The shuttered Joliet Correctional Center has fallen into major disrepair after almost a decade of weathering and vandalism, but Joliet officials say the massive limestone prison has enormous tourism potential and have started to take a serious look at opening the facility to visitors.
This week, state Sen. A.J. Wilhelmi, D-Joliet, organized a rare tour of the prison for nearly 50 state and local officials and local activists. Afterward, all parties met for the first time about revitalizing the infamous prison, which sits along the old Route 66 and was featured in the 1980 film "The Blues Brothers."
Funding is a major obstacle and the project could take years, but all agreed that opening the prison to visitors has value.
"I don't think there is another piece of property like this in the state of Illinois," Wilhelmi said as the group shuffled through the prison's courtyard surrounded by tall fences and barbed wire.
The Joliet prison opened in the 1850s, and during the early years, inmates were used to build the massive walls of limestone from local quarries. Since it closed in 2002, the prison has sat empty as a blighted reminder of Joliet's storied prison history. The building still draws scores of visitors from around the globe, many who want to go inside.
"(Tourists) are mesmerized by that thing," said Tony Contos, executive director of the Joliet Area Historical Museum. "I think it's just the idea of what's behind those walls."
Prison tourism can be big business. About 100 major prisons worldwide have been converted into museums, including Alcatraz in San Francisco, Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, the Tower of London and South Africa's Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela served time.
Joliet, along with the Illinois Film Office and Department of Corrections, receives dozens of requests each month to tour the facility from filmmakers, photographers, prison buffs and even family members of former prison employees.
Joliet officials are eager to capitalize on the tourism opportunity but also must weigh the challenge of dealing with a structure that has been essentially neglected for almost a decade.
The building's interior is in disarray. Paint is peeling from the walls, and the rooms reek of mold. Ceilings have fallen in some places. Cell bars are rusted. Groundhogs have done substantial damage to the grounds. Somehow, thieves have penetrated the prison's walls â€" 25 feet high and lined with barbed wire â€" and ripped out the plumbing and electrical systems.
During the tour, Dennis Wolff, a warden at the prison from 1976 to 1981, trailed behind the group snapping photos of the rotting cells and trash-strewn rooms.
"It's just sad," Wolff said. "We worked so hard to make this a state-of-the-art facility."
Along with asbestos and lead paint, the almost 200-acre property has contamination issues related to a former garbage dump on site and a firing range, said Elmo Dowd, associate director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
Environmental remediation and renovations could cost tens of millions of dollars, officials said. Faced with a $25 million deficit for next year, Joliet is looking to partner with possibly the state or other entity to revitalize the prison.
State officials say they are open to parting with the surplus property.
"I'm sure a deal could be made," said Sharyn Elman, an IDOC spokeswoman. "I really don't think anyone would say no."
Ben Benson, a Joliet spokesman, said that even if the state handed over the building, the city is not inclined to take possession of it without money for upgrades.
"If this was five, 10 years ago, maybe we would have a few more dollars to lend," Benson said. "But right now it would be hard to appropriate necessary funds to rehab and operate a facility like that when we have our own operating challenges."
Jan Kostner, deputy director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, said that while the state can't contribute money right now, the agency supports the project.
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