Target Announces Plans to Open New Oak Park Store in 2017

Target announced Tuesday it will be opening a flexible-format store in Oak Park that should be ready for business by October 2017.

The store will be part of the Elevate Oak Park project, which is a new mixed-use development headed by Clark Street Real Estate and LMC, Target announced in a release. The new store will be located at the corner of Lake and Maple Streets.

Flexible-format stores are smaller venues that are more tailored to specific communities, the company explains in the release. These attributes allow Target to grow its market with more stores in urban communities like Chicago.

The smaller locations have also been a hit in densely populated suburban areas and on college campuses.

“Target is focused on adding flexible-format stores in the Chicago area to make it easier for more guests to shop at Target,” Mark Schindele, Target’s senior vice president of properties, said in the release. “We look forward to providing the Oak Park community with a quick-trip shopping experience with product assortments that are unique to Target.”

The Oak Park Target store will be around 22,000 square feet and will be close to bus, 'L' and Metra stops. The company has focused on providing the following for the Oak Park community: groceries, including fresh produce; cosmetic, skin and hair care products; select men’s and women’s clothes and accessories; offerings for families and kids, like toys and sporting goods; home necessities; select electronics and tech accessories.

In addition to this new development, Target is currently running four flexible-format stores in the Chicago area and is planning on opening three more in 2017. In total, the company is operating 30 flexible-format stores right now.

Oak Park Mayor Anan Abu Taleb has been heavily involved with the Elevate Oak Park project and said he’s happy to see a new tenant move in.

“We are very excited to welcome Target to the heart of our downtown,” he said. “A retailer of Target’s reputation is an economic game-changer not only for Oak Park, but also for our neighboring communities. We’re pleased to be working with Clark Street Real Estate on the Elevate Oak Park project to make Oak Park open for business.”

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Photo by Anicka Slachta for Patch