Matteson sues to close Lincoln Mall over ignored safety concerns

Lincoln Mall as it looked last year while emerging from bankruptcy.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

The Village of Matteson filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking a Cook County judge to order the failing Lincoln Mall to be closed immediately because its new owner has failed to correct a slew of building and fire violations.

The village also asked the judge to appoint an independent receiver to oversee needed rehab work at the mall at U.S. 30 and Cicero Avenue.

“We want to get the mall back to what we all know how it used to be many years ago,” Matteson village administrator Brian Mitchell said Wednesday at a news conference after the lawsuit was filed.

Attorneys for the village said Lincoln Mall has failed several building and fire inspections over the past two years.

“If there was a fire, and people were trying to get out, there are situations in which exits lead to dead ends, or barricaded doors,” village attorney Tony Licata said.

The mall has been on the decline for the better part of two decades and huge chunks of the mall have been demolished or are in the process of being torn down.

The mall was purchased out of bankruptcy last summer by Michael Kohan, of New York, for the paltry sum of $154,500. Village officials said he has done nothing to correct the safety violations and has been stringing them along with vague promises of redeveloping the indoor mall.

The lawsuit specifically excluded the Carson’s store, which village officials said was the only safe part of the mall.

Two dozen violations were cited in the lawsuit included crumbling façade, exposed wiring, a padlocked emergency exit, dismantled fire sprinkler pipes, unfinished demolition of the former Montgomery Ward store, which closed in 1999.

Last year, the Sears store closed leaving Carson’s as its only anchor.

The mall’s Facebook page, which has been talking for months about its coming redevelopment was silent Wednesday and posted nothing about the lawsuit.

Its last word on the redevelopment was posted on July 27: “Possibly you saw me walking Friday with the Village and the Re-developer. The Village did go over the proposal for the door; the Village wants a new Proposal which will also have ALL Safety and Building codes up to standard. I talked to Mike (The Owner) and the Re-Developer. Mike said he would give his approval to have all work done. The Village wants the Proposal as soon as possible. So they can approve all plans, they want this project done as soon as possible. I told Mike I would like to have approval of an Occupancy date so I can have Tenants in the Mall before Christmas. I will talk to the Re-developer on Monday possibly I will be able to get a estimate date if he is done with the Proposal. It takes a new Tenant time to set up a new Business as I’m sure you all know.”

Irish pub called Ariel's opens in Tinley

Ariel's Bar & Restaurant opened this week in Tinley Park next to the Wingate Hotel.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Another bit of the auld sod has come to Tinley Park with the opening Monday of Ariel’s Bar & Restaurant at 18401 North Creek Drive next to the Wingate Hotel.

The bar had been under construction since last winter and had originally been scheduled to open in June.

Ariel’s says the menu will offer traditional Irish cuisine, such as fish and chips and shepherd’s pie, along with contemporary dishes, such as Moroccan barbecue salmon and seafood paella, in its dining room that has seating for about 80.

The bar seats about 50 and will feature craft beers as well as an assortment of Irish whiskies.

There are another 140 seats on an outdoor patio.

Ariel’s is open from 11 a.m. to midnight Monday to Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.

For information, call 708-928-8080 or visit the website at www.arielsirishbar.com.

Tilted Kilt still planned for Orland Park

Even though it has been a year since the Tilted Kilt planned for the former Fat Ricky’s location at 16255 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park was supposed to have opened, plans for the sports bar have not been shelved.

“Tilted Kilt is still scheduled to be in Orland Park,” Joseph La Margo, deputy village clerk and public information officer for the Village of Orland Park, said earlier this month.

La Margo said permits had been pulled for the bar, which is known for its waitresses dressed in plaid miniskirts.

Last year, the Orland Park Plan Commission approved plans calling for adding more than 1,500 square feet to the north end of the building. Plans also called for removal of a turret, elimination of a drive-through and the building of an outdoor dining area.

The closest Tilted Kilt franchises are operating in Bolingbrook, Joliet and Chicago Ridge.

Bonefish Grill now hiring in Orland Park

Bonefish Grill, a 5,800-square-foot seafood restaurant under construction at 15537 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park next to the LongHorn Steakhouse has announced it plans to open its doors on Sept. 16 and has begun accepting applications for 100 positions ranging from kitchen staff to servers.

Applications are being accepted now through Sept. 16 at www.bloominbrandscareers.com/Bonefish. Interviews will be conducted with qualified candidates that apply online. 

Applications are being accepted for various positions including angler (server), host, bartender and kitchen staff. 

Florida-based Bonefish Grill got its start in January 2000 and has grown to more than 100 locations in more than a dozen states.

