The Biz Week That Was: Garden centers unleash flower power, rising inflation, and pizza galore among the highlights

Amid erratic weather, local garden centers keep springing forward

Snow in April. Unseasonably warm 70-degree days in March. Springtime weather in the Chicago area is inconsistent and uncertain, but local garden centers and nurseries take it in stride. The topsy-turvy temperatures do pose challenges. According to Elizabeth Leider, production manager at Leider Greenhouses in Buffalo Grove, weather is the “defining factor” of their business.

High interest rates, rising inflation: The economy still isn’t normal

The job market is growing at a blockbuster pace, even though high interest rates usually slow hiring or cause layoffs. Consumers are spending on essentials and extravagances alike, suggesting people don’t fear trouble ahead. The stock market is up, and worries of a recession have largely faded.

After years cooking in his backyard, man opens Legends Pizza in Carol Stream

Once a service representative for Chicago Brick Oven, Chris Marston brought his work home with him. “At one point in time, we had five or six pizza ovens in our backyard, all the different models,” he said. In addition to firing up those ovens, boxing pizzas and delivering them to their neighbors in Hanover Park, Chris and his wife, Michelle, would cook pizzas on Halloween for trick-or-treaters and their parents.

West Chicago’s Jel Sert to receive $5.5 million tax credit to expand

West Chicago’s 98-year-old Jel Sert Company will receive more than $5.5 million in tax credit toward manufacturing expansion through an Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity program. In an agreement signed March 21, Jel Sert will add 50 full-time jobs and retain its nearly 1,000 existing employees as it expands at its headquarters, 501 Conde St., and its distribution center, 444 Charles Court, both in West Chicago.

Palatine restaurant sees bright future at historic location

Palatine’s Pizza Bella restaurant, once a pickup and delivery spot at the Clock Tower Plaza shopping center, now is a dine-in restaurant and bar at a historic location in the village’s downtown. It’s a big step for owner Tony DeFilippis, who first opened in Palatine more than 15 years ago, and the downtown, which is seeing the adaptive reuse of the old Zimmer Hardware building at 16 N. Brockway St.

Why Des Plaines might ban selling unregulated ingestible hemp products

Concerned about retailers selling intoxicating products without any governmental oversight or safety controls, the Des Plaines City Council on Monday will debate banning the sale of unregulated, ingestible products made from hemp and other substances.