The Village of Brookfield welcomed a new Dollar Tree last month on Ogden Avenue, at the site of the former CVS. The store had its grand opening on July 9, where village officials and Dollar Tree representatives held a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The new location reflects a broader movement within Dollar Tree, which plans on closing 75 stores and opening 400 new locations in 2026. The Brookfield store is one of 373 Dollar Trees in Illinois.
Chicago resident Miyoshi Dawson, who works in Brookfield, said the store was “convenient” and at a “good location.” Dawson was headed to Dollar Tree Tuesday morning to buy a phone charger and other goods.
Since the CVS pharmacy at 8911 Ogden Ave. closed in July 2023, village officials searched for another retailer to fill the 12,704-square-foot space. The village worked directly with the owner of the retail space and Dollar Tree representatives to coordinate the development, with the space’s owner ultimately opting to sell rather than lease the site.
Libby Popovic, the village’s head of community development, said the project was a great example of “cross-functional economic development,” where the village helped coordinate the building process and ensure the project maintained momentum. Village officials were keen on filling the empty space as part of the Energize Ogden plan, which the village board adopted in 2022.
“It’s really important for us to work on energizing Ogden and bringing meaningful retail there,” Popovic said. “It plays a key role in the overall Energize Ogden project.”
Energize Ogden is a long-term plan that aims to transform and redevelop Ogden Avenue. In addition to filling vacant and underutilized business spaces, the village hopes to ultimately redesign the avenue itself to improve road quality and safety from Eberly to Custer Avenue.
The project, which is in its first phase, is set to be “very” long term, Popovic said, though the establishment of the Dollar Tree was remarkably efficient. Once a user for the building was secured in March, the village’s building and development teams coordinated to approve plans expeditiously, making the business’ July 9 grand opening possible.
“I hope all of [the Energize Ogden projects] go this quickly,” Popovic said.
Popovic says the village does not have any specific numbers for how much sales or property tax revenue they expect, since the store opened less than a month ago. Based on communication with Dollar Tree staff, Popovic said business has been good.
“They’ve been very busy. Every single day they’ve sold out of some items. So we anticipate that they’re going to be a very good addition to the village,” Popovic said.
Brookfield resident George Hernandez appreciated having a dollar store in Brookfield, considering high prices at other stores.
“At Dollar Tree you can come in and get a bargain,” he said. Hernandez also said the location was more convenient than stores like Kohls or TJ Maxx. “Everything else is far away.”