Flossmoor’s monthly sales tax revenue jumped threefold following the opening of the Meijer superstore in June.
The State of Illinois Friday posted sales tax numbers for July, the first full month Meijer’s Flossmoor store was open. They show the village receiving $67,384 in sales tax revenues for that month.
Flossmoor Finance Director Scott Bordui said that amount is $45,000 more than average monthly distribution in the previous year.
“Assuming the $45,000 increment was generated from Meijer, this would put us on pace for $540,000 in additional annual sales tax revenue from Meijer, which compares favorably with the $530,000 that we had projected,” Bordui said.
In any case, the Meijer sales tax revenues represent a financial shot in the arm for Flossmoor. Village officials see Meijer – and other stores that may follow it along a Vollmer Road commercial district – as an important source of funds to support municipal operations.
“The village board and I are pleased with the July sales tax figures, which are a very good indication that staff’s and the village board’s projections for Meijer sales tax revenue are on track,” Mayor Paul Braun said Friday. “The sales tax increase will certainly help village revenues in this challenging economy and will be factored into the board’s five-year financial analysis that will be discussed by the village board in the next couple of months.”
Bordui said the state generally posts sales tax information for cities and villages three months after that money is collected at business establishments. The state collects sales tax and distributes it on a monthly basis.
“This is really good news,” Bordui said. “We’re especially happy that we came so close to our projections. But it’s very promising for the village. And the holiday season is coming and the numbers could go even higher.”
The current Illinois sales tax is 6.25 percent; Flossmoor receives its 1 percent share from the state sales tax. Cook County’s sales tax rate is 1.75 percent and there is a 1 percent RTA rate, bringing the total sales tax rate in the village to 9 percent.
The 192,000-square-foot Meijer store opened on June 21. Meijer invested $13.58 million in its Flossmoor project, according to a document submitted by the village to the Illinois Comptroller’s office last year. The new store hired about 280 employees.
Flossmoor officials have said that Meijer is also expected to annually generate $250,000 in property taxes for the village.
The new store, located at Vollmer Road and Crawford Avenue, offers groceries, a pharmacy, a Starbucks, clothing and house wares, a garden center and an automotive center.