Crain's Chicago Business, November 13, 2023

CHICAGOBUSINESS.COM I NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Resale inventory low, pushing up new-home sales Owners with low rates do that,” Tailor said. “We’ll find him something.” are reluctant to sell, The switches are coming mostly because the inventory of resale pay higher interest homes is extremely tight. People

GEOFFREY BLACK

By Dennis Rodkin

John Capers and Kelly Yue were thrilled to land their first home for $315,000 in Humboldt Park.

IN THE MIDDLE OF CHANGING NEIGHBORHOODS

Gentrification has transformed one side of Humboldt Park. On the other side, developers are taking a more affordable approach. I PAGE 13

Four times in recent months, real estate agent Nikit Tailor’s clients have switched from looking for an existing home to buy to shopping the new-construction offerings, and all have bought one.

“Before about a year ago, I barely did any new-construction sales,” said Tailor, a Coldwell Banker agent based in Libertyville. “Now they’re all asking.”

In mid-October, Tailor’s Naperville clients who converted to new-house hunting paid just under $681,000 for a house on Lucent Lane. Three other buyers he represented have deals at various stages for homes in Plainfield, Yorkville and Bartlett.

Last week dawned with a call from another client who is tired of the frustrating search among the low inventory of homes offered for resale in St. Charles and asked to see some new-build listings. “I told him it makes sense to

with low-cost mortgages from the times before interest rates doubled in 2022 are reluctant to sell because they’d have to buy at present interest rates, which are over 7%.

Homebuilders sold 1,320 units locally in the third quarter, up 41% from the same period in 2022, according to a report.

The shortage of existing homes helped push sales of new-construction homes up during the third quarter of the year, said Erik Doersching, president and CEO of Tracy Cross Associates, a homebuilding consultancy based in Schaumburg. Homebuilders in the Chicago area sold 1,302 new units in the third See NEW-BUILD on Page 19

Restaurants cut labor costs as tipped wage looms They’re hiring fewer people and cutting operating hours as they prepare to implement an ordinance the City Council passed last month

By Ally Marotti

Chicago restaurants are starting to trim labor costs as the city prepares to gradually eliminate its sub-minimum wage for tipped workers.

An ordinance approved by the City Council last month will phase out Chicago’s $9.48 hourly minimum wage for tipped work-

ers by 2028 through annual 8% increases until it reaches the citywide minimum, which is currently $15.80. That phaseout won’t start until July 2024, but some restaurants say they must start cutting costs now.

Restaurants are hiring fewer people and cutting back operating hours. Operators say that, eventually, they will raise menu prices to

find the additional funds needed to pay staffers more. Restaurant owners are not liking the arithmetic, as they try to retain employees and keep rising menu prices — which rarely come back down — from scaring off customers.

“We’re trying not to cut our labor force, but we’re going to have See LABOR on Page 18

Korina Sanchez, vice president and general counsel at Third Coast Hospitality Group, says they’re hiring fewer people and having servers do more work. I PHOTO BY JOHN R. BOEHM

VOL. 46, NO. 45 l COPYRIGHT 2023 CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC. l ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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GREG HINZ ON POLITICS

As Ed Burke’s final chapter begins, Chicago-style politics remain

Fulton Labs, 400 N. Aberdeen St.

2 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

COSTAR GROUP

S

give another example, of the ome years ago, a ranking city restaurant owner whose loading official told me a tale about zone was canceled on opening day how things worked with Ed because he failed to purchase Burke. dram insurance from the right Burke was presiding over a politically connected firm. No meeting of the all-powerful City longer are the heads of the Council Committee on Finance, Democratic-controlled which he chaired. Up for Illinois Senate and House consideration this day property tax appeals was approval of a lawyers, just like Burke. financial incentive for a Still, the core of the pending real estate Chicago Way — mutual development. During a backscratching, with the slowdown in the propublic good, at best, a ceedings, Burke emerged consideration from the chair into a large Greg Hinz secondary — remains. waiting room that sprawls I’ll offer two examples. behind the council The first is Mayor Brandon Johnchambers. He approached a son’s relationship with his former representative of the applicant, employer and biggest political and presented his card, listing backer, the Chicago Teachers contact information for his property tax appeals law firm. Little Union. The mayor insists he’s holding the union at arm’s length. was said. But the message could But so far, he’s reversed a decision not have been clearer: You take care of me, and I’ll take care of you. by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and That’s the way things worked for had the city begin picking up $45 million a year in Chicago Public the decades Burke served as the Schools pensions, an action that second-most powerful person in effectively diverted those funds city government. Everybody knew from other needs, such as homeless it. The hundreds of low-level city services. He’s let CTU President workers who annually would get Stacey Davis Gates become a key consultatory notes from the adviser, one of the top two or three chairman wishing them a happy he relies upon, my sources report. birthday or anniversary certainly And to balance his city budget, he knew it. So did powerful mayors. declared a huge surplus in the city’s Like Richard M. Daley, who let tax-increment financing account, Burke keep his job even though endangering plans to redevelop the Burke had once run against Daley LaSalle Street financial district, but for Cook County state’s attorney. providing a huge windfall to CPS Or Rahm Emanuel, who, when (and the CTU), which will get half of once asked why he didn’t put his own person in the finance job, shot the money.

An even more eyebrow-raising me an “are you crazy” look, adding example has been provided by City that the political cost of dumping Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin.

Burke was just too high.

Eventually, in the “Chicago Way,” She’s still running for Congress, even though she’s yet to fully it was “the G,” or federal prosecuexplain why city taxpayers got tors, who caught up with Burke. stuck with a $100,000 tab for a legal Under federal indictment for settlement in a case in which some corruption, for allegedly using his of her former top aides accused public job to enrich his private her of, among other things, pocketbook — and facing a ward directing staffers to plan her that had become overwhelmingly daughter’s birthday party and — Latino — Burke gave up his seat shades of Burke — leaning on a after serving as alderman longer bank where city money is depositthan anyone in city history. Now ed to issue a mortgage to a building he begins the final chapter, with in which her spouse, Ald. Jason jury selection underway in his Ervin, has his aldermanic office. federal trial.

The treasurer says she’s done Whatever happens to Burke — nothing wrong, but taxpayers need he’s presumed innocent, and has to hear much more. pleaded not guilty — his time is Many of you probably can over. Even by Chicago political provide your own examples. standards, Burke was achingly Some backscratching is inevitaold-fashioned, a creature of the ble in politics. But our pols Chicago Machine who considered continue to take it to a new level, government a personal business that could be leveraged to get rich. public perception be damned.

Just make sure you send your But is Burke-style politics done check — for political campaign in this town? Not entirely.

Oh, the most outrageous types of contributions — to the right folks, dontcha know. And for good or personal profiteering have faded. bad, count on the U.S. attorney to It’s been awhile since I’ve heard a clean it all up. tale like that episode above. Or, to

Illinois Tech opening a life sciences laboratory in Fulton Market The school will join the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub at the Fulton Labs building on Aberdeen Street

By John Pletz

Add the Illinois Institute of Technology to the growing list of life sciences players moving into Fulton Market.

The university says it’s taking a full floor, or 34,295 square feet, of lab space in the Fulton Labs building at 400 N. Aberdeen St., which also houses Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago and Portal Innovations.

The move underscores the desire by life sciences researchers and startups to move to Fulton Market in search of hard-to-find lab space and proximity to talent, ranging from Google to McDonald’s.

It’s also another sign of the resiliency of the neighborhood just west of the Loop and further evidence that developer Trammell Crow’s early bet on the neighborhood is paying off. The developer launched Fulton Labs with a

building at 1375 W. Fulton St. in 2019 and built a second lab facility nearby at 400 N. Aberdeen, which opened last year. Trammell Crow plans to open lab facilities in Hyde Park and Evanston next year.

Illinois Tech, whose main campus is in Bronzeville, says it plans to house faculty, researchers and students in the Fulton Labs building.

Although the small, private university is well known for engineering, computer science, and architecture and design, it also has biomedical and biological engineering expertise. For many years, its Bronzeville campus was one of the few places that startups could find lab space.

“We want to immerse researchers in the budding life sciences innovation ecosystem that’s going on in Fulton Market,” Provost Kenneth Christensen said. “We want to be part of that.”

Researchers will focus on bio-

medical and biological engineering, including sensors, separation science and electrochemical energy materials, along with more biology-focused research, such as therapeutics development, the university said.

The lab space will open next fall.

Dan Lyne of CBRE represented Trammell Crow in the deal, and Max Zwolan and Scott Brandwein of JLL represented Illinois Tech.

“We will co-locate faculty, research staff and Ph.D. students there, people who don’t necessarily collaborate on campus now,” Christensen said. “We’re trying to capitalize on strategic opportunities for growth when it makes sense. We view it as the right place, the right time and the right relationships.”

