Bolingbrook, IL Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)

Bolingbrook's zoning ordinance defines a 'pawnbroker or pawnshop' in § 54-2 as an individual or business lending or advancing money on the security of personal property pledged or deposited in its possession. That use is listed as a permitted use only in the I-1 limited industrial district under § 54-142(a)(8), alongside precious metal dealers and secondhand stores; it is not a permitted or special use in any of the village's B-1 through B-4 business districts, so a storefront pawnshop in a retail strip is not allowed.

Operating in I-1 also requires the general village business license every business needs under Chapter 12: § 12-23 bars conducting any business in the village without first obtaining a license, and § 12-24 requires the application to go to the village clerk with the owner's name and address (or, for a corporation, its officers and registered agent), the proposed location, and the fee set by the village fee schedule. Under § 12-25 the village mayor may order a police department investigation of the application before it is decided, § 12-26 gives the mayor authority to approve or deny it, and § 12-36 allows an appeal to the board of trustees.

unless the board of trustees approves extended hours. A pawnshop using a vehicle in its business must also carry liability insurance meeting the minimums in § 12-38.