| Chicagoans often say “Cicero-and-Berwyn” in one breath, but the Berwyn Development Corp. is trying to change that, bringing the once-sleepy bedroom community in West Cook County into the limelight with new retail and residential development. | |
| The BDC's Tony Griffin and Amy Crowther helped set up four TIF Districts in the 54K-population town just west of Chicago's south side. The districts have helped bring in new businesses, like Luigi Paisan's Pizzeria, a 20k SF pizza parlor complete with industrial kitchen; a 25k SF Culver's that required several landowners to band together to create a big enough site; and chic doggy destination Urban Mutt in the downtown Depot District. An extensive marketing campaign, touting the accessibility and comfort of the suburb, has sprouted up at public transit stations and on buses throughout the Chicagoland area, bringing with it new residents and small business. | |
| While Berwyn has the largest concentration of brick bungalows outside of the city, it's also getting some new housing, like this 52-unit building with 15k SF of retail near the Metra station. Cermak Plaza, the town's mall, which was once famous for the now defunct Wayne's World car spire, has redeveloped with the addition of a Walgreens outlot building and is now nearly 100% leased. Tony is also looking for a new gateway development at the corner of 22nd and Harlem to open things up to those coming in from the city. |
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