A retail incubator program dubbed the Riverside Shops, much like those in Brookfield by Eight Corners or in Berwyn off Roosevelt Road, could come to Riverside’s downtown area as soon as next summer.
Village trustees were supportive at their Nov. 6 meeting of creating an incubator program in partnership with KPGS Consulting, the same two-person team who helped open the Brookfield Shops this June and the Berwyn Shops in 2022.
Four vendors, selected by a community jury, would operate out of 15-feet-by-15-feet shops located in the village-owned green parking lot at 61-63 E. Burlington St. on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays for about six months each year, said Finance Director Yvette Zavala. An area in front of the shops within the parking lot would be designated as a community space.
She said staff selected the location due to the parking lot’s low utilization, though several other parking lots in town were considered, according to a village memorandum.
The village board is expected to formalize an agreement with KPGS at an upcoming meeting for $60,000 in exchange for weekly on-site meetings, program set-up, vendor outreach and other consulting services to get the Riverside Shops up and running by June 2026. The contract will last through the end of the program’s first cohort in December 2026.
“From my conversations with the business owners that are [at the Brookfield Shops] plus the brick-and-mortar business owners in the area, they said it was absolutely key, especially because of the educational component,” said Trustee Elizabeth Kos of KPGS’s work in Brookfield. “All of them commented to me that, really, the success of this was the consulting group that they worked with; that’s what made it work. None of them think it would have worked without it.”
Riverside will have to pay the consulting fees out of its own coffers. For other costs, like those related to building the four shops, the village has secured a $100,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Zavala said, though the funds have yet to be disbursed.
Once the consulting contract is in place, further elements of the program, including the design of the shops and their exact locations, will come to the village board for further approval, Zavala said.
She said Riverside would issue short-term leases to the vendors at about $500 per month, with other details subject to the board’s direction.
“Some villages are refunding a portion if the vendor decides to open a brick-and-mortar in their village after (the original term) is completed. After the first year, the board may elect to continue with the program or reevaluate the utilization of the space. This program is flexible and can be tailored to what meets the village’s and the community’s needs. For example, some shops are electing to have vendors return for a second year,” Zavala said.
She said Riverside may opt to follow suit due to the lack of available retail space in town.
“There are not that many options at the moment, which is a good thing — it means the village business is doing well — but that’s something to take into consideration. It might make the program look different,” she said.
