One of Illinois’ biggest little cities has a version of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile shopping hub, with a few notable differences.
You won’t find standalone boutiques for Gucci, Rolex or Tiffany in Rockford’s proudly blue-collar Miracle Mile. The anchor tenants include a bowling alley, a Dollar General and a tattoo parlor or two. But there’s something else shoppers won’t find, either: A steep retail vacancy rate, such as the once-unimaginable 26% of empty space on the Mag Mile.
Rockford’s Miracle Mile shows what a TIF can do when it’s used as intended. A stretch of the city that two decades ago suffered from blighted buildings and vacant land has slowly recovered with assistance from this tax increment financing district, while staying true to its roots. There’s nothing gentrified, Disney-esque or foppish about the Miracle Mile, which is one reason why it works for Rockford…