Fulton Market will be the fifth campus for Illinois Tech, which has about 8,500 students, most of whom are pursuing graduate degrees. Its law and business schools are downtown. Its institute for food safety and health is in Bedford Park. The school also has a campus in Wheaton.

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City to (again) put O’Hare concession deals out for bid Companies big and small will look to get a chance to run restaurants, bars and shops at one of the world’s busiest airports

Days after home sellers win verdict, homebuyers file suit

BLOOMBERG

By John Pletz

The new case is one of two that allege homebuyers pay thousands of dollars in inflated commissions I By Dennis Rodkin

D

ays after a Kansas City jury awarded home sellers nearly $1.8 billion in damages over the real estate industry’s commission structure, a similar suit on behalf of the people on the other side of a real estate transaction, home buyers, was filed in federal court in Chicago.

“For decades, home buyers across America have been unwittingly paying too much for, and receiving too little from” the real estate agents who represent them, reads the complaint, filed Nov. 2 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against seven big national real estate brokerages.

The brokerages rely on “anti-competitive” commission policies from the National Association of Realtors that result in See LAWSUIT on Page 18

Larger commissions, because they’re wrapped into the buyer’s overall purchase, contribute to higher prices for homes, the complaint contends.

The city of Chicago is preparing yet again to bid out a lucrative concessions contract to manage the bars, restaurants and retail shops in the two busiest terminals at O’Hare International Airport.

The city plans to put the contract out for bid early next year, Chicago Aviation Commissioner Jamie Rhee told a City Council committee last week. The Department of Aviation had planned to put the contract out late last year or early this year, but it got delayed.

The contract is potentially one the largest in the industry by virtue of O’Hare’s size. It’s the nation’s fourth-busiest airport, in terms of passengers, according to the most recent ranking by Airports Council International, although it generally ranked No. 2 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The industry is eagerly awaiting this one,” says Stephen Freibrun, a Chicago-based principal at consulting firm ICF International. “There are likely to be very few solicitations of this depth and breadth in the upcoming years.”

Concessions are important to travelers, but they’re critical to the airport and the airlines who use it.

The city’s Department of Aviation gets a cut of retail sales, which reduces the amount that airlines have to pay in landing fees and terminal rent that cover the bulk of the cost to operate the airport.

Terminals 1, 2 and 3 are

O’Hare’s busiest, and HMSHost has held the food and beverage contract to serve them since 1999. The deal expired in 2012 and has been rolled over since.

Although the city has talked several times about putting the contract out for bid, it has never come to pass. The concession contract took a backseat to plans to build a new international terminal and a new lease-and-use agreement for the airport that was completed in 2018. The pandemic came next, pushing off the contract again.

The contract is potentially one the largest in the industry by virtue of O’Hare’s size.

HMSHost, based in Bethesda, Md., pays the city 16.75% of its gross sales. In 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, that worked out to $42 million in rent on $252 million in revenue. Concessionaires such as HMSHost get a cut of restaurants’ receipts.

Hudson Group, based in East Rutherford, N.J., operates retail shops in the domestic terminals at O’Hare under a contract awarded a decade ago. In 2019, Hudson’s newsstand shops generated $66.6 million in sales, and See O’HARE on Page 19

Stellantis commits to invest nearly $5B in Belvidere A battery plant, EV truck assembly and a parts hub could lift headcount close to 5,000, the recent peak at the plant when it was making Jeep Cherokees

By John Pletz

Stellantis plans to spend nearly $5 billion over the next four years expanding its Belvidere operations to include electric vehicle and battery manufacturing.

Briefing materials provided by the United Auto Workers to its members as they prepare to vote on a new contract negotiated with the owner of Chrysler and other automotive brands outline a series of big investments in the northern Illinois plant that only recently appeared doomed.

The company will invest $3.2 billion in a battery plant with a

joint venture partner that hasn’t yet been disclosed. The plant is expected to open in 2028, according to the briefing materials.

Stellantis also will spend $1.5 billion to repurpose the Belvidere plant to assemble a new model electric midsize truck, starting in 2027. The union predicts the plant will make 80,000 to 100,000 vehicles per year.

Another $100 million investment will create a larger regional parts-distribution hub in Belvidere, consolidating work from facilities in Michigan and Milwaukee.

Stellantis also will increase stamping operations to supply parts.

The planned investments represent a sharp turn of fortune for the plant, where headcount had declined in recent years until Stellantis idled it earlier this year, a move seen as a step toward permanent closure. When the upgrades and new construction are done in four years, headcount at Belvidere could be between 4,000 and 5,000 workers, a source familiar with the plans says. That’s close to recent peak employment at the plant in 2019, when it was building Jeep Cherokees.

Thousands of new, well-paid auto industry jobs will give an

Stellantis also will spend $1.5 billion to repurpose the Belvidere plant to assemble a new electric midsize truck, starting in 2027. I FCA PHOTO

economic boost to the region surrounding Belvidere, and bolster Illinois’ position in electric vehicle manufacturing. Earlier this year, the state landed a new

electric vehicle battery plant to be built in Manteno. Rivian has been making electric trucks in See BELVIDERE on Page 19 NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 3

Walgreen family yacht for sale at almost $15 million

OCEAN INDEPENDENCE PHOTOS

Built for the late Charles Walgreen III and his wife, Kathleen, the Bouchon is 150 feet long with accommodations for 10 guests and nine crew members I By Dennis Rodkin

A

150-foot yacht built for the late Charles Walgreen III, former CEO and third generation to run the drug store chain, is on the market at $14.9 million.

Built in 2002 and called the Bouchon, which is French for Charles Walgreen’s nickname, Cork, the boat can sleep 10 guests and nine crew members. The main cabin is a large suite that includes a bedroom richly paneled in wood and a bathroom finished in marble, with a soaking tub beneath a row of portholes.

Owned by Walgreen’s widow, Kathleen, the yacht is listed for sale with Fort Lauderdale, Fla., yacht brokerage Ocean Independence.

Chris Collins, an agent representing the boat, declined to comment.

Kathleen Walgreen did not respond to a message left at a phone number listed in her name.

Kathleen Walgreen owns a lakefront mansion on Mayflower Road in Lake Forest, according to Lake County records, and has a home in Florida, according to online records.

Charles Walgreen III, who died in 2016 at age 80, started in the company founded by his grandfather, Charles, in the late 1950s, working first as a pharmacist in a store in West Ridge. He became president in 1969, CEO in 1971 and chairman in 1976.

When he retired in 1998, according to his obituary in Crain’s, “Walgreen could claim 23 straight years of record sales, six stock splits, a quadrupled store count and annual sales that increased to $13 billion from $817 million.”

He remained on the board until 2010 and was the last Walgreen family member to run the company.

Yachting has been a Walgreen family pursuit since at least the mid-1950s, when Charles Walgreen III’s father, Charles Walgreen Jr., built the first of what would be four yachts, starting out with a 65-footer and building a 127-footer in 2007, the year he died.

Tesla nears deal for downtown service center The electric-car company is close to finalizing a lease at a site near the Old Post Office

By Danny Ecker

Tesla is lining up a deal to open a big service center near the southwest corner of the Loop, a move that would bring more activity to a pocket of downtown that has seen a rush of new investment in recent years.

The electric-car maker is close to finalizing a lease for roughly 100,000 square feet at 717 S. Desplaines St., according to people familiar with the negotiations. If the deal is completed, Tesla would likely convert an industrial building on the site into a service and maintenance facility for Tesla vehicles, the second such Tesla center in the city.

The deal would bring a high-profile brand to an area that has far 4 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

more foot traffic today than it did a few years ago. Just a couple of blocks from the property Tesla is eyeing, the redeveloped Old Post Office is almost fully leased to office users, while the new BMO Tower office building next to Union Station has been drawing in major new tenants.

Area transformation Tesla’s arrival would be another validation point in the area’s transformation from a no man’s land into a corporate destination.

The lease would also mark a win for 601W, the developer that turned the Old Post Office into a modern office building. A venture led by the New York-based firm bought the Desplaines Street property for $34 million in 2018, ac-

cording to Cook County property records.

Two previous owners had visions to convert the 4.5-are site — home to a vacant former Grainger industrial supply warehouse — into a data center. Chicago developer Sterling Bay bought it in late 2012 for $23.5 million and mulled a plan to turn it into a data center to meet growing demand for computer server storage facilities.

Instead, it sold the site a few months later to St. Louis-based data center developer Ascent, which marketed the site to data center tenants and even signed a lease with one. But that deal was terminated due to a lack of connectivity on the site, and Ascent would later sell to 601W. A spokeswoman for 601W de-

clined to comment, and a Tesla spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.

Tesla has been expanding its network of service centers nationwide in recent years. The Austin, Texas-based company led by billionaire Elon Musk has six service centers across the Chicago suburbs, according to its website. The Elston Avenue building in the Avondale neighborhood that houses Tesla’s only service center location in the city was sold in 2021 to a Miami-based investor for $13.1 million, property records show.

