Village of Burnham Comprehensive Retail Plan
Spring 2005- Summer 2005
The City Design Center's
Urban Business Districts Program
provided a Comprehensive Retail
Plan for the Village of Burnham.
Burnham has over 4,000 residents
and is located directly south of
Chicago’s Hegewisch neighborhood
and west of the Indiana-Illinois border.
Burnham's retail environment
faced several development challenges;
it was spatially dispersed and
lacked a distinct identity or sense of
"place."
The City Design Center and the
Village of Burnham partnered in
December of 2005 to develop a retail
plan that built on the community's
many assets. Unlike many other
inner-ring suburbs, Burnham features
natural, historic and recreational
amenities including a golf course and
two riverfronts. Burnham's transportation
infrastructure includes major
arterials and a commuter rail line
to Chicago. All of these assets
strengthened the redevelopment
potential of Burnham's retail districts.
The City Design Center’s plan for
Burnham examined the built and
natural environment, retail mix and
prospective businesses, transportation
access, and fiscal conditions.
Information was collected through site
visits, customer and business surveys,
discussions with local elected
officials and Village employees, and
other data.
The Comprehensive Retail Plan created
innovative strategies to enhance
the form and function of Burnham's
commercial districts. A mixed-use
marina district with a tree-lined boardwalk
was proposed to attract shoppers
and visitors. The plan introduced
a vision of transit-oriented
development near the Hegewisch station
anchored by a new entertainment
and historic corridor. The community's
southern border was seen as
an opportunity to provide a "gateway"
district adjacent to the active retail
districts of neighboring municipalities
which would create a sense of "place"
in Burnham. |
Map of Chicago with project location
Proposed Marina Development along Little Calument River
Concept for riverfront homes
Proposed reconfiguration of State Street
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City Design Center Affiliated Faculty
Brent D. Ryan, Assistant Professor, Urban
Planning and Policy Program, and
Co-Director, City Design Center
Rachel N. Weber, Associate Professor, Urban
Planning and Policy Program
Funding
Village of Burnham
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