Morris Funeral Home

It includes some of the city’s oldest neighborhoods on both the East and West sides, the CenterPoint Intermodal Center and the future site of the biggest public works project pending in Joliet – the Houbolt Road bridge and interchange.Suzanna Ibarra, a politically active photographer who chairs the Will County Progressives organization, is challenging council member Terry Morris, a funeral home director seeking his third term on the City Council.“It is a huge district, and it needs a strong voice,” Ibarra said. “District 5 needs someone who can devote a lot of time and effort.”Morris, who owns the Minor-Morris Funeral Home, said his profession has helped prepare him for service as a council member.“Being a funeral home director, you deal with families of the deceased,” he said. “It can be a trying time. ... I believe it has prepared me to serve the people of Joliet.”The district runs south of Jefferson Street to unincorporated areas of Jackson Township on the southern edges of the city.From its eastern border near Gougar Road, District 5 runs west to Houbolt Road.It covers a large territory because so much of the land contains warehouses, not residents, and council districts are created by population size. The district also includes Chicagoland Speedway and Joliet Junior College.Morris said important issues for people in the district include affordable housing, safe streets and traffic relief.Morris said he would favor a moratorium on warehouse development to get a grasp on traffic congestion on Interstate 80 and other roads.“It has become a major issue, and it’s a regional issue,” he said.Both candidates said Springfield needs to do more to upgrade Interstate 80, which also runs through District 5. Ibarra said she would travel to Springfield to meet with state officials.Ibarra also said she believes the city should be active in promoting unions at warehouses with the aim of increasing wages and benefits.“The city could be an advocate for getting these wo...