New Will County Health Department building is ready to serve

County Executive Winfrey & Executive Director Sue Olenek highlight building’s features

Will County’s new Health Department building is filled with state of the art equipment and services to continue its mission to protect the public health of the county. Recently, County Executive Denise Winfrey was treated to a personal tour from Executive Director Sue Olenek.

“This building has been a long time coming,” said County Executive Winfrey. “Our health department has offered superior service for many years. This new building will provide a quality workspace for our employees and allow them to continue these services well into the future as our population is anticipated to top one million very soon.”

The new two-story, 73,000 square feet building is located on the Public Health Complex and offers important services such as the WIC program, immunizations, environmental services, behavioral health, and family health. Contact tracing related to the COVID-19 pandemic is a new responsibility of the health department and has its own designated area to complete this important work. Each department has ample space for employees to serve the residents in a professional and courteous manner. The health department was previously housed in the TB sanatorium building that was built in 1920 and had far surpassed its useful life.

“The staff worked very hard to maintain quality public health services to the residents and business owners for many years in challenging conditions,” Olenek said. “We are very proud of this building that gives us the space and equipment to continue our successful programs.”

Annually, the health department administers more than 6,000 vaccines to 3,600+ clients. The Food Facilities Program issues more than 10,000 food service permits each year and nearly 7,000 residents receive monthly benefits from the WIC program. The department also operates locations in Monee and Bolingbrook to bring these services to other parts of the county. Currently, the staff has modified the delivery methods of these and other important services due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are fortunate to have this state of the art facility and the wonderful, talented staff for our health department,” Winfrey said. “A healthy county is a prosperous county.”

Plans to host an official grand opening are on hold due to the current public health crisis. For information about the health department and its services, visit the website: https://willcountyhealth.org/