Waukegan Business Honored as Illinois Main Street Business of the Year

Posted December 01, 2013 10:00 pm

Jane Ferry

WAUKEGAN, ILL. Dec 2, 2013—Waukegan Main Street will officially present the 2013 Illinois Main Street Business of the Year award to Bob Sobol and Green Town Tavern in a celebration on Dec. 4 at 5:30 p.m. at Green Town Tavern, 110 S. Genesee Street. The celebration will be open to the public.

Green Town Tavern, named 2013 Illinois Main Street Business of the Year during the annual Illinois Main Street state conference earlier this fall, was the only business in the entire state to be honored this year.

“We were so pleased for Green Town Tavern, and honored to have a business in our Main Street District be the sole winner of the Business of the Year Award,” said Jamie O'Meara, president of Waukegan Main Street, who accepted the medal during the convention on Sobol's behalf. “A panel of judges from Illinois Main Street and the Illinois Department of Commerce read all the entries and chose Green Town unanimously.”

Green Town Tavern exemplifies the effort necessary not only to establish a business but to create a destination in a section of downtown that once was characterized by empty storefronts. With reasonably priced meals, a well-stocked bar featuring 100 different beers, frequent promotions and special activities, Green Town Tavern draws families, music lovers, sports fans and more to the south end of the downtown district.

“Green Town Tavern has helped attract other businesses to the same block of Genesee Street, and these businesses together have given that section of downtown a whole new spirit. In fact, 'north side' businesses now tell our board members that the 'south side' gets all of the attention, which is a complete reversal from 10 years ago,” said O'Meara.

As owner of Green Town Tavern, Sobol has actively partnered with Waukegan Main Street from the inception of his business in 2008.

Sobol, in the award nomination documents, credited Waukegan Main Street with helping him make several physical improvements to his business. “Being able to make external changes with financial help from Waukegan Main Street allowed us to focus more money on internal changes, such as repainting the dining area and upstairs,” he said.

Waukegan Main Street also helped spread the word about Green Town Tavern's convenient lunch service for downtown workers. “Between City Hall and the county courthouse, approximately 900 people work within four blocks of our door, so letting them know we were here was imperative to our success,” Sobol said.

These positive experiences have driven Sobol to serve on Waukegan Main Street's board of directors. “Ultimately, serving on the board and partnering with Main Street put me on the frontlines of generating more economic development for downtown. I especially enjoyed—still enjoy—working with businesses on the cutting edge of a new area. When we opened on South Genesee Street, several people said, 'Are you crazy?! No one's going to come to this neighborhood to eat … and certainly not at night!' Now I see those same people coming to dinner here at least once a week, and smile.”

For more information, visit WaukeganMainStreet.org or call 847-623-6650.

About Waukegan Main Street

Waukegan Main Street is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to rebuilding and reinventing Waukegan's historic downtown business district by partnering with residents, small-business owners, property owners, developers, the City of Waukegan and entities such as the Waukegan Park District, the Waukegan Port District and the Waukegan Public Library. With programs that help small businesses thrive and events that bring people of all ages downtown, Waukegan Main Street is a driving force in creating a more vibrant downtown.

Media Contact: Jane Ferry, 847-623-6650, jane@waukeganmainstreet.org.