Tesla also has showrooms in the city in the Gold Coast and just north of the Fulton Market District.

The Tesla service center negotiations come as 601W hunts for of-

717 S. Desplaines St. I COSTAR GROUP

fice tenants at another nearby property 801 S. Canal St. The developer is in the process of turning that 683,000-square-foot former Northern Trust office building into a modern, multi-tenant office building that it has rebranded as Canal Station.

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THE TAKEAWAY

A Chicagoan to know: Andy Lansing of Levy PROUD TO BE NAMED A

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REAL ESTATE AUCTIONS DECEMBER 12, 2023

45+/- ACRES AT THE INTERSECTION OF I-80 & IL-178 IN LaSalle, IL

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REAL ESTATE AUCTION DECEMBER 19, 2023

FORMER FRANCISCANS LOURDES FRIARY 61-ACRE DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY LOCATED JUST 40 MILES S.E. OF DOWNTOWN CHICAGO AT 12915 PARRISH AVE., CEDAR LAKE, INDIANA Zoned R2 - Residential District, 16,944 sq. ft.

Main building and 5 total buildings, mature trees, walking trails, ponds. Possibilities include residential development, non-profit, corporate retreat, senior living, hospitality, medical, etc.

Previously Valued To $3,800,000 Suggested Opening Bid $975,000 On-site inspections from Noon to 2pm Nov. 28, Dec. 8 and Dec. 14, and by appointment.

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Rick Levin & Associates, Inc. | since 1991 312.440.2000 | www.ricklevin.com 6 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Lansing, 63, is a 35-year veteran of Chicago-based restaurant and hospitality company Levy, including the past 19 years as CEO. He heads up a $3.58 billion company with 50,000 employees. Frequent food tastings — most recently, smash burgers and burnt ends — have inspired a devotion to exercise, “or else I would weigh 400 pounds.” Lansing and his wife live in Lincoln Park and have two children, ages 28 and 25. I By Laura Bianchi What’s on the horizon?

We are going to experience a “sports and entertainment equinox” during a two-week period in February, when we provide hospitality for Super Bowl LVIII, the NBA All-Star Game, the Grammy Awards and NASCAR’s Daytona 500. That will probably be our biggest equinox ever, not including the Kentucky Derby in May. It’s pretty crazy awe-inspiring.

What kind of kid were you?

The class clown, but a good student. I played sports and did a lot of theater. One year at Highland Park High School, I played Bert Parks at the Miss America contest, singing and MCing. But magic was the biggest part of my life.

How so?

Ever since my grandfather pulled that first coin out of my ear, I have loved magic. I incorporate it at work, whether one-on-one in my office, during our management academies with new team members or with a major stage illusion at our yearly award shows.

Your favorite trick?

I can take a dollar bill that someone has signed and torn up and make it reappear whole, rolled up inside a lemon, with the correct serial number. That still gets a big reaction.

A turning point in your life?

At 27, I was a lawyer handling real estate and representing several guys in the NFL when (Levy co-founder) Larry Levy asked me to be his general counsel. I had to be convinced to take it because I felt too young and had no experience in that role. But a friend reminded me that Levy was a $30 million company at the time and told me I was an idiot not to sign on, so I took it.

How did that go?

I came in with the worst imposter syndrome ever. They would ask me to do something like trademark registration and my knees would buckle, but I did a lot of research, powered through and things worked out very well.

Any heart-thumping life moments?

Typically, when I go scuba

diving with my daughter in places like Zanzibar or Cabo (San Lucas). Diving into a wrecked airplane, seeing sharks swim by, those are showstopper moments.

First job?

At 14, I was a short-order cook at a golf course in Highland Park at $1.65 an hour. They told me I could eat whatever I wanted, so I didn’t hold back. I would down double milkshakes and triple burgers in between serving people. I got the better of that gig.

B

CRAIN'S LIST LARGEST ACCOUNTING FIRMS Ranked by local professional staff as of 6/30/2023. Crain’s estimates are in gray.

2022 RANK COMPANY

LOCAL MANAGING PARTNER

PROFESSIONAL STAFF IN THE 7-COUNTY AREA AS OF 6/30/2023; % CHANGE FROM 2022 LOCAL CPAS

AUDITING AND ACCOUNTING

MANAGEMENT ADVISORY SERVICES

TAX

OTHER

NO. OF FIRMWIDE PROFESSIONALS AS OF 6/30/2023

2022 FIRMWIDE REVENUE (MILLIONS); % CHANGE FROM 2021

DELOITTE1

Kathy Scherer Central region market leader, managing partner

5,686 -2.8%

930

1,010

3,602

1,246

—

—

$27,936.0 21.8%

1

1

2

2

ERNST & YOUNG LLP 155 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 EY.com

Kevin Cole Chicago managing partner

4,729 1.4%

873

977

2,191

1,072

489

365,399

$19,110.0 2 —

3

3

PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LLP 1 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 PWC.com

Carina Markel Central market managing partner, Chicago office leader

3,670 e -3.4%

—

—

—

—

—

—

$20,731.0 2 15.3%

4

4

KPMG LLP 200 E. Randolph St., Chicago 60601 KPMG.com

Travis Hunter Jr. Office managing partner

3,019 1.9%

662

592

1,383

643

401

—

$11,440.0 2 —

5

5

RSM US LLP 30 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 RSMUS.com

John Bird Office managing partner

1,340 2.3%

550

445

515

380

—

13,500

$8,000.0 9.6%

6

6

CROWE LLP 225 W. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 Crowe.com

Mary Ann Travers Office managing partner

951 1.6%

251

166

556

178

51

4,634

$1,250.0 35.0%

7

7

BDO USA 330 N Wabash Ave., Chicago 60611 BDO.com

Matthew Panzica Tax market managing principal Darin Kempke Assurance market leader

760 -4.8%

179

240

305

113

98

9,433

$2,490.4 24.5%

8

9

PLANTE MORAN 10 S. Riverside Plaza, Chicago 60606 PlanteMoran.com

Tom Kinder Office managing partner

707 7.4%

295

287

176

241

2

2,951

$1,008.5 9.8%

9

8

GRANT THORNTON LLP 171 N. Clark St., Chicago 60601 GrantThornton.com

Mark Sullivan Office managing principal

662 -0.5%

205

176

264

200

26

9,658

$2,310.0 17.1%

TILLY 205 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago 60601 10 11 BAKER BakerTilly.com

Adam L. Grinde Managing partner, Illinois

543 30.8%

112

106

216

128

93

5,853

$1,300.0 30.0%

COOPER & CO. LTD. 1751 Lake Cook Road, Deerfield 60015 11 10 MILLER MillerCooper.com

Kristen L. Fitzpatrick Managing principal

508 0.8%

157

193

113

149

53

508

$116.1 14.2%

LLC 2801 Lakeside Drive, Bannockburn 60015 12 12 FGMK FGMK.com

Mario J. Donato Managing partner

379 5.6%

177

167

14

140

58

379

$99.0 3 0.0%

1 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 13 13 WIPFLI Wipfli.com

Gary Shutan Partner, lower Great Lakes region leader

343 1.2%

101

113

100

82

11

2,284

$521.0 17.6%

LLP 200 W. Madison St., Chicago 60606 14 14 SIKICH Sikich.com

Christopher L. Geier CEO, managing partner

330 3.8%

83

154

52

32

92

—

$316.4 38.4%

LLP 500 W. Monroe St., Chicago 60661 15 15 MARCUM MarcumLLP.com

Cary Buxbaum Regional managing partner

260 4.0%

75

155

20

75

10

—

— —

MUELLER 1707 N. Randall Road, Elgin 60123 16 16 PKF PKFMueller.com

David J. Nissen CEO

228 0.9%

131

90

34

86

18

228

$44.4 17.2%

1901 S. Meyers Road, Oakbrook Terrace 17 18 FORVIS 60181

Russell L. Romanelli Managing partner

220 37.5%

85

85

50

50

35

6,000

$1,685.5 12.4%

& AMEN LLP 668 N. River Road, Naperville 60563 18 17 LAUTERBACH LauterbachAmen.com

Ronald J. Amen Partner

210 2.9%

28

101

59

3

47

—

$28.0 13.8%

LLP 2021 Spring Road, Oak Brook 60523 19 19 CLIFTONLARSONALLEN CLAConnect.com

Joseph A. Baez CPA

189 18.9%

74

99

3

37

39

7,688

$1,663.0 14.6%

PROFESSIONALS LLP Timothy F. Cibulka 4 Westbrook Corporate Center, Westchester Managing partner 20 20 LEGACY 60154

170 11.8%

51

155

4

7

5

—

— —

Joeseph A. Odzer 455 N. Cityfront Plaza Drive, Chicago 60611 Managing director 21 21 ORBA ORBA.com

