Romeoville, Illinois

Romeoville is a village in Will County, Illinois, United States. The village is located 26 mi (42 km) southwest of Chicago on the Gateway Wetlands, directly west of the Des Plaines River and Historic U.S. Route 66 (now IL-53). Per the 2020 census, the population was 39,863.^[4] Once a small river port, Romeoville experienced rapid growth in the 1990s and 2000s. It is located between Bolingbrook and Joliet near Interstate 55 and Interstate 355.

Romeoville, Illinois
Village
Fitzpatrick House (1842), on the grounds of Lewis University
Flag Logo
Nickname:  "Stone City"
Motto:  Where Community Matters!
Location of Romeoville in Will County, Illinois
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Will
Township	DuPage, Lockport, Plainfield, Wheatland
Incorporated	January 19, 1895
Government
• Mayor	John Noak
Area [1]
• Total	20.16 sq mi (52.21 km2)
• Land	19.13 sq mi (49.55 km2)
• Water	1.03 sq mi (2.67 km2)
Elevation [2]	630 ft (190 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	39,863
• Density	2,083.80/sq mi (804.58/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP Code(s)	60446, 60491
Area codes	815/779 and 630/331
FIPS code	17-65442
GNIS feature ID	2399114[3]
Website	http://www.romeoville.org/

History

Isle a La Cache Bridge on Romeo Road, 1968

Romeoville was one of the last areas of Will County occupied by Native Americans. The village of Romeo was first settled on September 14, 1835, on Isle a La Cache, a small island in the Des Plaines River. Around this time, the first bridge was built to allow access to the island from the west bank of the river. In 1848, the I&M Canal was finished, drawing new residents to the area. On January 19, 1895, residents of Romeo voted to incorporate and changed the village's name to Romeoville. The community, along with nearby Joliet, became known as "Stone City" in reference to its prosperous limestone quarries. The Illinois State Capitol in Springfield was unveiled in 1888, and is constructed entirely of Romeoville limestone. Lewis University was established on the outskirts of town in 1934.

Romeoville is home to Citgo's Lemont Refinery. The refinery was constructed in 1922 across the river from the village. It was later the site of the 1984 Romeoville petroleum refinery disaster.

In 1950, Romeoville had approximately 46 homes and a population of 147. The village remained sparsely populated until 1957, when over 600 acres (240 ha) of wetlands along IL-53 became the Hampton Park Subdivision. An additional 400 acres (160 ha) were added in 1964, as Romeoville's population slowly grew. On October 5, 1990, the first interchange on I-55 and Weber Road was built, connecting the village to the rest of Chicagoland. Throughout the following decade, the area along Weber Road quickly became suburbanized as several new housing developments were completed. Romeoville was one of the fastest-growing communities in Illinois throughout the 1990s and 2000s. The population grew rapidly, and the village experienced an influx of over 25,000 new residents in two decades.^[5]

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Romeoville has a total area of 18.759 square miles (48.59 km²), of which 18.44 square miles (47.76 km²), comprising 98.3%, is land and 0.319 square miles (0.83 km²), comprising 1.7%, is water. Romeoville borders the neighboring communities of Bolingbrook, Plainfield, Crystal Lawns, Crest Hill, Lockport and Lemont.^[6]

Climate

Romeoville is home to a National Weather Service forecast office, although bulletins issued by said office begin, "The National Weather Service in Chicago..."^[7]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1900	113		—
1910	98		−13.3%
1920	74		−24.5%
1930	133		79.7%
1940	170		27.8%
1950	147		−13.5%
1960	3,574		2,331.3%
1970	12,888		260.6%
1980	15,519		20.4%
1990	14,074		−9.3%
2000	21,153		50.3%
2010	39,680		87.6%
2020	39,863		0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[8] 2010[9] 2020[10]

2020 census

Romeoville village, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2010[9]	Pop 2020[10]	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	19,992	16,654	50.38%	41.78%
Black or African American alone (NH)	4,545	5,362	11.45%	13.45%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	61	32	0.15%	0.08%
Asian alone (NH)	2,486	2,718	6.27%	6.82%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	3	2	0.01%	0.01%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	53	121	0.13%	0.30%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH)	657	1,166	1.66%	2.93%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	11,883	13,808	29.95%	34.64%
Total	39,680	39,863	100.00%	100.00%

Economy

A Commonwealth Edison substation in Romeoville, next to the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

Romeoville is home to over 600 businesses.^[11] In 2013, the village won a Gold Medal from the International Economic Development Council and Atlas Integrated in the High Performance Economic Development category. They earned the award by creating 1,560 jobs during 2012–2013, which was the most for a town with a population between 25,001 and 100,000.^[12]

Top employers

According to the village website,^[13] the top employers in the village are:

#	Employer	# of Employees
1	Amazon	1,824
2	Valley View School District 365U	1,300
3	Green Core	1,200
4	PDV Midwest Refining CITGO	803
5	Aryzta	600
6	Ulta Beauty	543
7	Walmart	537
8	RTC	530
9	Magid Glove and Safety	529
10	Lewis University	525

Other major employers include Kehe Foods, FedEx Ground, and the Village of Romeoville.

Education

K–12 education

Romeoville residents attend the following schools:

Valley View School District 365U

• Valley View Early Childhood Center
• Beverly Skoff Elementary School
• Irene King Elementary School
• Kenneth L. Hermansen Elementary School
• Robert C. Hill Elementary School
• A. Vito Martinez Middle School
• John J. Lukancic Middle School
• Romeoville High School
• St. Andrew the Apostle School

Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202

• Eichelberger Elementary School
• Creekside Elementary School
• Lakewood Falls Elementary School
• John F Kennedy Middle School
• Indian Trails Middle School
• Plainfield East High School

Lockport Township High School District 205

• Lockport Township High School

Higher education

• Joliet Junior College – Romeoville Campus
• Rasmussen College – Romeoville Campus
• Lewis University – Main Campus

Government

Mayors

Mayors of Romeoville
Years in Office	Mayor
1895–1899	Louis Hamann[14]
1899–1903	John J. Keig[14]
1904–1905	Henry Brockman[14]
1906–1907	George Garden[14]
1907–1909	George Farrell[14]
1910–1915	Edward Swanson[14]
1915–1919	Joseph Startz[14]
1919–1920	John Mitchell[14]
1921–1927	Fred Boehme[14]
1928–1929	Anthony Startz[14]
1929–1969	Neal Murphy[14]
1969–1973	John O'Hara[14]
1973–1977	Dewey "Red" Chambers[14]
1977–1981	Donald Kennedy[14]
1981–1985	Howard Trippett[14]
1985–1993	John Strobbe[14]
1993–1997	Sandra Gulden[14]
1997–2009	Fred Dewald[14]
2009–present	John Noak[14]

Infrastructure

Transportation

Romeoville station (Metra)

• Metra station on the Heritage Corridor line.
• Lewis University Airport for basic aircraft to Boeing Business class.
• Pace bus route 834.

Major highways

Major highways in Romeoville include:

Interstate Highways Interstate 55 Interstate 355

US Highways Historic US 66

Illinois Highways Route 7 Route 53

Notable people

• Gerald Coleman, played goalie for the Lake Erie Monsters and Tampa Bay Lightning.
• Egotistico Fantastico, pro wrestler
• Oliver Gibson, DT, played with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals.
• Sandra Navarro Gillette, singer who charted a 1994 worldwide hit single, graduated from Romeoville High School.
• Antonio Morrison, LB, played with the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers.
• Byron Stingily, OT, played with the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers.