Hoffman Estates Menards set to close by Thanksgiving

While developers continue to unveil projects in Hoffman Estates, village officials on Monday announced news that could stymie home improvements.

The village's only hardware store, the Menards at 2300 W. Higgins Road, inside the Barrington Square Mall, is slated to close on Nov. 24, said Trustee Cary Collins said. A challenging economy seems to be the culprit for the closing.

The loss of Menards is especially disheartening for village officials who badly wanted to lure a second hardware store to the village, preferably to the booming west side. Ten village officials in May attended the International Council of Shopping Centers' Global Retail Real Estate Convention in Las Vegas and talked with representatives from several national businesses chains in hopes of bringing them to Hoffman Estates. One of the board's goals was to secure a hardware store.

"We couldn't find anyone," Trustee Karen Mills said.

Instead of filling the void on the west side, come Thanksgiving, the village will be left without any hardware stores.

"Maybe we could give a TIF to somebody to open up a hardware store," Collins said.