The Orland Park location will be the chain’s fourth in Illinois and the first in the Southland. The building has an estimated cost of $1 million.

The project is the last outlot in the Lowe’s Home Improvement footprint, and makes for quite a restaurant row with LongHorn, Chick-fil-A, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Jersey Mike’s lined up along that stretch of LaGrange.

For information, visit www.bonefishgrill.com.

Zoup! opens Orland Square Mall location

The newly remodeled food court at Orland Square Mall in Orland Park welcomed a Zoup! Fresh Soup Company restaurant on July 25.

 Zoup! is a fast-casual eatery that is in the midst of an expansion push in Illinois. The Orland location will be the company’s fifth location in Illinois and its first in the Southland. The company now has 51 locations in nine states, the District of Columbia and Ontario, Canada. A store opened two weeks ago in Aurora and another is expected to open in downtown Chicago this fall.

 Owners of the Orland franchise are Mohammad Mansour and Faris Ballouta. It’s their first Zoup! location.

“We are excited to bring the Zoup! brand and culture to Orland Park,” Mansour said in a release.  “The wide variety of healthy choices, including soups, salads and sandwiches provide a great dining alternative for our community.” 

Zoup! features hundreds of award-winning soup recipes with 12 rotating daily varieties, including low-fat, low-cal, vegetarian, dairy-free and gluten-free options, all served with a hunk of freshly baked bread, the company said in a release. Customer favorites include Chicken Potpie, Lobster Bisque and Vegetarian Split Pea. The menu also features made-to-order salads and sandwiches, and all items are available in convenient catering sizes for groups of 10 or more.

The new restaurant will employ about 17 team members and will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. 

For more information, call 708-966-3010 or visit www.zoup.com.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also follow business happenings at Comings & Goings.

7-Eleven closes Summit store

Signs on the door at the closed 7-Eleven at 7403 W. 55th Place in Summit thank customers for their patronage.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy 

There are a lot of rumors circulating about why the 7-Eleven store at 7403 W. 55th Place in Summit closed recently. 

 

There is a sign on the door thanking customers for their support and advising them to visit the chain's nearest store at Archer and Nashville in Chicago.

 According to Margaret Chabris, a spokeswoman for the Texas-based chain of convenience stores, it was a simple business decision.

"This had been a former White Hen store," Chabris said. "It was underperforming and was not franchised, so when our lease was up, we decided not to renew."

Chicago Lids Locker Room opens

Chicago Lids Locker Room is now open at Chicago Ridge Mall in Chicago Ridge. The store is located on the main level near the food court and features a wide selection of sports apparel, authentic signed sports memorabilia from NFL, NHL, NBA and MLB, sports merchandise including jerseys, T-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets, hats, tailgate gear and more. The Chicago Ridge location is the ninth for the chain.

For information, visit Chicago Lids.

Shoe Carnival opening 2 new stores

Evansville, Ind.-based Shoe Carnival is opening two new locations on Saturday, July 27, in Burbank and South Elgin.

 The retailer is opening at 9 a.m. at 4835 W. 77th St. in Burbank, and at 354 Randall Road in South Elgin. The first 100 customers at each store will receive a $10 reward card to use toward anything in the store.

Other grand opening events include:  A drawing for free shoes for a year at 10 a.m.; a drawing for $1,000 cash, courtesy of Skechers at 11 a.m.; doorbuster deals from 9 a.m. to noon; prizes and giveaways all weekend.

“We are excited to be opening a new store location bringing our customers a new spacious and inviting Shoe Carnival shopping experience,” Todd Beurman, Senior Vice President of Marketing, said in a release. “At Shoe Carnival we strive to give our customers a family friendly shopping experience with great deals on name brand shoes for the whole family.”

Shoe Carnival carries name brand shoes including Nike, Converse, Sperry, New Balance and many more. There are more than 360 stores in 32 states and Puerto Rico.

Ross Dress for Less opens in Crestwood

Ross Dress for Less, a discount apparel and home fashion chain, opened 20 new stores across the country on Saturday including a store at Rivercrest shopping center next to Ultra Foods at 13200 S. Cicero Ave. in Crestwood, a store at 1555 State Route 50 in Bradley, Hillside and two in Peoria. 

California-based Ross entered the Chicago market in the fall of 2011 when it opened stores in Matteson and Orland Park. Since then the chain has added stores in Bolingbrook and Calumet City and now has seven in the Chicago area. More stores are coming including one under construction in Tinley Park.

Ross stores typically carry brand name products priced 20 percent to 60 percent less than at department and specialty stores.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also follow business happenings at Comings & Goings.