Bicentennial Bluffs Choice Neighborhood

Urban Planning + Community Engagement

The Bicentennial Bluffs Choice Neighborhood Plan advances a community-driven vision for the future, centered on People, Housing, and Neighborhood. The Plan guides the redevelopment of Heritage Place Apartments, Riverwalk Homes, and other opportunity sites into mixed-income housing, while strengthening community assets and identifying strategic investments that support long-term neighborhood vitality and community well-being throughout the Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area.

In September 2024, Joliet was one of 13 communities nationwide awarded a Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grant by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Through the grant, the City of Joliet and Housing Authority of Joliet are working with residents and community stakeholders to develop a comprehensive Transformation Plan.

The 762-acre Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area includes Downtown Joliet, the Bicentennial Bluffs neighborhood, and portions of the Cunningham, South End, and East Side neighborhoods, home to roughly 17,250 residents. The area is shaped by strong regional transit connections, civic and cultural institutions, historic architectural character, recreational assets, and the Des Plaines Riverfront, a significant yet underutilized natural resource.

Borderless Studio is leading the planning, urban design, and community engagement process, coordinating across residents, public agencies, community organizations, and other stakeholders to translate community priorities into an integrated long-term investment and implementation framework for People, Housing, and Neighborhood.

Approach

Reimagining the future of Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area

The Choice Neighborhoods Initiative takes a comprehensive approach to public housing redevelopment, pairing improvements to the built environment with strategies that enhance residents’ quality of life across the Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area. The Transformation Plan is organized around three core elements: People, focused on education, health, safety, income, and employment; Housing, focused on redevelopment, affordability, and housing stock; and Neighborhood, focused on transportation and mobility, parks and recreation, amenities and services, and culture and identity.

Process

Multiple Engagement Fronts

This planning process is grounded in active collaboration with residents and community stakeholders including nonprofits, service providers, community organizations, and local businesses. Through community meetings, workshops, and working groups, the team gathers diverse perspectives and ongoing feedback to shape strategic priorities and guide future multi-scale investments.

Shaping a Collective Vision

Through collaborative engagement activities, residents and community members are working alongside the planning team to imagine a new future for Heritage Place Apartments, Riverwalk Homes, and the Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area by sharing their knowledge about the assets, challenges, and opportunities in their community while shaping a shared vision for housing, open spaces, and amenities that reflect their needs and aspirations.

Housing Design Workshop - Visioning Exercise

Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area

The Bicentennial Bluffs Planning Area is one of Joliet’s most diverse and vibrant communities. The area has a higher share of Black and Hispanic/Latino residents than the city overall, as well as a younger population. While rich in cultural diversity, strong local and regional connectivity, access to Downtown services, an exceptional historic architectural character, and a privileged location along the Des Plaines River, the area also faces greater socioeconomic challenges, underscoring the need for targeted and sustained community investment.

Heritage Place Apartments and Riverwalk Homes - Aerial view

Heritage Place Apartments

Heritage Place Apartments is a 170-unit senior public housing community built in 1966 and owned by the Housing Authority of Joliet (HAJ). The 4.23-acre site spans two blocks along N. Bluff Street and includes a mix of high-rise buildings and townhomes serving low-income seniors. While the property faces challenges related to aging infrastructure, accessibility, and modernization, it remains a central part of the Bicentennial Bluffs community. Given its strategic location near the Des Plaines River, public transit, and Downtown Joliet’s civic and cultural assets, Heritage Place presents a significant opportunity to build on the neighborhood’s diversity and energy through thoughtful reinvestment and mixed-income redevelopment.

Heritage Place Apartments - Existing Site Plan

Heritage Place Apartments - Existing Housing Types

Community Vision for Transformation

Guided by extensive community engagement, the Bicentennial Bluffs Choice Neighborhood Transformation Plan provides a framework to create a more connected, healthy, and thriving community. It strengthens mobility and public spaces, expands access to quality housing, services, education, and economic opportunity, and celebrates local history and cultural identity, creating a more equitable, inclusive, resilient neighborhood for all.

Housing Design Station - Community Meeting #4

Diverse housing for different household types

The Housing Plan replaces the 174 units at Heritage Place Apartments with 529 mixed-income units distributed across two key redevelopment areas: the Riverfront Site, where Heritage Place Apartments and Riverwalk Homes are located, and the Gateway Site at the former Lyons Lumber Yard. The plan introduces a diverse mix of housing types to accommodate different household needs prioritizing universally accessible units.