Economic incentives combat problem of ‘grocery deserts’ in south suburban Chicago

Mayor Rick Reinbold (3rd from left) with Richton Park Board of Trustees at a September 2015 Walmart groundbreaking ceremony. Photo courtesy of the Village of Richton Park

At a time when the development of new retail power centers across metro Chicago has been at a record low since chain store proliferation first started back in the early 1980s, south suburban Cook County has suddenly seen a turnaround with the addition of two new freestanding Walmart stores and one new Meijer store.

These three openings occurred within months of each other in 2016 and represent approximately 560,000 square feet of the 1.36 million square feet of new retail construction that opened across the greater Chicago market last year…Please click here to read Andy Bulson’s story in REBusiness Online.