Village of Oswego Receives Assistance for Market Analysis and Economic Development Plan

Program through CMAP will focus on businesses and industry in Oswego.

What businesses does Oswego want? What retailers or industries would be a good fit for the town? The Village of Oswego plans to find out. The Village recently submitted an application to the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s (CMAP) Local Technical Assistance (LTA) program, said village administrator Steve Jones. The program assists communities in undertaking planning projects. Community development director Rod Zenner submitted an application for assistance for a market analysis and economic development study for Oswego and learned that the application was approved. “With this we can identity what businesses we have here, where we’re losing business elsewhere and what we might need,” said Jones. The village is hoping to find with …

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Oswego Economic Development Director Lucenko Out at Village Hall

Village President Brian LeClercq confirmed Monday the village is looking for a replacement for the director the village hired in August 2011.

The Village of Oswego is currently looking for a new Economic Development Director to replace Tony Lucenko. Village President Brian LeClercq confirmed Monday Lucenko was no longer working for the Village. A job posting online details the position of Economic Development Director and lists the application deadline as Nov. 16, 2012.  Want free local news in your inbox every morning? Sign up for our newsletter. Lucenko was hired by the Village in August 2011 after the dissolution of the Oswego Economic Development Corp. in May of 2011. His role was to oversee economic development, market the Village to new businesses and be responsible for the retention and/or expansion of existing businesses. Patch will update this story as more information …

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Kendall County Working Through Economic Development Plan

Kendall County leaders explain what they have done since releasing a new economic development plan in December.

Kendall County’s economic development efforts center on a county employee, a $15,000 budget, a handful of county board members and a 72-page plan. The plan, approved in December after two public roundtables, looks to push the county’s economic development efforts beyond the $1.9 million revolving loan fund that saw some failed loans in past years as the economy plummeted. The plan targets industrial and manufacturing growth, partially in hopes of attracting jobs that pay more than basic retail jobs and partially to avoid duplicating more local efforts, such as the Yorkville Economic Development Corporation, Oswego's village Economic Development Department and the Montgomery Economic Development Corporation. The tasks may be relatively new …

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Jillian Duchnowski

5:38 pm on Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Charlene, Thank you for providing that clarification. I'm glad to learn we have someone who has maintained that certification for more than 10 years working for economic development in Montgomery.   more ›

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Indies Only: One on One Fitness Provides Individual Attention

Rhonda Johnson happy to be part of downtown business community.

Rhonda Johnson opened One on One Fitness, Inc. to provide a different atmosphere for individuals to get fit. Her trainers devise exercise programs specific to the individual’s goals and clients work out in a private setting. The first 10 years Johnson worked in the fitness industry, she worked in gyms. “I always saw the same people doing the same things and they were all generally physically fit,” Johnson said. “I realized there was a great need for private training without the gym setting.” Johnson said she opened her private studio in downtown Oswego to eliminate the gym feel and to offer services to individuals of all ages and abilities based on their individual goals. There are no machines. Instead, trainers incorporate items like …

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How to Claim Your Business Listing on Patch

Follow these easy steps so you can upload and feature photos for your listing, provide additional information about goods and services, link to your own website and Facebook page via Patch, and more.

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Clothing Retailer Moving Into Former Circuit City Location

Ross Dress for Less plans to spend $800,000 on improving the space.

The retail space that once was home to Circuit City in Oswego has a new tenant. Discount clothing retailer Ross Dress for Less has signed a lease agreement with Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust to locate its 13th Chicago-area store in the space that has sat virtually empty since Circuit City closed its doors in 2009, according to Inland. Crain’s Chicago Business reported in December that the 23,000-square-foot space will undergo $800,0000 in construction improvements. The chain is one of the largest discount retailers in the country, with more than 1,000 stores in 27 states, according to the Ross website. Ross opened 12 stores in the Chicago suburbs last fall, creating about 600 jobs. The closest location to Oswego is on Route 59 in…

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Marcley's Gas Station Only Changing Supplier

Local landmark re-branded as Shell.

Rumors of the demise of Marcley’s gas station/mini-mart in downtown Oswego appear to have been greatly exaggerated. The station’s owner for seven years, Thomas Roy, said Shell has not bought out the station at routes 34 and 25. Shell is now the station's gasoline supplier, and part of the supply deal was to rebrand the location, Roy said. “Everything is still the same,” he said.  “Employees are the same, managers are the same, mini mart is the same.” Roy said the change was necessary in a difficult economy in which large corporations like Walmart and Meijer are able to slash prices below small business owners. The station needed expensive repairs that he could not afford, and the rebranding has made those possible, Roy said. He also said …

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Brett Wolff

7:00 am on Monday, March 12, 2012

I gotta be honest here: I used to buy my cigarettes and fuel at Marcley's faithfully, but ever since Gas City up the street became a Speedway, that's been my new source, if only because their gas and tobacco are less expensive. I miss walking down to Marcleys for a pack of smokes every other day. I wish their prices were more competitive.   more ›