Taking aim at a new study that showed Lake Barrington missing out on $185 million in retail opportunities, village officials recently adopted a new economic development plan for the future.
The strategy, which details three goals for officials to achieve, should boost local sales tax revenue that has stagnated in recent years while also maintaining Lake Barrington’s rural reputation amid the suburbs, officials said.
After Lake Barrington Village Board members recently approved the new long-term vision, Village President Kevin Richardson called the plan “a clear blueprint for our future.”
“It builds upon past success while also providing a clear pathway forward for those who wish to grow successful businesses in our community,” Richardson said in an email.
Officials began developing the new strategy earlier this spring, bringing in consultants who determined in a study that Lake Barrington is missing out on $185 million in retail opportunities for a variety of reasons.
Lake Barrington officials also have seen revenue from sales taxes taper off in recent years. In 2014, the village took in $404,469 in sales tax revenue, a total that dropped to $333,090 in 2017, according to village records.
As they’ve worked to craft a new economic development strategy, village officials also have emphasized the need to improve the local economy by bolstering existing business and attracting new ones while, at the same time, maintaining the village’s open green spaces that residents and visitors use for recreation.
With those parameters in mind, a new seven-page economic development strategy identifies three goals for officials and members of Lake Barrington Economic Development Committee to achieve in the future, said Lake Barrington Trustee Andy Burke, who chairs the committee.
The first goal challenges village officials to attract new businesses and retailers that can cater to Lake Barrington’s daytime population, which totals 6,714 residents based on recent U.S. Census data, according to village officials.
“Surveying these businesses, their employees and their clientele is the most direct approach for determining the needs of the village’s daytime population,” according to Lake Barrington’s new economic development plan.
The goal looks to build off some new business openings in Lake Barrington in recent years, most notably the opening of a Speedway Cafe gasoline station and convenience store in 2017 at Kelsey Road and Route 14, officials said.
Burke said that after the Speedway business opened, officials started hearing from other developers who were interested in locating to Lake Barrington for specific reasons.
“We learned from Speedway that we need to look for businesses that serve our local residents, as well as those customers passing through our village,” he said.
The second goal in the new plan encourages Lake Barrington to promote and develop existing businesses by helping owners navigate the village’s public hearing and building permit processes when they look to expand operations.
It also calls for a centralized database that can help consumers find different businesses in Lake Barrington online.
Julie Abernathy, co-owner of Tattered Tiques in the Pepper Park Business Park in Lake Barrington, said local businesses have wanted village officials to do more to promote the different shops and services in Lake Barrington.
“The village needs to be more involved with current businesses through a marketing campaign, whether it’s social media, print or even radio,” she said. “We do all the promoting ourselves.”
The Lake Barrington Economic Development Committee also wants to schedule forums with businesses that can identify other ways for the village to provide support, officials have said.
The third goal in the new strategy urges officials to be more proactive with underdeveloped properties by contacting commercial brokers and owners of those properties directly, as well as researching grant opportunities that can support local economic development, officials said.
Burke said officials developed that goal after recently learning how 12 acres in Lake Barrington either remain underdeveloped or vacant near thoroughfares, including routes 14 and 59.
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