Foster Announces Nearly $26 Million in Community Project Funding for 11th District Secured in Year-End Omnibus Funding Legislation
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) announced that all 15 Community Project Funding (CPF) requests he made on behalf of the 11th Congressional District of Illinois were included in the year-end omnibus spending bill for a total of $25,821,367. The package has passed both the Senate and the House.
Under guidelines issued by the Appropriations Committee, each Representative could request funding for up to 15 projects in their community for Fiscal Year 2023. Projects are restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and only state and local governments and eligible non-profit entities are permitted to receive funding. Additional information and guidelines on Community Project Funding is available here.
In compliance with House Rules and Committee requirements, Congressman Foster has certified that he and his immediate family have no financial interest in any of the projects selected. Links to these certification forms are available here.
“I’m proud that we were able to deliver this important funding to the 11th District,” Foster said. “One of my constant priorities as Representative of the 11th District of Illinois is making sure our communities receive their fair share of federal resources, especially for important projects that serve so many people. We received many worthwhile submissions, and it was difficult to narrow it down to 15, but I am proud of the projects we selected and can’t wait to see them come to fruition.”
The Omnibus appropriations bill will now be sent to President Biden to be signed into law.
The 15 projects that will receive funding for the 11th Congressional District are:
(Listed in no particular order)
Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry
834 N. Highland Ave.
Aurora, IL 60506
Amount funded: $1,800,000
Project description
This enhanced response to food insecurity will be undertaken through formalized collaborations with service partners and novel education program development. The project includes purchase of property and use of that property for coordinated access to critical wrap-around services from community partners on food distribution days. Moreover, the expansion includes desperately needed renovations to the purchased site and the current food distribution center to improve safety, flow, access, and client dignity.
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DuPage Township Government
241 Canterbury Ln.
Bolingbrook, IL 60440
Amount funded: $3,000,000
Project description
The DuPage Township Food Pantry & Resource Center in Bolingbrook, Will County, will be a new, centrally-located building construction to house a food pantry and resource center for low-income residents of DuPage Township to address food insecurity and Social Determinants of Health.
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Fox Valley Park District
101 W. Illinois Ave.
Aurora, IL 60606
Amount funded: $4,000,000
Project description
This Project consists of final engineering and construction of a 780' long bicycle and pedestrian bridge spanning the Fox River. The project eliminates a major barrier to trail access.
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University of St. Francis
500 Wilcox St.
Joliet, IL 60435
Amount funded: $500,000
Project description
This project will provide accelerator funds and mentorship to businesses and entrepreneurs in under-served categories, offer community-based programming, and additional programs to close the gap for businesses founded by Minorities, Women and Veterans.
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United Way of Will County Mental Health Program K-12
54 N. Ottawa St. STE 300
Joliet, IL 60432
Amount funded: $884,000
Project description
Funding will be used for launching the Resilient Youth program consisting of 22 training sessions for 529 teachers which will impact 26,186 students throughout Will County. This will be an ongoing program which will impact students in all grades K-12.
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Fox Valley Habitat for Humanity
1300 S. Broadway Rd. STE 101
Montgomery, IL 60538
Amount funded: $1,250,000
Project description
The Fox Valley Habitat Green Freedom 17 home neighborhood is a breakthrough project for Habitat for Humanity’s mission to provide affordable homes for hard-working families of low to moderately low income. The funds requested will be used to provide the infrastructure for the neighborhood, including water and sewer lines, streets, sidewalks and stormwater mitigation.
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VNA Health Care
400 N. Highland Ave.
Aurora, IL 60506
Amount funded: $500,000
Project description
Funding will be used to support the construction of a new healthcare center in Joliet built on land already owned by VNA. It will support 24 examination rooms, a wellness kitchen, waiting areas, a lab, nursing stations, and a mental and behavioral health service department.
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City of Naperville
400 S. Eagle St.
Naperville, IL 60540
Amount funded: $900,000
Project description
This funding will support Naperville Riverwalk Eagle Street Gateway and Accessibility Improvements.
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Pace, the Suburban Bus Division of the Regional Transportation Authority
550 W. Algonquin Rd.
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
Amount funded: $1,200,000
Project description
Pace proposes to build (on the existing site) a building with public restrooms, vending machines, and signage with real-time bus departure information. The new facility would be fully accessible to people with disabilities and would offer a considerably more welcoming environment for transit riders who are currently exposed to heat and cold as they wait for a bus. Pace has successfully deployed indoor waiting areas at other park-n-rides along I-55 and seeks to bring a similar upgrade to Bolingbrook.
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Aurora University
347 S. Gladstone Ave.
Aurora, IL 60506
Amount funded: $955,000
Project description
Funding request for the Emerging Technologies Learning Lab is a one-time request to purchase technology and equipment to create three high-impact learning spaces within the Lab: Virtual Reality Classroom, Visualization Room, and Workplace Simulation. This innovative and dynamic center for student success will include experiential and immersive learning opportunities powered by emerging technologies such as virtual reality, mixed reality, and augmented reality.
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Association for Individual Development (AID)
309 W. New Indian Trail Ct.
Aurora, IL 60506
Amount funded: $3,000,000
Project description
AID, Hesed House, and The Neighbor Project have formed a partnership to purchase and renovate an existing apartment building in Aurora, IL into a mixed-use Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) + Pathway to Homeownership residence.
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City of Aurora Public Safety Technology Project
44 E. Downer Pl.
Aurora, IL 60505
Amount funded: $2,280,000
Project description
The Aurora Police Department is in the process of upgrading the technology infrastructure to improve public safety. The project is taking a holistic approach that includes the 911 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the camera/recording system in the interview rooms, and the phone system in the city’s 911 Dispatch center. The PSAP will improve the effective delivery of emergency communications to first responders. The backup 911 Dispatch center at Fire Station 8 and the main Aurora Police Department 911 Dispatch center will be modernized with new and advanced workstation consoles, enhanced innovative noise control solutions, and next-generation technologies/capabilities.
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City of Aurora "Montgomery Rd/Hill Ave Intersection"
44 E. Downer Pl.
Aurora, IL 60505
Amount funded: $1,000,000
Project description
The project consists of improving the intersection of Montgomery Road and Hill Avenue by modernizing traffic signals, reconstructing and widening the roadways to include additional travel (through) lanes & turn lanes, constructing bike paths and sidewalks, making ADA ramp improvements, making a right-of-way acquisition to do the improvements, working on drainage, and other pertinent improvements. The project will improve traffic capacity, safety, and traffic operations while minimizing environmental impacts.
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City of Joliet – Creation and Support of Regional Water Authority
150 W. Washington St.
Joliet, IL 60432
Amount funded: $3,452,972
Project description
This funding will be used to support the creation of a regional water authority and construction of the infrastructure to bring Lake Michigan water to Joliet and surrounding towns, pursuant to their local agreement, in order to reduce the overall burden of the cost of water on property owners in the region.
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Will County Project - Rt 53 Bike Path
17540 W. Laraway Rd.
Joliet, IL 60433
Amount funded: $1,100,000
Project description
Will County and the Forest Preserve District of Will County are working in tandem to establish safe pedestrian accommodations from the Route 53 corridor to the regional trail systems of Will County and beyond. This project is currently in the feasibility phase. The Forest Preserve has evaluated potential routes and determined that the proposed alignment utilizing the Commonwealth Eddison Utility corridor is the ideal route. The approximately 1.34 mile, 10’ wide asphalt trail would connect multiple residential developments along Route 53 to a school, regional trail systems, Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, and local businesses.
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