The Dump Furniture Store Opens in Lombard; Joint Venture to Develop Evergreen Promenade Shopping Center

By Gabriel Circiog, Associate Editor

One of the largest furniture outlets in the country, The Dump, has recently officially opened its new location in Lombard, Illinois. Featuring a staggering 134,000 square feet, The Dump is now the largest high-end furniture outlet in the Chicago marketplace. The opening of the Lombard outlet confirms the company’s continuous expansion as it becomes the 11th location for The Dump Furniture Store, a division of Virginia Beach-based Haynes Furniture.

Located at South Highland Avenue and Butterfield Road in the former Great Indoors space, The Dump opened its doors with a ribbon-cutting ceremony held on Labor Day weekend. The ceremony was attended by representatives of the Lombard Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The Dump will employ 250 people in its Lombard store and its new warehouse in Addison, Illinois.

“Today marks the beginning of an entirely new furniture shopping experience for the Chicago marketplace,” said E.J. Strelitz, president and CEO of The Dump. “At The Dump, we are able to consistently deliver massive savings on the best furniture, mattresses and rugs as a result of our unique retail business model. Unlike traditional retail, The Dump is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday each week, which allows us to replenish our stock with completely new inventory during the rest of the week. We are also able to keep our overhead lower by closing the store during the traditionally slower period of the week and pass those savings onto the consumer.”

In other retail real estate news, Inland Real Estate Corporation announced its joint venture with Dutch pension fund advisor PGGM has entered into a joint venture partnership with IBT Group LLC and Pine Tree Commercial Realty. The newly formed joint venture will develop Evergreen Promenade, a 92,512-square-foot shopping center in the Village of Evergreen Park, Illinois. The shopping center will be anchored by Mariano’s, whose owner, Roundy’s Inc., signed a lease for approximately 75,000 square feet of space. Evergreen Promenade will be built on a seven-acre vacant land parcel near Western Avenue and 95th Street. The parcel was acquired by the development joint venture on August 20th and construction on the center is expected to start this fall. Inland Real Estate Corporation’s joint venture with PGGM will have the option to acquire 100 percent ownership in the shopping center, upon completion.

“We are excited to work with our joint venture partners and the Village of Evergreen Park on this development,” said Scott Carr, Inland Real Estate Corporation’s chief investment officer. “Evergreen Promenade will provide expanded shopping options for the community and further enhance the vibrancy of the trade area. For Inland Real Estate Corporation, this project is another example of how we leverage our strong local relationships to capitalize on opportunities to increase the size and quality of our retail portfolio.”