164 9.3%

76

91

3

64

6

174

$42.3 12.2%

& SCHOENFELD LLC 475 Half Day Road, Lincolnshire 60069 22 21 MOWERY MSLLC.com

Jeffery L Mowery Managing partner

157 4.7%

96

49

12

71

25

157

$32.7 28.1%

LLP 1 S. Wacker Drive , Chicago 60606 23 23 COHNREZNICK CohnReznick.com

Jason Burian Office managing partner, Chicago George Klenovich Regional managing partner, South/West

152 3.4%

59

77

51

23

35

—

$892.0 10.4%

BROWN LLC 845 Oakton St., Elk Grove Village 60007 24 25 PORTE PorteBrown.com

Joseph A. Gleba CEO

149 30.7%

60

65

14

68

0

151

$35.2 12.2%

& DAVIS LLP 1717 Deerfield Road, Deerfield 60015 25 24 WARADY WaradyDavis.com

Mark Thomas Robert Weismann Co-managing partners

143 12.6%

67

90

1

36

17

144

$24.0 8.6%

111 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago 60606 Deloitte.com

FORVIS.com

LegacyCPAs.com

Research by Sophie Rodgers (sophie.rodgers@crain.com). | List includes accounting firms with offices in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties in Illinois, and Lake County in Indiana. Firmwide employee and revenue figures exclude independent international member firms that do business under the same brand name. Professional staff refers to partners, associates and anyone working directly in the accounting area as full-time employees. NOTES: e. Crain's estimate. 1.

Includes subsidiaries of Deloitte LLP. 2. From Accounting Today. 3. Company estimate.

Want 29 accounting firms in Excel format? Become a Data Member: ChicagoBusiness.com/Data-Lists NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 7

Rishi Shah wants to delay his fraud conviction sentencing to next year With millions of dollars returned from the government, the founder of Outcome Health has rehired a high-profile defense attorney

By John Pletz

Rishi Shah has rehired his original attorney, whom the Outcome Health founder says withdrew because he couldn’t afford him, as Shah is seeking to delay his sentencing until February.

Shah, convicted alongside co-defendants Shradha Agarwal and Brad Purdy of a nearly $1 billion startup fraud in April, is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 5.

Each faces up to 30 years in prison.

In seeking more time for his new attorney, Bill Burck of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan in Washington, D.C., another of Shah’s attorneys said in a court filing that “the guidelines proposed by the government would recommend that Mr. Shah be sentenced to a term of life in prison.

“The serious nature of the offenses of which Mr. Shah was convicted require thorough preparation for sentencing, including the hiring and preparation of an expert witness.”

Shah, 37, originally was set to be sentenced Oct. 13, and Agarwal was scheduled to be sentenced

Oct. 27, followed by Purdy on Nov. 3. All three dates were extended into December. The government hasn’t yet responded to Shah’s request for more time.

High-profile case It’s the latest twist in the saga of one of the largest and most high-profile fraud cases in Chicago business. And it’s another sign that Shah, a wealthy tech entrepreneur, isn’t willing to surrender his money or freedom without a fight. Outcome Health is one of several high-profile fraud cases to result from the bull market for tech startups, including Theranos and FTX, whose founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, was convicted Nov. 2.

Shah, Agarwal and Purdy were senior executives at Outcome Health, a Chicago startup that charged pharmaceutical companies millions of dollars to advertise on its network of television and computer screens in doctors’ offices. They overcharged the companies for ads that never ran.

The scheme was exposed by The Wall Street Journal in 2017,

shortly after the company raised nearly $500 million from investors that included Goldman Sachs, a Chicago venture-capital fund founded by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Google’s venture-capital arm and an investment fund headed

by Steve Jobs’ widow, Laurene Powell Jobs.

The government charged Shah, Agarwal and Purdy with fraud for overbilling the advertisers, a move that inflated the financials that investors relied upon to value the company. Ashik Desai, a top sales executive who admitted to defrauding the advertisers, testified against the others, who were convicted in April after a 10week trial.

Shah parted ways with his trial attorneys after he was convicted, and has sought a new trial and fought the government’s request to seize the frozen assets, which grew substantially during a surge in startup valuations while he was awaiting trial.

He has since recovered $13.4 million in assets, mostly stakes in venture-capital and private-equity funds, some of which turned

Rishi Shah

out to be improperly frozen by the government because a portion of some investments was made by Outcome co-founders Shah and Agarwal before the period in which the fraud occurred.

Hiring and withdrawal Armed with new money, Shah hired Burck to handle his sentencing. Burck, a former White House lawyer who became highly sought-after for white-collar defense work, originally was hired to represent Shah after the indictment four years ago.

But Burck withdrew in 2020 when U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin declined to allow Shah and Agarwal access to $10 million that was frozen by the government, which said the money was ill-gotten gains from their crimes.

Burck and Agarwal’s original counsel, McGuireWoods, wanted $14 million for their combined defense and withdrew when the

defendants couldn’t come up with the money.

After they were convicted, Shah hired a new attorney, Richard Finneran of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, who argued that the government had improperly frozen some assets, which prevented his client and Agarwal from hiring the lawyers they wanted, violating their Sixth Amendment rights.

Durkin has yet to rule on that claim.

A key consideration in Shah’s sentencing will be amount of money that investors, customers and lenders lost, because it impacts the potential prison term he could receive. Shah’s attorneys already have argued that lenders and investors were partially repaid through a civil settlement with the founders and the merger of Outcome Health with rival PatientPoint. Those are among the questions Durkin will have to resolve when he sentences Shah.

Developer looks to cash out of Wheeling’s new downtown The 301-unit One Wheeling Town Center will test investors' appetite for mixed-use properties near public transportation in the suburbs

By Danny Ecker

An East Coast developer that built a new “downtown” in suburban Wheeling has put the project’s centerpiece up for sale, a test of investors’ appetite for new apartment properties that anchor mixed-use developments.

A venture of Suffern, N.Y.based Lynmark Group has hired real estate services firm CBRE to seek a buyer for One Wheeling Town Center, the 301-unit apartment complex in the 16-acre Wheeling Town Center development in the northern suburb. The five-story building at 375 W. Dundee Road was completed in 2020 as part of the larger $110 million transformation of a site next to the Wheeling Metra station. The offering also includes 31,220 square feet of retail and restaurant space adjacent to the apartment building, according to a flyer.

It’s both a good and bad time for Lynmark to be testing the market. Strong demand for suburban apartments has pushed up rents for properties like One Wheeling Town Center. And while real estate investors have mostly run away from suburban 8 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

office properties, many are drawn to urban-like, mixed-use projects in the suburbs that combine apartments, dining, entertainment and access to public transportation. Owners of large malls around the Chicago area have been developing apartments on their properties, making a similar bet that the mix of uses will be compelling for both residents and shoppers.

Yet, Lynmark will have to overcome a series of interest rate hikes over the past year that has kept would-be buyers on the sidelines. Higher borrowing costs are a key reason that sales of apartments nationwide through the first nine months of the year are down 64% from the same period last year, according to research firm MSCI Real Assets.

Long-term mortgage Against that backdrop, CBRE is playing up what it sees as a key advantage: One Wheeling Town Center comes with a long-term mortgage from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development that a prospective buyer can assume rather than having to secure new financing today. The $66.2 million loan comes with a

3.13% interest rate and doesn’t mature until 2059, according to the flyer.

Such an assumable loan recently helped another suburban apartment owner complete a $25 million sale of the Buffalo Creek Apartments just a couple miles from Wheeling Town Center.

“That’s a big advantage,” said Ron DeVries, senior managing director in the Chicago office of Integra Realty Resources, an appraisal and consulting firm that is not involved in the sale of the property. “Somebody can step in and not have to deal with the current interest rate environment.

Those kinds of deals are seeing good demand.”

A spokeswoman for Lynmark did not provide a comment.

The development of Wheeling Town Center dates back to 2008, when the village of Wheeling acquired a shuttered furniture warehouse on the property with a vision for it to be redeveloped into a town center for the suburb. After a lengthy process to design the project and win approval of several nearby property stakeholders, Lynmark was tapped as the developer and began work on the commercial

One Wheeling Town Center I COSTAR GROUP

piece of the town center in 2018.

Much of the 100,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space — which is anchored by a Cinergy Cinemas movie theater that is owned separately from One Wheeling Town Center — was completed close to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, bad timing for a development meant to generate foot traffic.

Demand rebounding But demand has come back as the public health crisis has faded.

The retail portion included in Lynmark’s offering is nearly 92% occupied, the flyer said, with restaurant tenants including Mia’s Cantina, City Works and Eggsperience. Retail tenants include Byline Bank and AT&T. The apartment building is 97% leased with an average monthly

rent of just more than $2,400, or $2.34 per square foot, according to CBRE. The complex includes mostly one-bedroom and two-bedroom units, as well as some studios and three-bedroom units.

