About Countryside

Countryside, Illinois is a suburb of Chicago that sits along Historic Route 66. It is a city that is rich in history with a bright future.

History

Historic Route 66

According to Historic Route 66, much of the legendary Mother Road that spans from Chicago to Los Angeles is intact and is ready for motorists to tour. You can’t just grab a map or plug a course into your GPS  to get your kicks on old Route 66, as Route 66 doesn’t show up on modern day maps. You can get a detailed map and a guide to help you navigate your journey by visiting www.historicroute66.com.

The Marx Brothers Chicken Farm

According to encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org, around 1917, the Marx Brothers comedy team bought a chicken farm in Countryside near Joliet and LaGrange Roads to avoid the draft of World War 1 (source link). Groucho Marx later claimed that the brothers spent too much time at Wrigley Field watching the Chicago Cubs to make the farm economically viable.

Present Day

Countryside today is a vibrant community with many thriving small businesses and events year-round. To see what’s happening in Countryside, check out our list of upcoming events!

The Future of Countryside

City of Countryside Municipal Complex Rendering, Page 1 – Dewberry Architects

Press Release, March 19, 2018

The City of Countryside is proud to announce the award of a $1 million grant from the Illinois Clean Energy Foundation. This grant was awarded as part of their Net Zero Building program. Net zero energy consumption means the total amount of energy used by the building on an annual basis is roughly equal to the amount of renewable energy created on the site. Countryside Mayor Sean McDermott stated, “As local elected officials, we all have a responsibility to protect our environment, and mitigating the impact of climate change needs to be a priority.”

The city worked with Dewberry Architects to design a sustainable facility. The municipal complex will be built at 803 Joliet Road. This facility will incorporate geothermal heating and cooling, and photovoltaic (solar panels) on the roof and carports to generate additional power. A few additional features included in the design are electric charging stations for vehicles, energy efficient appliances, automatic plumbing fixtures, occupancy sensors, and LED lighting fixtures. Mayor Sean McDermott added, “The Countryside City Council is committed to building a sustainable facility. The Countryside Municipal Complex will be the first net-zero municipal building in the State of Illinois. This is a huge commitment on our part which we hope will entice others to follow.” Construction will begin in April 2018 and continue into 2019.