The Biz Week That Was: Portillo’s announces layoffs, Yorktown sues grocer, and St. Charles brewers face off
With food costs rising and same-store sales falling, Portillo’s executed a round of corporate layoffs last week, trimming 18% of its Oak Brook-based workforce. The iconic Chicago hot dog-and-beef chain announced the downsizing during a second quarter earnings call Wednesday as it continues to search for the recipe to catalyze growth amid a challenging restaurant environment.
Yorktown Center owner sues Fresh Market over abandoned grocery store plans
The owner of Yorktown Center is suing The Fresh Market after the boutique grocer abandoned plans to open a new store at the Lombard mall. YTC Butterfield Owner LLC is seeking more than $15 million from the North Carolina-based grocery store chain in a lawsuit that was filed Monday in DuPage County Circuit Court.
Six St. Charles brewers compete to make the best Belgian-style beer for a cause
Six St. Charles breweries are highlighting the city’s rich Belgian history with a monthlong competition in August to see who can make the best Belgian-style beer. The STC Six event, now in its fifth year, annually raises money for a local organization or cause. This year, $1 from every pint and commemorative glass sold will go to support the St. Charles History Museum and their mission to collect, preserve and present St. Charles’ history.
Streamwood Park District expecting big return on solar energy investment at Park Place
ComEd presented the Streamwood Park District with a $94,695 rebate check Tuesday for its investment in a solar energy installation on the roof of the Park Place Family Recreation Center. That payment brought ComEd’s Distributed Generation program across the $350 million threshold in rebates and incentives for customers who’ve assisted in providing 1.8 gigawatts of electricity from solar, wind and battery systems over the past seven years.
Though expressing general support for the concept, some Arlington Heights village board members said a proposed four-story, 60-unit affordable senior housing development is too tall and too close to neighboring single-family homes. Nonprofit developer Preservation of Affordable Housing and Church of the Incarnation United Methodist have proposed the senior apartment building of mostly one-bedroom units for a 1.5-acre portion of the church’s 4.6-acre property at 330 W. Golf Road.
RISE business incubator opens as Roosevelt University’s Schaumburg campus marks 30 years
Roosevelt University and the village of Schaumburg Tuesday launched a new business incubator program to assist suburban entrepreneurs at the now 30-year-old campus just north of Woodfield Mall. The Roosevelt Incubator for Schaumburg Enterprises (RISE) program is available to anyone who lives within the service area of Roosevelt’s Schaumburg campus. It provides office space, a makerspace, photo and podcast studios, and interns to conduct research for new companies.