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RaysGuide Local news, events, businesses, developments and real estate around Frankfort, Mokena, New Lenox, Orland Park, Tinley Park, and southwest suburbs of Chicago.

Subscribe for free. Raymond Kennedy with Village Realty, Reatlor®

10/14/2026

A former Joliet police lieutenant is now facing two felony charges after allegations that he used the city’s Flock license-plate reader system for personal purposes.

Earlier disciplinary records accused him of running roughly 153 searches connected to another officer’s vehicle.

These are charges, not a conviction.

But it raises a pretty obvious question:

If these cameras are tracking everybody else, who’s watching the people using them?

10/14/2026

If a solar project is proposed near your home, what can you actually do?

There are records you can request, plans you can review, questions you can raise, and parts of the approval process that may still matter.

With several Will County solar projects still moving forward and the County Board meeting Thursday morning at 9:30, I put together a guide explaining where homeowners can start.

Can You Stop a Solar Farm in Illinois? What Homeowners Can Actually Do

Full guide at RaysGuide

Can you actually stop a solar farm from being built near your home in Illinois?What happens when you oppose it, your nei...
10/13/2026

Can you actually stop a solar farm from being built near your home in Illinois?

What happens when you oppose it, your neighbors oppose it, and even local officials object, but you're told state law leaves the county with very little power to say no?

This is especially relevant right now because the Will County Board meets this Thursday, October 15, at 9:30 a.m. Several controversial solar farm proposals near New Lenox, Manhattan, and Monee are expected to come before the board.

I've been following these developments and reviewing the October 1 committee hearings, Illinois law, and recent court decisions.

And here's what I found.

Homeowners may have more options than they realize, even if those options don't guarantee a project can be stopped.

There are ways to obtain the developer's plans, request public records, raise legitimate questions about drainage, road access, environmental impacts, and challenge whether proper hearing procedures were followed.

There's also a major legal question developing in Illinois.

Two appellate courts have disagreed about how much authority counties actually have to reject these projects. The Illinois Supreme Court has now agreed to review the issue.

And right here in Will County, residents previously obtained a temporary court order delaying a solar farm vote because of concerns about the hearing process.

So when people are told there's absolutely nothing they can do, that may not be the whole story.

I put together a detailed guide explaining what Illinois homeowners can actually do, what the law allows, and where to find the information they need.

You don't have to be an attorney to start asking the right questions. And you shouldn't have to spend thousands of dollars just to understand how the process works.

Whether you support solar farms, oppose them, or simply want to know your rights when a major development is proposed near your home, this is worth understanding.

I'll put the full article in the comments.

You can also check it out at RaysGuide.

10/11/2026

Another major subdivision is moving forward in New Lenox.

Harlow Valley would bring 351 homes to Laraway and Scheer, but one of the more interesting details is where the kids would actually go to school.

The project goes before the New Lenox Village Board Monday night.

I also put together a Southwest Suburbs New Construction Tracker as well as the details on Harlow Valley at RaysGuide.

I will put the link in the first comment.

🏡 What's Being Built in Chicago's Southwest Suburbs?New subdivisions, townhomes, single-family communities, and proposed...
10/09/2026

🏡 What's Being Built in Chicago's Southwest Suburbs?

New subdivisions, townhomes, single-family communities, and proposed residential developments are popping up all over the southwest suburbs. But keeping track of what's actually happening isn't always easy.

So I've started putting together a New Construction & Development Tracker on RaysGuide.

It covers communities in Frankfort, Mokena, New Lenox, Tinley Park, Orland Park, and surrounding areas, including Manhattan, Homer Glen, Lockport, and Joliet.

I'm tracking projects at different stages:

🏠 Now Selling: Communities where builders are actively marketing homes or homesites.

🚧 In Development: Projects that have received approvals or are moving toward construction.

đź“‹ Proposed / Under Review: Developments still working their way through the municipal approval process.

A couple of things worth knowing:

This is NOT an exhaustive list of every subdivision or new home being built. I'm generally focusing on developments with 20 or more residential units, with a few exceptions.

I'll continue adding new projects, updating statuses, and removing outdated listings as things change. The goal is to keep it simple and make it easier to see what's happening in our communities without digging through municipal meeting agendas and builder websites.

And just because a development is proposed doesn't mean it's been approved or that construction is guaranteed.

Know of a development I missed? Drop it in the comments. I'm always looking for additional projects to research.

đź”— Explore the tracker here:
https://raysguide.com/buyers/new-construction/new-construction-southwest-suburbs

10/08/2026

But they didn’t exactly go far.

The original Orland Park location moved right across Wolf Road into a much bigger space with about 7,000 square feet and roughly 100 seats.

It’s still the flagship. Still the home base. And yes, even the horse made the move.

I put together the full story on why they moved and what changed at the new location.

Check it out at RaysGuide.

Will leave a link in the comments.

Photos & video courtesy of Andres J. DeLeon / DinerPhotos. Used with permission.

10/08/2026

A proposed solar project near Manhattan includes battery storage near Jackson Creek.

At the Will County meeting, residents raised concerns about what happens if there’s ever a battery fire or contamination near a creek where kids play.

The developer says the project meets the required safety standards.

Would you be comfortable with it near your home?

I covered the full fight at RaysGuide:

Link will be in the comments.

**Heritage Farms New Lenox: October 8 Update**I've made some updates to the Heritage Farms development page, including a...
10/08/2026

**Heritage Farms New Lenox: October 8 Update**

I've made some updates to the Heritage Farms development page, including additional architectural renderings, site plans, and new information about the companies associated with the proposed housing.

Here's what's new:

- **D.R. Horton:** The submitted plans include D.R. Horton designs for single-family homes and attached housing.

- **Quarterra:** We've identified Quarterra on plans for the proposed Emblem Heritage Farms apartments and townhomes, including three-story apartment buildings and two-story townhomes.

- **Senior Living:** I've also gathered additional information on the proposed senior-living property. A buyer has been identified, but the broker isn't disclosing who it is just yet. We may know more in the coming months.

- **New Renderings:** I've added more visuals showing what the proposed homes, apartments, townhomes, and amenities could look like.

Keep in mind, Heritage Farms is still going through the development process. These are proposed designs, and the companies appearing on the plans aren't necessarily confirmed as the final builders.

A lot of this came from going back through the Village's planning documents after questions from people following the project.

I've updated the existing Heritage Farms page rather than creating a separate article, so everything stays in one place.

**You can see the updated plans and details here:**

https://raysguide.com/local-community/developments/heritage-farms-new-lenox

I'll also be including this update in today's *Around Here* newsletter.

10/07/2026

Could the house next door eventually become eight units?

There’s a housing proposal in Springfield that could significantly change what can be built on residential lots across Illinois.

Under the proposal, a residential lot over 7,500 square feet could allow up to eight dwelling units.

And around the southwest suburbs, that’s not necessarily a large lot.

The proposal isn’t law, but it raises a much bigger question:

If your community wants a property to remain single-family, who should get the final say: the town or the state?

10/06/2026

A proposed 105-acre development could bring a major mix of new housing and commercial development to Route 6 and Cedar Road in New Lenox.

Heritage Farms currently includes single-family homes, townhomes, apartments, senior housing, commercial space, trails and a roughly 9-acre public park.

But the project is not fully approved yet, and the Plan Commission has already requested changes.

I broke down the current proposal, site plan and what happens next here at RaysGuide.

Full link will be in the comments.

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60423

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