On February 13, 2020, Mike McCurry Group of Compass hosted and moderated the Clarendon Hills Economic & Real Estate Summit at 30 S Prospect Avenue. Summit panelists included: Dan Ungerleider (Community Development Director), Derek Berg (President, Clarendon Hills Chamber of Commerce), Don Price (Economic Development Commission Chair), and Len Austin (Village President).
This event was open to the public and allowed real estate professionals, builders and developers, investors, business owners, and passionate members of our community to come together to discuss revitalization and progress in Clarendon Hills, IL.
What does “revitalization” mean for our businesses and residents? What’s changing and what’s not? How will it impact current residents and future residents? What’s being done to maintain and improve the health of economic growth in Clarendon Hills’ business district? We talked about it all.
A couple (of many) highlights:
How the Chamber is Supporting Businesses
Derek Berg (President of the Clarendon Hills Chamber of Commerce) shared some exciting statistics surrounding how the Chamber is supporting local entrepreneurs in the age of digital engagement. What they’re doing is removing the barriers for small, local businesses who may not have the time or tech-savviness to promote themselves online effectively.
The chamber has taken new steps to help by providing digital support and engagement by leveraging the Chamber’s platforms. How? They’re making it simple for businesses’ content to reach residents—they have created an easy way for local businesses to submit content for distribution. Content (photos, videos, event information—you name it!) can all be submitted to the Chamber through a simple online form or even by text message. The Chamber in turn will share the content and use it to promote the business and, ultimately, expand the reach of your business’ content.
How Current Initiatives Will Impact our Community
Dan Ungerleider (Community Development Director for the Village of Clarendon Hills) said it simply during the Summit: “We are coming up to a changing moment for our community.”
Most every local is already aware of the current Revitalization Project that is happening in town. Just a few months ago, prior to the groundbreaking ceremony, we talked at length with Dan about this project in our video series: Down To Business.
In addition to the Revitalization Project, the Village of Clarendon Hills is also currently finalizing the process of designating the downtown area as a TIF district. This will ultimately create a “Conservation Zone” which allows the Village to reinvest funds from this area back into the community. The hope is that the reinvestment of these funds will bring needed improvements to the area that may not have been possible otherwise.
After an hour of discussion with the panelists who generously shared their time, what did we learn? 2020 really could be Clarendon Hills’ breakout year.
Visit Mike McCurry Group’s YouTube channel to watch the full video of the Summit.