Vacant in Downtown Skokie: What’s the Plan?

About eight months ago, Nirvana Boutique and Spa opened its doors in downtown Skokie for the first time. It was one of several stores that recently launched near the Oakton CTA Station. Stores like Siunk Armenian Grill and Aw Yea Comics were having success in the area.

Recently, however, the nail salon/boutique closed its doors for good.

It is now one of the nearly two-dozen vacant properties in downtown Skokie. With the recently approved $8.9 million bid to renovate and redevelop the downtown area, village officials are hopeful that new business will be on the way.

“I think the [redevelopment of the downtown area] will improve economic development,” said Tom Thompson, Economic Development Coordinator for the village. “I think it’s another piece of the puzzle; the infrastructure in the downtown area are dated … [In its current state], the streets are very old, the water mains are very weak – the whole system needs a complete overhaul.”

While Nirvana Spa has left, two new businesses will be opening soon – Alexander’s Café and Café Hanha. Thompson added that news of the recent redevelopment has spurred a higher interest from potential business owners.

“We’re getting the regular requests, but there’s been an uptick of people looking to get a space in the downtown area,” Thompson said. “A lot of them come and go, but just the fact there’s that much more interest is a positive sign.”

There are several factors that would make moving to downtown Skokie attractive to a potential business owner. For starters, there’s the CTA Oakton Station, which attracts about 1,500 riders daily. There’s also TIF funding, which could give a new business $50,000 to $100,000 (it varies) to make renovations or purchase equipment, among other things.

Thompson noted, however, that in 2014 there would no longer be any TIF funding for new businesses, as the TIFs will expire.

While there are pluses to opening a store in the downtown area, there are also some hurdles.

“One of the obstacles we're trying to overcome is the aging building stock and [the need for] modern equipment into commercial spaces,” said Ann Tennes, Skokie’s Communications Director. “The buildings aren’t built the way they’re supposed to be built today – that’s why we bring attractive incentives with the TIF dollars.”

Other measures the village has taken to address pedestrian safety include reducing the speed limit from 35 mph to 25 mph on Oakton Street. They’ve also rerouted commercial trucks so they can no longer travel through downtown Skokie.

“Another challenge that we've had is the traffic conditions on Oakton Street - that's been a concern so we're taking specific steps to remedy that,” Tennes added. “The extensive streetscape projects, the new parking lots that are specific to Oakton Street – all of that will result in a more cohesive, pedestrian friendly area.”

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