Median net rent at apartments across the suburbs during the second quarter was up 5.4% over the same period last year, according to Integra data.

Lynmark is a third-generation family owned real estate development company that has developed and built more than $1.3 billion in real estate projects, according to the company’s website. Its portfolio includes apartments, condominium units, offices, shopping centers and hotels.

CBRE brokers John Jaeger and Justin Puppi are marketing One Wheeling Town Center on behalf of Lynmark Group.

Walgreens, CVS walkout organizers move to unionize pharmacy workers A union drive could have serious ramifications for Walgreens, which is in cost-cutting mode right now

By Katherine Davis

A group of pharmacist activists and organizers are joining forces with a large health care union and taking steps to form a union of their own following weeks of walkouts to protest working conditions at large pharmacy retail chains, including Walgreens Boots Alliance and CVS Health.

The initiative, called the Pharmacy Guild, launched Nov. 8 and is led by online pharmacist communities and IAM Healthcare, a union of health care professionals affiliated with the 600,000-member International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, according to a statement from IAM. IAM Healthcare represents health care workers across the U.S. and Canada, including clinicians, technicians and caregivers.

The formal unionization effort comes after workers from Deerfield-based Walgreens, CVS and other pharmacies walked off the job, protesting pay and working conditions. Pharmacists have

reportedly said they are under burdensome prescription and vaccination expectations, especially since the new COVID-19 vaccine was released this fall.

“Now is the time to regain control of our profession in the name of patient safety,” Dr. Shane Jerominski, who runs The Accidental Pharmacist account on Facebook, said in IAM’s statement. “Unless we unionize, pharmacists and technicians will continue to be exploited for profits while mega-corporations underinvest in the needs of our patients.”

Walgreens spokesman Fraser Engerman acknowledged the formation of the Pharmacy Guild, saying: “We respect the right of our people to choose to be represented by a union, but we continue to believe the best way to accomplish meaningful results is through the direct relationship between our team members and their managers.

And the vast majority of our team members agree.”

Walgreens stock lost 3% on

Nov. 8 and was down nearly 44% since the beginning of the year, trading at about $21.

Walgreens has struggled with a pharmacist shortage over the past several years at its 9,000 stores, an issue that was worsened by the pandemic and put unprecedented stress on the health care system broadly. Walgreens has said historically that it is working to address the shortage by offering signing bonuses and boosting pay for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.

However, just this month, Walgreens also said it will reduce bonus payouts for pharmacy and store managers, alongside bonus cuts for corporate employees.

Even still, Engerman said Nov. 8 that the company is “committed” to ensuring the contributions of its pharmacists are acknowledged and rewarded, “including competitive pay and benefits.”

Microfulfillment centers Walgreens has also opened 11 microfulfillment pharmacy centers throughout the country, which are designed to relieve pharmacists from routine tasks and allow them to focus on pa-

Walgreens has struggled with a pharmacist shortage over the past several years at its 9,000 stores, an issue that was worsened by the pandemic and put unprecedented stress on the health care system broadly. I PHOTO BY JOE CYGANOWSKI

tient care and clinical services, like vaccinations. Crain’s reported in October that the centers support more than 4,000 stores, filling more than 2.3 million prescriptions a week across 29 states. Walgreens has said it planned to have a total of 19 such sites by the end of 2024.

More demands from pharmacists and the possibility that they form a union comes as Walgreens is in cost-cutting mode.

The company, the Chicago area’s 10th-largest local employer, cut 500 corporate jobs and an addi-

tional 400 roles at an e-commerce distribution center in downstate Edwardsville. Soon after, Walgreens officially announced a $1 billion cost reduction plan aimed at shoring up its finances amid a health care transformation initiative that is not yet profitable.

Despite an increase in fourth-quarter sales, Walgreens saw net earnings in the fourth quarter decline by about 17% to $575 million from a year ago, and full-year earnings were down 20% to $3.4 billion.

Chicago Children’s Museum is proud to recognize some of the generous sponsors of our 2023 Gala: The Future is Play. Through their philanthropic leadership, these individuals and organizations directly underwrite CCM’s general operations and access and engagement initiatives, supporting CCM’s mission to improve children’s lives by creating a community where play and learning connect.

P R E S E N TI N G S P O N S O R S

LEAD SPONSORS

Allstate Insurance Company Aon BDO USA, LLP | Mike Dean Jodi Block and Barry Malkin Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella, P.C. Clayco Cresset Partners | The Berghorst Foundation Inc Cathy Fan and Justin Horvath Karen G. Harrison and Walter Freedman William and Heather Kelley Morgan Stanley Sacks Family Foundation Wintrust Wealth Management | Bruce A. Comiskey Thaddeus Wong and Emily Sachs Wong ChicagoChildrensMuseum.org

NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 9

PE

M

EDITORIAL

Bullying and intimidation don’t have any place at Chicago’s City Hall. Or do they?

JOHN R. BOEHM

L

et’s start by stipulating that the chambers of Chicago’s City Council haven’t historically been the first place one would go to observe paragons of human virtue or parliamentary decorum at work.

From the days of “Bathhouse John” Coughlin and Michael “Hinky Dink” Kenna, known for their rambunctious antics inside and outside City Hall, right on up to the “Council Wars” era of the mid-1980s — which crescendoed with then-Ald. Dick Mell climbing atop his desk and screaming at the top of his lungs to be heard — 121 N. LaSalle St. has frequently been a rowdy spot.

Even against that backdrop, however, recent events stand out. The council’s meeting room has seen its share of uproar lately, punctuated by emotional debates over the Israel-Hamas conflict and, earlier this month, a war of words over Chicago’s “sanctuary city” status, an argument intensified by the flow of asylum-seekers currently sleeping on the floors of the city’s police stations and airports.

It was during a special Nov. 2 meeting called to consider putting the sanctuary city question before voters that things got especially wild. Council members gathered to vote on a resolution that, if approved, would add a nonbinding referendum to the March primary ballot asking Chicagoans if the city should maintain that status. As Crain’s Justin

Laurence reported, the meeting devolved into what 15th Ward Ald. Ray Lopez described as a “shitshow” while council members argued over arcane parliamentary rules that left many confused over what they were even voting on.

Initially, allies of Mayor Brandon Johnson attempted to prevent the meeting from beginning by denying a quorum — 26 members of the 50-member body — needed to conduct business. As the roll call was taken, Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 35th — then Johnson’s floor leader, but we’ll get to that in a moment — stood by the door to the cham-

ber so he could choose, after the number was tallied, whether to step into the chamber to be counted or to leave. More procedural back-and-forth followed over whether the meeting was even called or adjourned properly, culminating in Lopez’s attempt to take over the meeting well after the lights had been turned off on him.

Somewhere in the midst of this chaos, Ramirez-Rosa was observed physically blocking Ald. Emma Mitts, 37th — a veteran alderperson and respected member of the Black Caucus — from entering the chamber on that contentious day. Other council

members stepped forward to accuse Ramirez-Rosa of bullying behavior and intimidation, backing up Mitts, who described from the council floor that she was so shaken by Ramirez-Rosa’s actions that she questioned whether she could continue as an alderperson.

Ramirez-Rosa ultimately resigned his leadership position in the council days later.

The next day, after publicly apologizing to Mitts, he narrowly escaped a censure vote called by several council members expressing frustration with what they say is a pattern of intimidation and bullying.

Mitts was among those who ultimately voted against censure, proving herself to be a bigger person than Ramirez-Rosa in the process. And that would perhaps be enough to settle the matter if Mitts were in fact the only person harmed by Ramirez-Rosa’s behavior. But bullying and intimidation of the sort the mayor’s floor leader demonstrated that day — and, if some council members are to be believed, on other days as well — is the kind of conduct that undermines the democratic process as a whole, and that’s why the mayor was wrong to cast the deciding vote to allow Ramirez-Rosa to sidestep censure. There are few workplaces where behavior of this sort could be widely observed — even videotaped — and then tolerated. Johnson’s vote signals Chicago’s City Council may be one of them.

PERSONAL VIEW

How to ensure we have an electric grid strong enough to withstand future weather I n recent years, it has become clear that climate change is contributing to an increase in severe weather events.

While climate experts caution against connecting a single severe weather event to climate change, the increase in the sheer number of extreme rain events has been convincingly linked to our warming climate.

Consider the month of July.

First, on July 2, between 3 and 9 inches of rain fell on the West and Southwest sides of Chicago, flooding 1,400 homes, knocking out power to approximately 20,000 customers and leading to a disaster declaration by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Then, on a single day, July 12, Illinois saw 13 tornadoes, which hopscotched across the area, knocking out power to approximately 30,000 customers.

On July 28, some 114,000 ComEd customers lost power due to two waves of thunderstorms.

