Naperville and Illinois tops for corporate expansion, magazine says

With a boost from DuPage County, Illinois and Chicago were among the top 10 locations in the nation for corporate expansion, according to a niche publication.

Site Selection Magazine, a corporate real estate and economic development publication, found 205 corporate facilities located or expanded in the state in 2010.

On Wednesday, local business leaders responded to the ranking by saying it's a boost for the entire region.

“This should show people that Illinois and the Chicago area is still a good place to do business, a good place to live and a good place to raise a family,” said John Schmitt, president of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce. “I hope it encourages businesses to take a look at the Chicago region and consider locating their businesses here.”

The Chicago-Naperville-Joliet metropolitan area had 184 projects to rank among the top 10 for cities and municipal areas.

Mike Skarr, CEO of the economic development alliance Choose DuPage, said the report shows “the great diversity” of the region. “We are really blessed to have a very diverse business base,” Skarr said. “We've got to continue that. We want to keep that diversity there.”

Navistar, Chrysler, Mitsubishi, Ford and Groupon are among the companies that have relocated or seen significant expansions in Illinois this year.

Skarr said Navistar's decision to move its headquarters to Lisle was “probably one of the biggest deals that's been done” in DuPage County in the past 10 years.

“I don't think people understand the full magnitude of what's happening over there,” Skarr said. “Not only did they stay here, they are growing their employment base. That's really the story of Navistar. Because if they had moved, we would have probably lost everything.”

Illinois officials say the magazine's “Governor's Cup” analyses are regarded as “the industry scoreboard.”

Skarr said DuPage officials plan to take advantage of it when they are enticing businesses to move to the county.

“Some of the stuff that happens in the region can be a well-guarded secret,” Skarr said. “When we have successes, we have to make a big deal out of it.”