Business & Tech

Willow Rd Construction Adds Burden to Struggling Wilsher Plaza

The shopping center near the intersection of Willow and Shermer roads was already hit hard by last year's Union Pacific train derailment, which led to a bridge collapse that cut off traffic on Shermer Road.

By Stan Golovchuk

The businesses at Wilsher Plaza just can't catch a break. 

The shopping center near the intersection of Willow and Shermer roads was hit hard by last year's Union Pacific train derailment, which led to a bridge collapse that cut off traffic on Shermer Road. 

Now, the ongoing Willow Road construction has added a new burden to the struggling businesses at the Glenview, Northbrook border. 

"Yeah, it sucks," said Amy Cole, manager of Mario's Pizza at 2677 Shermer Rd., one of the Wilsher Plaza businesses. "There's no easy way to get here now."

Cole says delivers a mile away, which used to take a few minutes, now take half an hour. 

Slower business has forced the restaurant's owner to cut Cole's hours, she added.

The Subway restaurant nearby has faced a similar dilemma. 

"We're barely surviving," said Jashwan Patel, owner of the Subway at 2691 Shermer Rd. "It's getting really bad. I'm getting worried."

Patel said a relief fund the Village of Glenview created to support the struggling businesses has helped pay rent and keep the business ticking, but even the construction workers in the area haven't been dining at the restaurant very often. 

"They come in and use the bathroom, but we don't get any business from them," Patel said of the construction workers in the area. 


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