EXECUTIVE SUMMARY I

The Berwyn Development Corporation has developed a dynamic tracking map for vacant properties. This report contains maps for Q3 & Q4 of 2022. Since the most recent publishing, the BDC worked closely with Aldermen and the City of Berwyn Fire Department to accurately identify vacant properties. The BDC also worked with City Council to amend the Vacancy Ordinance, which requires property owners to register their vacant properties and obtain adequate insurance. With the base map established, the BDC will continue to update the vacancy map on a semi-annual basis, providing for up-todate reporting about the commercial property health, new tenancy, and target areas for resources and redevelopment.

At the end of the 4th quarter of 2023, Berwyn’s total commercial property vacancy sat at 11.44%. This is a slight increase from Quarter 2 of 2022, which finished at 10.78%. The BDC has broken down this report both by corridor (Oak Park, 26th St, 16th St, Roosevelt, Harlem, Cermak, Ogden, Ridgeland and Depot), as well as by Ward. Some areas have more commercial property, and thus have a larger percentage of the total community vacancy. However, for each page of this report, we will lay out a metric for commercial vacancy “health,” based on how each corridor or Ward compares to others. In this way we can identify priority areas for assistance, as well as develop strategies to help mitigate extended periods of property vacancy.

The BDC has also color coded our maps to indicate time vacant. The darker the shade, the longer the property has remained vacant.

It is important to note a distinction in our count of commercial property vacancies. Organizations that track vacancies, such as Costar, placed Berwyn’s commercial vacancy rate at approximately 3.1% for Q4 2022 (approximately 74,879 of commercial square feet). This vacancy has remained relatively constant throughout the last few years.

However, Costar only tracks properties that it knows to be available and on the market. This is both good news and bad news for Berwyn. The good news is that available commercial properties do not sit on the market for long. There is plenty of demand for built-out and well-positioned commercial property in our community. However, this also indicates that many building owners are unable or unwilling to rehabilitate, reposition, or otherwise market their commercial properties. This challenge appears to have been exacerbated over the past three years.

This gap between what is “available” and what is vacant offers great insight into the health of our commercial property market here in Berwyn. It also allows both the City and the BDC to identify opportunities and strategies to mitigate long periods of vacancy.

In the final section of this report, the BDC lays out a number of potential tools that could help in our efforts. These include but are not limited to: Berwyn's Vacant Property Ordinance, sales tax sharing agreements, property tax abatements, rezoning, and TIF incentive programs.