Sometime after the holidays, Susan Sandberg will turn out the lights at her family-owned jewelry store in Skokie for one last time. After more than a century in operation, Sandberg Jewelers is closing for good.

For Sandberg, the end is bittersweet. She gave up a budding law career to take over the business decades ago and mostly loved it. But over the past few years, much has changed: The pandemic, crime, inflation, online competition and labor shortages have forced her to work harder than ever before, for a diminishing return. “Everything is coming to a head, and my lease is up,” she told us.

The same goes for many independent small businesses that weathered the hard times of COVID-19, but now face yet more hard times, as the economy downshifts and the pandemic pressure-points live on. Just as American workers have reevaluated their careers, in some cases opting for more purposeful, balanced work outside traditional offices, small proprietors such as Sandberg who make up the backbone of local shopping districts are re-evaluating too.

The result is an unsettled time for the traditional center of town, where shops, banks and restaurants come together to build the ties that bind communities. If you thought the last half century has been tough on Main Street — and it has — consider what’s happening now. The pace of change is faster than practically anyone anticipated and, as challenges mount, a foundation of American life is being put to the test.

In theory, elections bring us together by making our voices heard. But in recent years, that hasn’t been the case. Across the country, the run-up to Tuesday’s midterm contest was marked by division and animosity, negative campaigning, and threats to the voting systems that make democracy work.

Still, we are hopeful. In Illinois, the 2022 midterm was the first general election since district boundaries were redrawn after population loss cost the state a congressional seat. The General Assembly will be welcoming new faces, and based on our meetings with the candidates, new ideas will follow. The state needs fresh thinking to keep up with the rapid pace of change that is evident in hometowns across the Land of Lincoln. .

At the Illinois Main Street Conference in downstate Bloomington, last month, participants covered topics such as how to obtain creative financing, recruit members for local booster boards and build strong partnerships with property owners. They also covered newer priorities such as addressing environmental sustainability and making public spaces more welcoming for a wider swath of the population.

It’s unclear if the usual playbook will suffice. Turning Main Streets into hotbeds of economic and social opportunity is tricky, now.

Consider Bloomington, the small but very livable city where the conference was held. In August, its City Council swallowed hard and voted 5-4 in favor of a downtown revitalization plan that could eventually cost about $25 million. Even the first phase is a big commitment, and no one can be sure the investment will pay off. At the same time, everyone knows that ignoring downtown won’t pay off. Give the council credit for making a tough call.

Sandberg can relate. Before the pandemic, she planned to renew her store lease for “another five years, and another five years after that,” she said. But now, everything’s different.

For starters, some of her regular customers don’t want as much jewelry because, for a lot of reasons, they aren’t dressing up anymore. More casual fashions and the remote work trend are part of the explanation.

Unfortunately, so is crime, a critical issue in the election that overshadowed even some of the potent culture-war talking points that candidates in Tuesday’s elections tried to rely on. “A lot of people are afraid of wearing jewelry out,” Sandberg said. “When I go downtown, I don’t dress up.”

The threat of crime also has forced her to make the store less welcoming. Customers seeking admittance must first show ID via a camera. The locked front door is opened for one person at a time to enter the vestibule, and only when that door closes do store employees open the interior door to admit the person.

If that procedure seems more fitting for an embassy or bank vault, Sandberg has news for you: Gangs of thieves have made it their business to rush into jewelry stores, smash glass displays and run off with armfuls of goods.

Skokie is relatively safe, but the store is in a strip mall near a highway, and dreadful acts such as the Fourth of July parade shooting in Highland Park have shaken Sandberg. Even if the security measures turn off customers, she wants to keep herself and her employees safe.

Just as it was in the election, the economy is also a top issue for Main Street businesses. After peaking at 10 full-time workers before the pandemic, the store is down to four, plus temps, Sandberg said, because so few qualified individuals are available to work when unemployment stands at just 3.7% nationwide.

For the owner, being short-staffed results in no vacation, no time to run errands and, inevitably, after a while, burnout. “The pleasure of the business is gone,” she said, though she plans to continue the artistic part of the job on her own.

The store’s closing has touched off an outpouring of grief and gratitude, as longtime customers realize a place where everyone knows their names, and marked so many of their life-changing events, will be gone soon. It’s easy to imagine a similar scene taking place across the country, as the churn on Main Streets continues.

With the election now behind us, cities and towns must recommit to nurturing the “green shoots” that follow when community pillars with deep roots pass on. The key to downtown economic development is bringing about the right conditions: Curbing crime, enticing back residents, making things friendly for pedestrians and cyclists.

Give Illinois Main Streets the fertile ground they need to thrive, and thrive they will.

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