Roselle seeing more growth in business
After a spate of new businesses opened last summer in Roselle, the village continues to attract a mix of local entrepreneurs and retail chains.
Earlier this month, Impecca restaurant officially opened at 121 E. Main St. and, within the next few weeks, Roselle also will welcome Strike Ten Lanes bowling alley.
The new establishments come in addition to an 800-square-foot expansion at Brunch Cafe, which opened last August at 1500 W. Lake St. in the new Cornerstone Plaza on the village's southwest side.
"One of the three (Impecca) owners is a Roselle resident. They did this the right way and built it out themselves, and you already can't get in on a Friday or Saturday night because they are so busy," said Terrence Wittman, Roselle trustee and chamber of commerce president.
Strike Ten is expected to open within a month at Nerge and Plum Grove roads, where Walgreens once stood. The project's price tag is more than $1 million, Wittman said, and will include at least 12 lanes in an upscale setting that aims for a family audience.
And this April, a Shell gas station will break ground on the northeast corner of Lake and Gary, while Lake Street Animal Hospital will open in Cornerstone.
The developments follow the recent construction of the Gables townhouses behind Cornerstone Plaza, which are getting ready to expand. Several tenants also have opened in Cornerstone since summer, including Jimmy John's, Verizon Wireless and a physical therapy office.
Wittman said several factors are responsible for the growth, including creative financing and incentive ideas from Cornerstone Plaza owner Todd Eichholz. In some cases where entrepreneurs had trouble getting small business loans from skittish banks, Eichholz's company, Heritage Realty, offered about $73,000 in loans for each business to complete a build out. Then they increased rents to repay the loan.
"Because times are tight, the small-town entrepreneur can afford to open because the rents are better than towns like Bloomingdale or Schaumburg, plus you have people like Todd being creative," Wittman said. "Roselle is very ripe for the entrepreneur."
Still, some business ventures have seen setbacks or fallen through, including a Venuti's banquet hall and a Mexican drive-through restaurant that considered opening in Cornerstone. But Eichholz said he is now wrapping up a lease with a national chain to fill the 8,000 square-foot spot where Venuti's was expected. And a national Buffalo wings chain is eyeing the drive-through site.
On the north end of Roselle, the New Leaf development at Roselle and Irving Park roads experienced delays after the power company took four months to install lines, Wittman said. But the mixed-retail and residential center will begin construction in March.
"Roselle is open for business and our goal is to re-energize the business community, while making it a place where the community can really enjoy different experiences," Wittman said.