And yet, July’s destruction pales compared to that wrought by the Corn Belt Derecho of August 2020, which knocked out power at one point to more than 1 million customers — 800,000 of them in the greater Chicago area. It was the costliest thunder-

storm event in modern American history, inflicting damage of $11.5 billion.

It’s fair to wonder: If these severe weather events continue — or get worse — how will this affect our region’s critical infrastructure, like the electric grid?

This was among the topics we explored last month at a Crain’s event. On a panel moderated by Group Publisher and Executive Editor Jim Kirk, the two of us were joined

by Paul Kearns, the director of the Argonne National Laboratory.

Argonne is one of the crown jewels among our country’s scientific research facilities.

The laboratory is engaged in a full-court effort to understand climate change and reduce emissions from the U.S. transportation sector and energy production.

Argonne has also helped ComEd learn about the unique ways that climate change will affect northern Illinois.

The aim: to make investments today that prevent weather-related outages tomorrow.

This forward-looking approach has strengthened ComEd’s storm readiness and response. Last year was the utility’s best reliability performance in history,

ranking among the best of large U.S. electric companies.

That progress is rooted in grid modernization projects that began in 2011. Since then, overall reliability has improved by over 80%, helping ComEd customers avoid some 19 million customer interruptions, producing $3.3 billion in societal savings.

To continue providing nation-leading reliability, however, ComEd must have the financial strength to attract the private capital needed to make investments necessary for managing climate risk.

Earlier this year, ComEd submitted its Multi-Year Grid & Rate Plan to state regulators, outlining a set of investments that will further strengthen the grid against severe weather over the next four years. With new distribution lines, underground cables, transformers and substations, the utility can account not only for future weather events but future growth in electric vehicles, rooftop solar and home electrification.

Aligned with the goals of the Climate & Equitable Jobs Act, or CEJA, that passed into law in 2021, ComEd’s multi-year plan puts

Write us: Crain’s welcomes responses from readers. Letters should be as brief as possible and may be edited. Send letters to Crain’s Chicago Business, 130 E. Randolph St., Suite 3200, Chicago, IL 60601, or email us at letters@chicagobusiness.com. Please include your full name, the city from which you’re writing and a phone number for fact-checking purposes.

10 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

special focus on historically underresourced communities. Those residents may be more vulnerable to weather events. And they deserve to share in the benefits and opportunities that come with this region’s clean energy transition.

We are fortunate in Illinois to have alignment between scientists, government leaders and regulators, backed by policies like CEJA that create momentum behind shared goals, including the need to invest in a reliable, resilient electric grid. That alignment is reinforced by residents who recognize the threat posed by climate change and are embracing clean energy technologies as the long-term solution.

But just as severe weather will test the soundness of our infrastructure, it will test the durability of this coalition. We all have a stake in this region’s future. Let us invest in the partnership necessary to ensure the security of our power, as well as the health and well-being of our people.

Gil C. Quiniones is CEO of ComEd. Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist of WGN-TV/ Channel 9.

Sound off: Send a column for the Opinion page to editor@chicagobusiness.com.

Please include a phone number for verification purposes, and limit submissions to 425 words or fewer.

I

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PERSONAL VIEW

Mentoring college-bound CPS students a win for biz, too

I

n Chicago, talent across our public high schools is equal, but the opportunity to pursue a post-secondary education, the single largest determinant of longterm earning potential and social mobility, is not.

The recent CPS Educational Attainment Report by the University of Chicago’s To&Through Project, which aims to create equitable education outcomes, shows great progress: Trends project that 30% of current Chicago Public Schools ninth graders would complete a college credential by the time they are 25 years old, a 7 percentage point increase in just 10 years.

However, the racial disparity that persists in college attainment rates is unacceptable; only 13.6% of Chicago’s Black males enrolled in college receive a degree.

We can all agree with the report’s summary that “supporting CPS students throughout their high school and college journeys will likely require an unprecedented level of investment and new partnerships across the city,” and it’s never been more necessary. As growing barriers impact students of color, Chicago’s corporations, nonprofits and community members all have a role to play in fostering CPS student success. All of these groups will also benefit when Chicago’s future workforce pulls from a more diverse talent pool.

Right now, Chicago 12th graders, like students across the country, are completing college applications, drafting personal statements and weighing financial factors that will shape their college plan. Historically a stressful time for all students, this year’s process is even more challenging for students of color impacted by the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of affirmative action in college admissions.

For most students applying to college, they turn to individuals in their network, or their family’s network, for support and guidance.

But for first-generation college-going students, social networks and professional resources that specifically open access to higher educational pathways are limited. CPS Chief Education Officer Bogdana Chkoumbova shared that “with these groups, especially at the high school level, we’ve learned that one of the most impactful ways we can provide support is by establishing partnerships that will provide mentorship and guidance to students throughout their high school experience.” For Chicago companies, citizens and others ready to answer the call, there is a proven structure to do it.

For seven years, the nonprofit iMentor Chicago has forged dynamic, college- and career-connected learning and one-to-one mentoring partnerships between Chicago companies and CPS. We focus on the South and West sides’ most under-resourced high schools, where 99% of the population are students of color and a majority are the first in their families to go to college. Impressively,

these partnerships are paying off: 66% of iMentor’s 2022 graduating class immediately enrolled in college — 5 percentage points higher than the full CPS average.

Key to its success is iMentor’s uniquely comprehensive approach designed to provide strategies for young people beyond high school graduation.

First, iMentor trains adult volunteers and matches them one-toone with high school juniors as a mentor — their own personal champion from the professional community — to support post-sec-

ondary planning.

Second, students take a weekly college and career success class taught during the school day to expand post-secondary planning deeper into the school culture.

And lastly, iMentor supports dynamic partnerships with some of Chicago’s most renowned employers, including Northwestern Medicine, W.W. Grainger and William Blair, to name a few. They provide hands-on programming with direct career exposure at their facilities. These experiences instill in students a strong sense of belong-

ing among Chicago’s future talent pool and build critical social capital starting in high school.

This three-part model serves as a bridge between three of Chicago’s most critical resources: our young people, our adult volunteers and our companies. But it requires fuel to power its success. At present, iMentor has 800 volunteers engaging with CPS high school students, but still needs 200 more. IMentor collaborates with local employers to customize events such as shadow days or networking events that both showcase a variety of careers

and support students with positive adult role models. You can learn more about becoming a mentor or a corporate partner here.

Chicago’s collective “we” — the corporate sector, citizens, nonprofits and schools — is in a position to respond and make an immediate and lasting impact.

Together, we can lend our expertise, talent and social capital to mentoring and close the gap between talent and opportunity.

Nina Nicole Longino is executive director of iMentor Chicago.

NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 11

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Advertising Section To place your listing, visit www.chicagobusiness.com/peoplemoves or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

ACCOUNTING

ARCHITECTURE / ENGINEERING

LAW FIRM

TECHNOLOGY

Cohen & Company, Chicago

ZS Architectural Engineering, Chicago / Milwaukee

Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP, Chicago

Kin + Carta, Chicago

Cohen & Company welcomes Nick Antonopoulos, CPA, as a managing director in the firm’s Chicago office. With over 30 years of experience, he is widely recognized for his assurance expertise in the real estate industry. In this role, Antonopoulos will perform technical and engagement quality control reviews for real estate entities, including real estate investment trusts (REITs), and will be involved in expanding the firm’s real estate fund and REIT assurance services, training and staff development.

ZS is pleased to announce Greg Kempen, AIA, has joined the team as Director of the Building Enclosure Group. With over 30 years’ experience as a project architect & project manager, Greg will manage the continued growth and development of the group. Greg has previously led numerous complex projects requiring careful attention to building enclosure detailing and constructability. Greg is a Certified Construction Specifier, a Certified Construction Contract Administrator & LEED AP.

Portage Point Partners, Chicago Portage Point Partners, a middle market-focused business advisory, interim management and investment banking firm, welcomes Chris Sweet as Managing Director to lead the firm’s Debt Capital Advisory practice. At Portage Point, Chris will focus on delivering bespoke cash flow, asset-based and structured capital financing solutions to clients through competitive, hightouch marketing processes.

ORBA, Chicago ORBA, one of Chicago’s largest public accounting firms, is pleased to announce that Kelly Buchheit, CPA and Kevin Omahen, CPA have been promoted to Directors.

Kelly is the firm’s Director Buchheit of Audit and Assurance Quality Control. She plays a critical role in providing technical consultations on accounting and professional standards, conducting pre-issuance report reviews and internal inspections, and Omahen conducts training for the firm’s Audit Group.

With a comprehensive skillset spanning tax, assurance and consulting services, Kevin oversees a wide range of accounting services.

He works with not-for-profit organizations, heath care providers, and manufacturers and distributors.

Laner Muchin proudly welcomes Associate Matthew Guerrero to the firm. Matthew has significant experience in representing public sector employers in their Guerrero collective bargaining negotiations, grievance arbitrations and matters before the Illinois Labor Relations Board and other government agencies.

