for another 10 years," Wilhelmi stated. "We are in the midst of the worst fiscal crisis in my lifetime, and we must make every effort to create jobs and encourage economic development. This law will help do both."

JADA was named the 2009 National award recipient of the Base Redevelopment Community of the Year from the Association of Defense Communities. The former arsenal is also home to The Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.