The Issues

  1. No economic growth
    • Since 2008 our sales tax has revenue has grown at an annual rate of less than 0.6%
      • Village of Orland Park Total Sales Tax Revenue

      Source: Village of Orland Park Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports 2008-2015

    • In the past decade we lost our largest employer, Andrew Corporation, and with it over 900 jobs
    • The two largest employers in Orland Park are the Village of Orland Park and School District 135

    http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2005-11-19/news/0511190178_1_andrew-corp-jobs-coaxial

  2. Little to no development of I-80 Corridor in the last decade
    • The property in Will County was annexed in 1998 and Orland Parkway built in 2002
    • Since then we have added a few non-taxpaying entities – Mokena Fire Department, two churches, Smith Crossing senior living, and St. Xavier University
    • Otherwise, we relocated Horton Insurance here in 2004 and added American Technical Publishers in 2009
    • Compare Orland Park to Tinley Park’s I-80 corridor
    Orland Park vs Tinley Park I-80 Corridors
  3. Property values are down, neighboring communities are doing better
    4. Village of Orland Park Building Permits
  4. Our economy is too highly concentrated on restaurants, retail, and car dealerships. The only category with measurable growth is car dealerships.
    5. State Sales Tax By Category Chart
  5. External threats to our retail base – Internet shopping and the potential for another mall off of Interstate 355 are significant threats to Orland Square Mall
  6. Focus on multi-family rental properties over the last 10 years which tend to be transient in nature
    • Main Street Triangle – 296 rental units added in 2013
    • Orland Park Crossing – 231 rental units added in 2015
    • Single family homes since 2009 – 188 Total
    • The percentage of multi-family permits is increasing consistently. The number of units permitted has increased from 28% of permits (2003 to 2007) to 64% of permits (2013-2015), including a whopping 77% in 2015.
Village of Orland Park Building Permits http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/orland-park-homer-glen/ct-orland-marianos-tl-ssw-0807-20140805-story.html

 My Solution

Make it clear to the business community that Orland Park is open for business. I will work to make it easier, faster, and less expensive for businesses to upgrade, expand, or re-locate to Orland Park. It is the Village’s job to create the environment for our businesses to thrive.

ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION

Focus on diversifying our economy by:

  • Prioritizing development of the I-80 Corridor
  • Partner with neighboring communities and business groups to attract STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) industries to the region

CAPITAL RE-INVESTMENT

  • Work with Simon (owners of the mall) to encourage expansion and/or new formats to revitalize the Village’s largest asset, Orland Square Mall
  • More aggressively encourage business retention/expansion program
  • Work with existing retail and office centers to encourage capital improvements and help them attract new industries to their locations

SMART INCENTIVES

  1. Use tax incentives wisely to attract businesses that other businesses follow
    • STEM businesses and headquarters spaces that bring a large number of jobs
    • High end retail stores & restaurants
    • Alternative format retail that attract customers and other businesses
  2. Encourage businesses to use existing incentive programs
    • Will County Tax Abatement program
    • Cook County Property Tax Incentives
    • State of Illinois incentives (e.g. EDGE Tax Credits, ETIP)