Days after the village chose not to opt out of the Cook County minimum wage ordinance, a room full of business owners spoke candidly about the challenges they face in Oak Park.
At an event organized by the Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce, dozens of business owners met with Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb and Trustee Bob Tucker on June 27 at the Carleton Hotel.
While some in the audience still wanted the village to opt out of Cook County’s minimum wage ordinance by the July 1 deadline, Abu-Taleb said the board “didn’t have the votes” to make it happen, which is why the item was pulled from the June 19 agenda.
“Had it come in front of me, I would opt out,” said Abu-Taleb, who owns Maya Del Sol restaurant. “It’s not that I don’t have a heart. I am for people making a living.”
Abu-Taleb said the issue should be a statewide matter and not a county issue. He also said with communities like Forest Park and River Forest already opting out, it could put Oak Park at a disadvantage.
“I think what Cook County has done in terms of more regulations to our businesses and having communities being given the option to opt out or not is really unfair to us and our neighboring communities,” Abu-Taleb said.
According to Abu-Taleb, businesses generated $6,250,000 in sales taxes for the village last year.
Under the county ordinance, a $10 minimum wage takes effect July 1, followed by increases in 2018 and 2019 before the minimum wage reaches $13 in 2020. The ordinance also requires employers to provide a minimum number of sick days to employees.
In addition to the increased sick time, some worried over what an increased salary floor would mean for the wages of all employees.
“I hire lots of high school kids,” said Therese Garland of Garland Flowers, 137 S. Oak Park Ave. “No one in my store earns minimum wage, and most of the high school kids make a little above. [The county ordinance] changes the whole base, and it’s really going to be a challenge.”
With the minimum wage ordinance due to take effect within days, Jim August, the owner of The Irish Shop, 100 N. Oak Park Ave., asked the village to think of other ways to assist its small business owners.
“The last five years have been challenging,” August said. “It’s parking, the way people are shopping and the online presence. We persevere, but rents keep going up. There’s been times in August I’ve thought ‘How am I going to make it through [the year].’ “
Karen Morava, owner of CarefulPeach Boutique, 1024 North Blvd., also asked if the village could provide assistance in other ways for struggling retailers.
“People come in, and I watch them photograph tags so they can go home and compare prices,” Morava said. “Perhaps something could be done to help small businesses learn about internet sales or something we can use from [a village funding pool] to pay for a more robust website? Sometimes it comes down to money for how much you can put in for [search engine optimization].”
Many in the room said they are facing tight profit margins, which may get tighter due to the increased costs of operating in Oak Park.
“I do this because I love it,” Morava said. “We are not getting rich, any of us.”
Some owners felt the village has invested too much into larger developments in the downtown shopping district, and would rather some of that investment be divided amongst smaller retailers and restaurants.
“The big developments are great, but now it’s time to focus on the small businesses,” said Michelle Vanderlaan of Sugarcup Trading, 110 N. Marion St.
Vanderlaan suggested low- or zero-interest bridge loans for the village to provide businesses, when needed, and possibly enacting “training wages” to allow businesses to employ local teens who are in need of jobs.
“We want you to invest back in us,” Vanderlaan said.
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