Laner Muchin also proudly welcomes Associate Caitlin Manganelli Manganelli to the firm.

Caitlin has extensive experience in counseling employers on their federal, state and local employment compliance issues, as well as providing training in discrimination and harassment prevention.

CHICAGOBUSINESS.COM I DECEMBER 7, 2020 I

THE TAKEAWAY

> You’re one of the few women leading

What makes you tick?

come from an immigrant family and was > Iraised by a single mother after my father

U.S. Is that a lonely role?

I don’t think it is, because I have such a good network of other women. It’s not like

> What’s your call on working remotely in the COVID-19 era? was unanimous everyone wanted to be back in.

When you have an afternoon to yourself, how do you spend it?

Sometimes I clean. I like to keep my life simple—I like to simplify; I’m a purger. For relaxation, I’m into mediation, yoga and working out.

What’s your favorite sport?

Today, it would be

> golf. Previously, I

would do anything that had me running around. I just enjoy games generally.

As a spectator?

It’s a tie between pro football and

> my boys’ baseball

games. I’m an unfortunate lifelong Bears fan.

>

Joe Van Der Bosch has been named President of DeSpir Logistics, a leading specialized transportation provider for high-value, high-risk, and temperature-controlled cargo. Joe brings two decades of experience in global logistics and trade compliance to DeSpir, who has been listed among the Crain’s “Fast 50” for two years straight. He is charged with operationalizing the company’s mission with a focus on fueling growth, building culture, and furthering its commitment to service excellence.

For more information, contact Debora Stein at dstein@crain.com or submit directly to

CHICAGOBUSINESS.COM/ COMPANYMOVES

the ride, but I do enjoy it.

REAL ESTATE ML Realty Partners, Itasca ML Realty Partners has promoted Brendan Hill to Senior Acquisition Director for his exemplary work and focus on long-term expansion within the portfolio since joining the firm in 2019. In his elevated role, Brendan will continue to oversee the acquisition of buildings and redevelopment opportunities in the Chicagoland while increasing his involvement with other strategic initiatives. Brendan has a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from University of Dayton’s School of Business Administration.

TRANSPORTATION Skyway Concession Company, LLC, Chicago Chad Elliott has joined Skyway Concession Company LLC (SCC), as COO. Chad is a seasoned international road operations specialist with over two decades of experience in project development, delivery, operations, and asset renewal on revenue risk and availability P3, and non-P3 projects. He holds a wide variety of experience in leading successful transportation operations in Australia and the U.S. Chad will be instrumental in enhancing the Chicago Skyway’s operations.

PROMOTE.

What’s ’ your best catch? ’s the hardest catch was a 60-pound tuna from the Gulf side of Mexico.

Why not?

What’s ’’s one of your favorite things about Korean culture?

> I still love Korean food. on education f d. The focus foo f education and Mom.”There was a lot of discipline in the house.

>

P012_CCB_20231113_v1.indd 1

DeSpir Logistics, Chicago

What did your mother do for f a living?

She was a nurse who would sometimes work two shifts ffts a day. day. Today, T ay, Tod yy, she’s she’s’’s director director of nursing for f a nursing home business. business.

>

Reprinted with permission from Crain’ss Chicago Business. © 2021 Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved. rese www.chicagobusiness.com/section/reprints.

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Center for Enriched Living, a privately funded nonprofit organization providing programs and services for people with developmental disabilities, welcomes Herbert K. Washington, Jr. as its CEO. Recently serving as Chief Innovation Officer for Aspire, he brings 26+ years in human services and 11 years of nonprofit executive leadership experience. Washington will help CEL build on its solid foundation and strategically move forward to empower even more members to experience life’s possibilities.

TRANSPORT / LOGISTICS

>

remotely in tough times: cash for office equipment and child care, additional PTO to deal More than a year into pandemic, mostt officewith workers are still doing their thing fr ffrom om with COVID challenges.

Once again thisthe year, Crain’s partnered Best Companies lunches, table tennis and happy hours m oot home, making likeBest catered moot Group to survey employees and office identifyperks the 100 Places to Work, a list that gets But the best companies came up with ways working a to support their troops wo ays orkking more competitivepoints. each year. remotely in tough times: cash for office equipment quipment and child care, additional PTO to o deal with COVID challenges. Once again this year, r Crain’s partnered with Best Companies r, panies Group to survey employees and identify the 100 Best Places to Wo Work, W rk, k a list that ggets k, ets more competitive each year.

passed away in an armed robbery when I was 10. I’ve never taken a single thing for granted in my life.

>

More than a year into the pandemic, most office workers are still doing their thing from home, making office perks like catered lunches, table tennis and happy hours moot points. But the best companies came up with ways to support their troops working remotely in tough times: cash for office equipment and child care, additional PTO to deal with COVID challenges.

Once again this Crain’s most partnered Bestare Companies More than a year into theyear, pandemic, officewith workers still doing their thing from Group to survey home, employees andoffice identify the like 100 Best Places to Work, a list thatand getshappy hours moot making perks catered lunches, table tennis more competitivepoints. each year.

But the best companies came up with ways to support their troops working

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Further duplication without permission is prohibited. Visit www.chicagobusiness.com/section/reprints. #CB21042

Feature your latest milestones, launches, partnerships, awards and more in Crain’s

Laner Muchin, Chicago

Suzanne Yoon

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Center for Enriched Living (CEL), Riverwoods

LAW FIRM

Yoon, 45, is Partners, which invests in lower midmarket consumer, manufacturing and services companies. Her parents brought her to the U.S. from South Korea when she was a baby. She was raised in the Chicago area. Today, she lives in Ukrainian Village with her husband and three sons.

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Whitney Jenkins, previously a summer associate at Marshall Gerstein, joins the firm as an associate in the IP Litigation practice, with a focus in life sciences. Whitney handles matters in pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, biotechnology, healthcare, and nutrition. Whitney received her J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School, where she was awarded the Chancellor’s Law Scholarship and her M.S. in finance from Vanderbilt. She received her B.S. in chemistry, magna cum laude, from Howard University.

Kin + Carta has today announced the appointment of Katie Franzen to its financial services practice as VP of business development.

Her remit includes growing the financial services portfolio and bringing a strategic, targeted approach to this sector.

Franzen joins from Accenture, where she led the Microsoft business group and parts of the insurance portfolio. An advocate for women in technology and financial services, Franzen will enter a similar advocacy position within Kin + Carta.

Is there a future for women in private equity? getI see more women in private equity than there have been, so I think it’s’’s getting better. The inroads have been modest.

Reprinted with permission from Crain’s ’’s Chicago Business. © 2021 Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved.

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11/7/23 4:46 PM

A CHANGING HUMBOLDT PARK Gentrification has transformed one side of Humboldt Park. On the other side, developers are mounting a more affordable approach.

What it’s taking to kick-start a neighborhood

By Judith Crown

O

n the west side of Humboldt Park, acres of bulldozed city lots have sat vacant for decades, depressing home values and discouraging investment. Until recently, two-thirds of the lots facing the Laura Ward STEM School at Lawndale Avenue and Huron Street were vacant. The school has low enrollment, and the surrounding area has few amenities.

In the quest to bring new life to the neighborhood, local developers Tim Swanson and Bill Williams are acquiring city and county lots and adding modular homes. Their formula is designed to enable families to buy and own their homes affordably and build generational wealth.

“We’re trying to kick-start and stabilize the neighborhood,” Williams says, “and get the market going with some moderately priced, well-built, energy-efficient

“We’re trying to . . . get the market going with some moderately priced, well-built, energy-efficient homes.” homes.” It’s hoped that restaurants, supermarkets and other retailers will follow.

The challenges of West Humboldt Park are a far cry from the area east of the park, popularly called East Humboldt Park but technically West Town — an area that also includes Wicker Park and Ukrainian Village.

Once a working-class Puerto Rican enclave, East Humboldt Park is now dotted with million-dollar homes.

Gentrification that’s rolled through Lincoln Park, Bucktown and Wicker Park has roiled East Humboldt Park, displacing families and threatening more. While affordable housing developers have about 400 apartments in the pipeline, demand exceeds supply and it will take years for all the projects to come online.

But that gentrification hasn’t reached West Humboldt Park, where vacant lots have presented a formidable challenge to developers.

Dating back to the 1960s, the city of Chicago used to tear down foreclosed or dilapidated buildings without a firm plan for redevelopment. “The solution to crime in Humboldt (Park) and Garfield Park was to get rid of

GEOFFREY BLACK

— Bill Williams, developer

John Capers and Kelly Yue were thrilled to land their first home for $315,000 in Humboldt Park.

the buildings,” Swanson says. That’s in contrast to Logan Square, where the majority of buildings weren’t bulldozed. As a result, that neighborhood bounced back faster.

