The first time Potash Markets’ Gold Coast grocery stores were vandalized this summer, the boards covering both stores’ windows came down as soon as the damage was repaired.
The vandalism happened during the civil unrest that followed George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police in May. When one store was hit a second time in August, CEO Art Potash decided to leave the boards up through the election.
“If it can happen once, and then it can happen twice, the door’s wide open for how often this is going to happen,” he said.
Between the civil unrest this summer, the coronavirus pandemic and a divisive election whose outcome may not be known Tuesday, business owners are weighing the prospect of further unrest in a way they haven’t during past elections, said Eric White, executive vice president at security firm Brosnan Risk Consultants.
“It’s clearly a potential triggering event,” he said.
Shoppers may see more stores doing business behind boarded-up windows or closing early Tuesday as businesses take extra safety precautions, and make sure employees have time to vote.
On and around Clybourn Avenue, the retail corridor on the city’s North Side that was hit hard by property damage and theft earlier this year, many store windows were covered with plywood Monday morning, and a few crews continued to work in the area.
“I’ve got four more jobs after this one,” Joe Daniels, an employee of Midlothian-based Cook County Board-Up, said as he wrapped up a job on Clybourn.
“We’re headed to the Gold Coast next,” he said. “They’re all worried about the election.”
On Michigan Avenue, some retailers never took boards down after civil unrest this summer. Others put them back up in the days before the election, including the Disney Store and Ralph Lauren, where workers were covering windows late Monday morning.
In other neighborhoods affected by civil unrest earlier this year, only a handful of stores had boarded their windows back up by Monday afternoon. Most were larger chains, including an Ulta in Hyde Park, Ross, Walgreens and Italian Fiesta Pizzeria in North Kenwood and Foot Locker, Dr. Martens and John Fluevog Shoes along Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park.
Retailers are used to responding to emergencies like severe storms, but it’s harder to predict when and where civil unrest will strike, White said. Precautions also will depend on whether they think employees will be able to get to work and whether customers will feel comfortable shopping.
“I think everybody’s being cautious,” said Patsy Mullins, whose Gold Coast boutique, Accessorize Chicago, was vandalized in August. “We’re just trying to get open and get back to business. That’s what I’m anxious for.”
Mullins, who only recently was able to reopen and plans to keep her store boarded up through the election, said she was surprised to see some stores on Oak Street, home to many of the city’s luxury retailers, remove the plywood.
There were 16 Cook County Board-Up crews out Monday, compared with a typical eight to handle the company’s routine business of securing buildings after fires, break-ins and accidents, Daniels said.
“What I’m afraid of is, these businesses may see nothing happen Tuesday and take everything down,” Daniels said. “There could be stuff that happens after Election Day. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
While the businesses remain open, several storefronts in the North & Sheffield Commons shopping center have been boarded up in recent days. That includes retailers such as Best Buy and Ulta that were broken into previously.
Meanwhile, Macy’s covered the windows on its State Street store with black boards Friday. The chain said it was adding security measures at several stores “out of an abundance of caution,” but did not say what those measures would include.
Local Market Foods, in the South Shore neighborhood, plans to have additional security, a manager said. The grocery store wasn’t seriously damaged during civil unrest this summer, but nearby businesses were.
Some stores, including J. Crew, Canada Goose and Fleet Feet, will not open Tuesday, and Chase is closing bank branches early. All said the move was designed to ensure employees had time to vote.
Nordstrom plans to close all U.S. stores early, at 5 p.m. local time, so customers and employees can get home easily and vote.
“Our teams are monitoring the situation in order to be prepared for any activities that might take place across the U.S. on November 3 and potentially in the days following. We’re taking steps to help keep our customers and employees safe and our stores secure,” the company said in an emailed statement.
Lou Malnati’s said its response will depend in part on what precautions the city takes. Public transit shutdowns and raised bridges make it tough for employees to get to and from work, said spokeswoman Mindy Kaplan. A couple of the company’s Chicago restaurants were damaged during the unrest in May, and the Michigan Avenue restaurant, which remains temporarily closed, was looted in August.
The company is not planning to close restaurants, but Kaplan said it would keep an eye on the situation. “We just have to be ready for anything,” she said.
The city has been planning for the election since the summer, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said last week while outlining a public safety plan. She urged people to keep protests peaceful while acknowledging that emotions will be high regardless of the outcome.
City officials said they will increase police patrols and are prepared to deploy 60 to 300 heavy city vehicles to protect commercial corridors and critical businesses. Police have set up hotlines for businesses and encouraged them to sign up for emergency alerts that can be targeted to specific regions.
The Office of Emergency Management and Communications is encouraging businesses to consider extra precautions like removing flammable materials, securing outdoor furniture, adding security personnel or temporarily altering hours during times of “potential demonstrations and activity,” including Election Day.
The Illinois National Guard has activated an unspecified number of troops in the event of election-related unrest, though it does not currently have a specific mission to perform this week, spokesman Lt. Col. Bradford Leighton said. The state activated members in an abundance of caution in the days before the election so they’d be able to respond quickly if needed, he added.
Magnificent Mile Association Chairman Rich Gamble said he thinks the city is better prepared to react to potential unrest than it was this summer. Police have been more visible on Michigan Avenue and in the surrounding area, and there has been regular communication between the business community, city officials and police.
“There’s a greater degree of confidence in the city’s ability … to be responsive,” Gamble said. “What you don’t know is what individuals and groups may do. There are plans in place to handle a very fluid situation.”
Bravco Beauty, on Oak Street, took confidence in the increased police presence in the neighborhood.
The store, which was vandalized in May but not August, took its plywood down because covering the windows “made it feel dungeony,” said Jacqueline Gordon, who helps run the family owned business.
Gordon said Bravco Beauty does not plan to board back up, in part due to the cost. “You hate to do it if nothing happens,” she said.
The owners of City Fashions, a Lake Meadows store that was ransacked in May, were reassured by preparations for potential civil unrest in Chicago after a Kentucky grand jury decided not to charge Louisville police officers for the killing of Breonna Taylor shortly after the store reopened in September.
The shopping center “went into full lockdown mode,” with two trucks blocking highway exits and a helicopter above the mall, said Edward Kim, whose parents own the store. “It gave me more confidence,” he said.
Pattilyn Beals, interim executive director of the Chatham Business Association, said the organization is prepared to support businesses in the neighborhood, which could include bringing in extra security.
“If there is any relief to be had, it’s the experience of knowing what to do,” she said.
Stacy St. Clair contributed.
