Dear Members:
The City of Elmhurst is continuing work on proposed Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts for North York Street, York and Vallette streets, and Riverside Drive area.
TIF District review is being handled by the Elmhurst City Council’s three-member Development, Planning and Zoning (DPZ) Committee, which meets at City Hall on the second and fourth Mondays of each month at 7 p.m. DPZ is chaired by Sixth Ward Alderman Steve Morley and includes Second Ward Alderman Norm Leader and Third Ward Alderman Dannee Polomsky.
On May 28, the DPZ reviewed and approved a Public Hearing Resolution for the North York TIF District (TIF 4) for consideration at the June 4 City Council meeting. Similar resolutions will be needed for York and Vallette, and Riverside Drive.
A City Council vote on establishing a North York TIF is on schedule for August 20.
As proposed, the North York TIF includes redevelopment of the former Elmhurst Ford dealership into a Mariano’s Fresh Market, which is expected to open in April of 2013.
At the City Council’s Finance, Council Affairs and Administrative Services Committee
Meeting on May 28, a developer representing Mariano’s requested $1.25 million (down from $1.5 million) in TIF-funded assistance for the multi-million dollar project. The money would not be paid until the day after the grocery store opened for business.
If Mariano’s funding request is approved, the projected payback on the TIF 4 investment would come in 2016 based on a combination of real estate property tax and retail sales taxes, or 2023 if based solely on property tax. Considering the 23-year life of a TIF District, payback periods of three or even 10 years are considered favorably. The payback could be sooner if retail sales exceeds projections as they have at other sites.
TIF funds can be used to buy land, site development, utility improvements, building demolition, environment clean-up, road access/egress, training and more.
Ambassadors Wanted
Do you think you have the right stuff to become a green-coated Chamber Ambassador? Our Chamber is accepting applications to join the few and the proud in welcoming new members, assisting members in celebrating anniversaries and more. Openings are available on Ambassador teams for the first, third or fourth Fridays of each month.
New Members
The Chamber welcomed eight new members during May, as follows (in alphabetical order): Accounting HELP! LLC, Action Wellness, Elmhurst Heritage Foundation, Fish Window Cleaning, Robert T. Hedrick EA, MST, Imagetec L.P., Mary Kay Cosmetics (Kristine Wojciechowksi) and Pagoda Bistro.
Reactivated Members
American Mattress reactivated its Chamber membership in May.
Got It! in Elmhurst
Promotion of the Got It! in Elmhurst campaign partnership between the City and our Chamber continues this summer with flying disc giveaways at a variety of special events.
More than 400 white discs imprinted with the green Got It! logo were handed out at the 24th Annual Spring Road Pet Parade and York & Vallette Bike Rodeo on May 19, and the promotional item was shown off during Elmhurst’s 94th Annual Memorial Day Parade on May 28. I even managed to nail the cable TV camera lens with a 15-foot throw in front of the parade’s review bandshell.
Residents of all ages can next look for Got It! discs in flight at a York & Vallette Farmer’s Market one Wednesday in June, the Elmhurst Jaycees Charity Carnival running along Park avenue from June 7-10, Elmhurst Park District’s Teen Battle of the Bands in downtown Elmhurst on June16 and Elmhurst City Centre’s Cool Cars Under the Stars downtown on June 27 for Patriotic Night, which will feature military, emergency and pre-1997 red, white and blue vehicles.
Watch Us On Cable
In June on Channel 6 of Comcast and Channel 99 of AT&T U-Verse, Elmhurst Our Kind of Town will air the Elmhurst Memorial Day Parade on Saturdays and Sundays at 1 p.m., Spring Road Pet Parade on Mondays at 5 p.m. and Saturdays at 6 p.m., and 61st Elmhurst Jaycees Distinguished Service Award on Fridays at 4 p.m. and Sundays at 4:30 p.m. The programs also can be viewed online at http://www.elmhursttv.com/.
Also, current ECCI Board Chair Jennifer Speaker of SMB Advantage Group will join Past Chairs Virginia “Ginny” Harmon of Unique Travel Service and Cathy Bajkowski of CB Health Insurance to discuss “Female Chamber/Business Leadership” at the June 14 taping of Elmhurst Time Travelers. The program will air in July.
Like Father, Like Son
Congratulations to Chamber Director Ken Bartels and his son Jacob Meding, who graduated from Elmhurst College on May 26 as the Senior of the Year. After both worked the Memorial Day Parade, Jake picked up his new Jeep at Larry Roesch.
Social Media
If you haven’t already, please follow the Chamber via our social media pages as a Facebook friend, Twitter follower and Linked-In contact.