Mayor’s Message
WELCOME FROM THE MAYOR OF DIAMOND
As Mayor of the Village of Diamond and on behalf of the Village Board, Planning & Zoning Board, employees, and our residents, I extend to you our warmest welcome. We are very pleased that you are interested in learning more about our Village. Diamond’s unique character is rooted in its 127-year history – a history full of bright people and fascinating tales. Back then, newly discovered mines in the area offered opportunities for employment and one of those areas which began to grow was Diamond, located about 54 miles southwest of Chicago.
Throughout the years Diamond has seen continued growth and improvement. The current Board has focused its attention on attracting economic development and improving infrastructure. With that in mind, the Village established the Diamond I-55 Corridor TIF District in the Will County portion of our community and the Diamond Enterprise Zone located in both the Will and Grundy County portions of our community. In 2019, we welcomed the completion of the Morris Hospital Diamond-Coal City Campus which offers a variety of medical services including immediate care, imaging, lab work, physical therapy, occupational health, family and specialty physicians. In 2020 we welcomed the Diamond Indoor Trap Range, home of the Diamond Clay Terminators Jr. Gold State Champions, which offers recreational and competitive trap shooting, a first of its kind in the country! In March of 2021, the Village welcomed Domino’s Pizza and in 2022 we welcomed Gas N Wash with a Dunkin and Ta Canijo inside. We’ll also welcome a new Midland States Bank in 2023. We are currently finalizing plans to bring a national retailer to town. Great things are happening in Diamond!
The Village continues to pursue grant opportunities for major infrastructure improvements and we are aware of the importance and benefits of public/private partnerships. We also create partnerships that utilize federal, private, and public funds for the construction of major roadway improvements. These partnerships have resulted in almost $4 million of intersection and roadway improvements on IL 113. A public/private partnership is also being utilized to install a signal at Will Road and IL 113 and to complete phase II engineering for the reconstruction of Will Road.
The Village is dedicated to continually improving our community. In 2019 significant watermain projects were completed in the village. To effectively communicate with our residents and business owners, the Village instituted “Smart Message.” To date, over 2,000 folks have registered and receive phone calls, e-mails, and text messages regarding road closures, construction information and more.
Our residents enjoy the quaint, small-town atmosphere, along with a great school district, convenient shopping, services, churches, nearby beautiful state parks and recreational opportunities, as well as low taxes and a low crime rate, while still having all the offerings of urban life a short drive away.
Our Village Board meets the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. here at the Village Hall. We invite you to attend our meetings and become involved in our community.
Sincerely,
Teresa “Terry” Kernc
Mayor