Hinsdale Magazine | Commerce
HINSDALE AVENUE NEWCOMER Hinsdale did welcome a new business during the pandemic in 2020 with Burdi's Men's Clothing which stands at the familiar location of the former Hartley's Bikes. (Photography supplied by Burdi Men's Clothing)
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so to support all Hinsdale businesses.”
Gargano said outdoor dining “provided a definite boost to our local economy by bringing patrons into the community.”
Last November, Sunderson said the village stood at a 96 percent retail occupancy rate, substantially outpacing Choose DuPage’s recommendation of 90 percent as a “healthy” rate.
Sunderson said outdoor dining has been “very wellreceived” in the community, and the village is exploring extending it through all of 2021. Throughout the pandemic, a robust outdoor dining program and local marketing campaign have helped the village maintain a relatively low vacancy rate.
hope on the horizon for the Hinsdale economy in 2021. “We’re getting through this, and things are looking bright,” Sunderson said. Sunderson said commercial real estate firms have been making more inquiries about Hinsdale than in the past.
“Hinsdale like other communities has seen a slight uptick in its vacancy rates. But, in comparison to DuPage County, our numbers are lower. We attribute this minimal uptick in large part to the strong resident base that concentrated on ‘buying local’ and doing as much retail shopping and dining in Hinsdale as possible during the pandemic..”
“A lot of the city businesses now want to follow their customers, who are moving to the suburbs,” she said. According to Gargano, in addition to Egg Harbor relocating to downtown Hinsdale, a new lighting store and a new clothier are planning to open on First Street.
“Hinsdale like other communities has seen a slight uptick in its vacancy rates,” Gargano said. “But, “The village is grateful in comparison to DuPage for the ingenuity all the County, our numbers are businesses have shown - KATHLEEN GARGANO, Hinsdale Village Manager lower. We attribute this during the pandemic by minimal uptick in large adjusting their business A village survey further indicated models,” she said. “As [the] vaccine part to the strong resident base that concentrated on ‘buying local,’ and that roughly three-quarters of business becomes more widely available and doing as much retail shopping and respondents were meeting or exceeding restrictions are lifted, we are hopeful dining in Hinsdale as possible during expected customer counts. that Hinsdale economy will return to the pandemic. The village, the chamber “Compared with our neighbors, we’re the pre-pandemic levels.” ■ of commerce and the economic in a great position,” Sunderson said. development commission work Both Sunderson and Gargano see collaboratively, and will continue to do 34
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