Little Italy has its sights set on downtown Schererville.
The upscale Italian eatery, located at 1155 Joliet Street in Dyer, will occupy a block-long area at 22 Joliet St., now that the Town of Schererville has sold the land to the restaurant owner.
The town has been snapping up properties along Old Lincoln Highway (Joliet Street) for the past 20 years to open the doors to a downtown revitalization. Town Councilman Tom Schmitt, D-4th, said the announcement that Little Italy is coming to Schererville is a major step in moving that vision forward.
“All of our town government is located downtown, police and fire stations, town hall, parks building, our chamber of commerce, and this is another way to get foot traffic downtown,” he said.
Other downtown development plans include the construction of three two-story retail-residential buildings. The Redevelopment Commission and Town Council recently have approved the sale of the property directly west of town hall on Joliet.
The bottom floors will offer commercial business space while the top floors will be composed of condominiums. The development has the potential to change Schererville’s downtown aesthetic and spur the area’s designation as a riverfront district, as does Little Italy, co-owned by Theresa Easterday and her husband/chef Andrew Easterday
Little Italy adds another upscale restaurant option to Schererville’s dining scene, with Cooper’s Hawk currently under construction at the northeast quadrant of the Shops on Main development on the south side of Main Street east of U.S. 41.
When completed, Cooper’s Hawk will offer a seating capacity for 259 patrons in a nearly 10,000-square-foot building to house its winery and restaurant, as well as offer 100 parking spots across 2.14 acres.
Both Cooper’s Hawk and Little Italy are adding Northwest Indiana locations rather than relocating operations.
Schmitt estimated that the completion of Little Italy is about two years away and looks forward to it anchoring future downtown development.
“It’s a destination spot and this is a big jump to bring in a class operation like this to our downtown,” he said.
Town grabs 7 properties for Kennedy expansion
On June 12, the Town Council approved the purchase of seven properties/easements at a combined $327,965 to free up space for the extension of Kennedy Avenue south to U.S. 30.
Phase one of the project entails the construction of a bridge over a set of railroad tracks beginning north of Avenue H.
The four-phase project involves the widening and reconstruction of Kennedy from approximately U.S. 30 to Main at an approximate length of 2.46 miles. Portions of existing Kennedy, Joliet, Junction Avenue, Public Works Drive/Kaeser Boulevard, Division Street, Oak Street and the Pennsy Greenway Trail will be reconstructed as part of this project. Turn lanes will be added to U.S. 30 and Main.
Schmitt said the town has one more property to acquire and then expects bids on phase one of the project launch this fall.
“We’re already working on all the properties for the second phase, which will go hand-in-hand with the first phase, so it’s very important for us to get all the properties settled,” he said.
Jim Masters is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
