Officials are expecting a new travel center in Morton, Ill., to generate tax revenue and good will for the town from residents and Interstate 74 travelers.

According to the Bloomington Pantagraph, the travel center is located north of I-74 off exit 102B and had its grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony yesterday.
The 7,4000-square foot facility includes an Arby's restaurant, diesel fuel, a certified weight scale, convenience store and bathroom facilities, and truckers can park their rigs for up to four hours on the lot.
The travel center project originally got underway in 1994 when the 7-acre plot of land, formerly the site of Grimms's Truck Stop, was purchased by Urbana, Ill.-based Tri Star Marketing. Tri Star runs the SuperPantry line of convenience stores in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.
Clean-up work was needed in order to meet Environmental Protection Act guidelines, Tri Star's other projects and six to eight months of zoning discussions with the city meant a long wait for the facility to actually be opened.
Although Wednesday was the official debut, the travel center has been operating since Nov. 28.