Mayor Vows Retail for Best Buy Site

Customers were surprised to learn Saturday Best Buy at the will be closing and Deerfield  to keep the new tenant producing sales tax dollars.

The store will close in August, according to a company spokesperson.

“Deerbrook is a PUD (Planned Unit Development) so they’ll have to get a special use permit,” Rosenthal said, referring to the fact the mall owners must ask the village board for permission to put anything in the space other than another store.

Though Rosenthal and the board of trustees knew Best Buy wanted smaller space and had advance warning of the closing before it was announced to the public by the Minnesota-based company Saturday, she was still unhappy.

“It’s very sad,” Rosenthal said. “They will be missed in this area. I knew they wanted to downsize.” she added. The company needed less space when it stopped selling appliances in Deerfield. “Deerbrook has been working on a renovation to the shopping center.”

Retention of sales tax revenue has been a focus for Rosenthal. At the April 2 meeting of the board of trustees, she asked Deerfield Village Manager Kent Street to look at ways to avoid the loss of revenue that occurred because the former Borders and George’s What’s Cooking sites will become medical offices.

“We knew this when we did our budget for sales tax revenue and took this into account,” Rosenthal said of the most recent closing. The mayor’s concern over income derived from shoppers was borne out by people shopping at Best Buy Saturday.

Jim Statza of Lake Bluff, who was leaving the store with a new electronic device, had no idea the store was closing when he talked to Patch.

“I did not know,” Statza said. “I’ll be spending less time in Deerfield and Highland Park. I come here for Best Buy."

Pat Herendeen of Highland Park was equally surprised and disappointed with the condition the Best Buy departure will leave for the mall. “It’s unfortunate,” he said. “I had no idea. This is going to be a bit of a ghost town.”

David Lipman and Riva Lipman of Highland Park feel a loss for the community. “It’s a shame for Highland Park and Deerfield,” they said. “It’s been here a long time. Things are coming undone at the Deerbrook Mall.”