TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: James V. Capparelli, City Manager
SUBJECT:
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Resolution Approving a Memorandum of Understanding Between the United States Submarine Veterans Inc. - USS Chicago Base for a Monument at Bicentennial Park
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BACKGROUND:
The USS Chicago Base, which is the local chapter of the United States Submarine Veterans Inc., seeks to erect a monument dedicated to the Manitowoc submarine expedition adjacent to the Veterans Memorial on the southeast side of Bicentennial Park (see attached map). The USS Chicago Base dedicated a similar monument in 2020 at Canal Port Plaza in Morris.
During World War II, the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company fabricated 28 submarines. After the crews of the 28 submarines finished their training in Lake Michigan, the submarines covertly traveled from Lake Michigan down the Illinois Waterway system (Des Plaines River in Joliet) as they headed towards the Mississippi River with their ultimate destination of the Pacific Ocean.
USS Chicago Base Membership is comprised of men and women who served on submarines in World War II, during the Cold War, and to the present. Additional information on the USS Chicago Base can be found as an attachment.
The Public Service Committee will review this matter.
DISCUSSION:
City staff have been working with the USS Chicago Base on their proposed monument for almost one year. This group desired a location adjacent to the Des Plaines River and staff identified a location next to the existing Veterans Memorial. The Board of Directors of the Will-Joliet Bicentennial Park, Inc. approve of the proposed monument and believe that the monument will be a further draw to the south side of Bicentennial Park.
The black granite monument will be 41" tall, 46" wide, and 8" thick with a weight of 2,000 pounds and will rest on a concrete base that is 8" thick, 22" wide, and 60" long. The USS Chicago Base obtained foundation installation services from local contractors courtesy of the Thr...
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