News & Events

Since the launch in July 2018, people have taken more than 2,800 trips on the 50 “Bike 609 – Powered by Zagster” bikes between the 11 docking stations in the metro core communities of Kankakee, Bradley, Bourbonnais and Manteno.

When local Kankakee County residents Siron and Tim needed new employment options, they turned to River Valley Metro. Now they are both enjoying successful and sustainable career paths.

As the largest public transit agency in Kankakee County, River Valley Metro has been a study in quiet
reliability — so much so that it’s almost incognito for those who don’t take its roughly 900,000 rides each year.

The Economic Alliance of Kankakee County proudly supports Selling Happiness and The Lively One, twin PBS-slated documentaries by acclaimed filmmakers Tom Desch and Pat Wisniewski with Lakeshore Public Media that recount the thrilling story of how Kankakee’s Romy Hammes and his descendants developed new promotional, service and financing models that brought the automobile to the masses in its earliest days of production.

The Opportunity Zone Basics session attracted over 100 attendees where panel of finance, legal, real estate and economic development professionals shared at OZ Basics how the new federal tax incentive can provide gap equity financing support for projects within the boundaries of the Kankakee Riverfront Opportunity Zone.

A tremendous rise in U.S. co-working spaces reflects the increasing amount of remote workers in the workplace. This increase can be attributed to a variety of factors including the high cost of living in most cities.

As more advanced technology enters the workplace, many United States employees are seeking positions that allow them to work remotely. Companies and employers are starting to shift their recruitment methods in order to accommodate this new trend in the workplace.

Kankakee County sees opportunity in the growing economic trend of remote workers. Many Chicago-land employees are seeking a reduced cost of living and a more family-friendly area that can be found in Kankakee County by working remotely.

With further growth on the horizon in the gluten-free space, pizza maker Urban Farmer has announced the expansion of its Manteno, Illinois, headquarters with the purchase of an existing industrial property at 1551 N. Boudreau Road. The 111,000 square foot facility will supplement UF’s original 50,000 square foot headquarters. With this expansion, UF’s total employee count is expected to reach 350 in 2019.

Kankakee Metropolitan Statistical Area has kept it’s number one ranking as the #1 Small Metro in Illinois in 2018 and has also jumped from 77 to 26 among 201 small metros nationwide in the “Best-Performing Cities Index” published by the Milken Institute in January 2019. Included in article are other economic indicators and rankings for Kankakee MSA in recent quarters.