Resourceful buyers can turn foreclosed property into a dream home, but you can’t squat on vacant land and construct a house as a weekend project, Swanson adds.

Swanson is an architect turned developer whose company, Inherent L3C, is producing modular singlefamily homes and two-flats at a facility in North Lawndale. He’s acquired enough vacant parcels from the city and the Cook County Land Bank Authority for 30 homes. So far, he’s delivered three houses, and he expects to complete two more by the end of the year.

One of Swanson’s first sales was to young profession-

als John Capers and Kelly Yue, who were thrilled to land their first home for $315,000, built on one of the lots facing the Laura Ward STEM School. Their purchase came in under their outside limit of $450,000.

They even landed a $20,000 city grant that they used for closing costs.

Just two years out of college, the pair considered buying a condo in a hip neighborhood like the West Loop, with lots of restaurants and supermarkets. In the end, they figured a single-family home would deliver more equity. “Neither of us grew up in a home,” says Yue, who was raised in Hong Kong. Capers lived in Cabrini-Green until he was 12. “We liked the idea of See NEIGHBORHOODS on Page 14

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NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 13

I A CHANGING HUMBOLDT PARK

NEIGHBORHOODS From Page 13

having our own backyard where we can host family and friends,” Yue says. Both commute to offices in the Loop on hybrid schedules. “We still have access to the Loop, but this is a little oasis.”

Building just one of these modular homes costs Swanson $390,000, which he concedes isn’t affordable for many working families. But assistance under the city’s Building Neighborhoods & Affordable Homes Program can provide buyers $100,000 or more (depending on family income), reducing the cost to the $270,000 range that would be more comfortable for many families.

Williams, founder and principal at KMW Communities, has acquired 10 parcels in Humboldt Park and West Garfield Park. He’s marketing modular homes built

by Swanson and also by Josh Braun, founder of Kinexx Modular Construction, who has delivered 61 homes on the South and West sides.

To scale their projects, Williams and Swanson anticipate using new markets tax credits, a financing tool traditionally used for commercial development.

The tax credits have been used for single-family homes in Atlanta; St. Paul, Minn.; and Santa Fe, N.M. In the meantime, the developers are drawing on their own resources, along with funding from The Chicago Community Trust, for acquiring land and planning.

The Chicago Community Trust has deployed $4 million under a national program funded by JPMorgan Chase, called Connecting Capital & Community, or 3C, that aims to expand affordable homeownership. The foundation anticipates another $2 million under the initiative, says program director Lynette McRae. It isn’t enough to fund construction, but it provides a base that enables developers to access additional capital from banks and community development financial institutions, she says.

The 3C funds also are deployed to nonprofit organizations that support a pipeline of prospective homebuyers. One recipient is the Spanish Coalition for Housing, which helps prepare families for ownership. In the Humboldt Park area, the organization works with close to 500 households that are at different stages of the journey, says Executive Director Joseph Lopez.

Some families are just beginning to establish credit and understand household budgeting.

Others are ready to qualify for a mortgage in six to 12 months, he says. But price is a barrier for families that want to stay in Humboldt Park, especially on the east side. “New housing stock is priced well above affordability of longtime residents,” Lopez says.

In some parts of Humboldt Park and West Town, homeown-

ers and landlords are stressed by rising assessments that can drastically boost property taxes.

Landlords could find it difficult to hold the line on affordable rents, Lopez says. The owner of a three- or four-unit building may maintain affordable rents for family members, but then charge the market rate for another apartment, he adds.

The area south of Chicago Avenue and west of Kedzie Avenue remains relatively affordable.

But prices double north of Grand Avenue and double again north of North Avenue, says John Groene, director of the nonprofit Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, or NHS Chicago.

The opening of the Bloomingdale elevated trail on The 606 boosted home values around the bike and walking path. Gentrification was coming from Logan Square and Hermosa, with the Hispanic community being pushed south. “If families want to buy, they’re moving to West Garfield Park or Austin,” Groene says.

At his office at the intersection of Chicago and Central Park avenues, Groene spends much of his time counseling homeowners and landlords on the nuts and bolts of property taxes, insurance and other costs of ownership. Seniors, for example, get an exemption when they reach age 65 and can freeze their taxes if their income is under $65,000 a year.

Navigating these costs knowledgeably can be the difference between keeping and losing a property, Groene says. He cites the case of one senior whose taxes would have soared by twothirds to $4,200 as the assessment on her home nearly doubled to $210,000. The freeze kept her taxes at $2,500, corresponding to the earlier assessment and saving her thousands.

Owning vs. renting An economical alternative to buying a new modular home is to purchase and rehab a vacant home. NHS Chicago works with buyers to finance a purchase, then helps them select a contractor.

Ideally, a buyer can acquire a home that hasn’t been updated and has some deferred maintenance through the multiple listing service, Groene says. If the purchase price is $200,000 and the rehab is $100,000, that’s relatively affordable. But if a developer rehabs a home with a fancy kitchen and bathrooms, he’ll charge what the market will bear. That’s at least $450,000 for a single-family home or a two-flat and could be as high as $750,000 depending on the particular location.

“You can’t fight the market,” Groene adds. “If someone buys a private lot and builds a single-family home that he can sell for $750,000, that’s what he’s going to do.”

Just as developers and nonprofits are trying to advance homeownership, other organizations are building affordable

14 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

apartments, in demand by longtime residents who are being eased out by rising rents. “They come to my office looking for affordable rental opportunities,” Ald. Jessie Fuentes, 26th, says.

Even with more than 400 affordable apartments in the pipeline, it will take several more years for all to come online. One recently completed project is the 24-unit Paseo Boricua Arts Building on the stretch of Division Street between Western and California avenues that’s flanked by distinctive metal Puerto Rican flags. Developed by the Puerto Rican Cultural Center and Brinshore Development, it’s designed to house artists from the community and will include a 99-seat theater.

East and west of Humboldt Park

Affordable projects underway

-18% -16% -14% 12% -10% -8%

Further west on Division Street, a nine-story building developed by the Hispanic Housing Development Corporation is rising at the intersection of Division and California, facing Humboldt Park at the western end of the Paseo Boricua. The development, with 64 affordable apartments, is only blocks away from homes listed anywhere from $499,000 to $1.2 million. It’s slated to be completed next year.

Some affordable projects are under the umbrella of former Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Invest South/West initiative, which is being re-evaluated by her successor, Mayor Brandon Johnson.

“It may take a very different path,” Kenya Merritt, Johnson’s deputy mayor of business and neighborhood development, told WBEZ in September. A spokesman for the mayor says: “We are exploring all options to make sure that we are utilizing resources in a way that is sustainable and equitable, in particular for communities on the South and West sides that have long experienced disinvestment.

Our end goal remains the creation of vibrant commercial corridors, walkable and accessible communities and amenities in every neighborhood in Chicago.”

Williams, the developer, is teaming with the nonprofit Preservation of Affordable Housing and Communities Empowered Through Construction for a five-story complex with 44 apartments as well as 21,000 square feet of space for a gym, restaurant and a day care center. It’s designed to house NHS Chicago’s West Side office. But Williams says he’s focusing on his home-building project first because population density is needed to support the retail spaces.

Nearby, developer A.J. Patton is planning a mixed project at Chicago and Avers avenues called Humboldt Park Passive Living. The estimated $40 million project is on a commercial corridor slated for investment in the Invest South/West program and is slated to include 60 apartments, a small format grocer and a cafe.

“Investment is pushing west,

‘P

Humboldt Park lies between two West Side Chicago neighborhoods, Humboldt Park and West Town, and the differences between them couldn’t be more stark. West Town encompasses the neighborhoods known as East Humboldt Park, Wicker Park and Ukrainian Village.

Humboldt Park (54,165 people)

As alo

By J

West Town (87,781 people)

City of Chicago (2.8 million people) Population change 2000-2020 17.7% 0.4% -5.2%

Population change 2010-2020 -3.8% 6.7% 1.9%

6% -4% -2%

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

White (non-Hispanic)

Hispanic or Latino

Black (non-Hispanic)

Humboldt Park

West Town

City of Chicago

6.5%

10.3% 20.2%

28.8%

33.9%

33.1%

52.9%

28.7%

63.6%

Note: West Town includes the east side of Humboldt Park as well as Wicker Park and Ukrainian Village.

Source: Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

A stark income disparity The median income of residents on the east side of Humboldt Park, known as West Town, is over 2½ times the median income in Humboldt Park.

2017-2021 median income West Town

$118,223

Humboldt Park

$46,786

Chicago

$65,781

Humboldt Park

City of Chicago

West Town

Employed

In labor force

Not in labor force

Unemployed

0% 10%

20%

30% 40%

50%

60%

70% 80%

90% 100%

Note: West Town includes the east side of Humboldt Park as well as Wicker Park and Ukrainian Village.

Source: Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

there’s no way around it,” Patton says. “The demographics will look different as compared to the 1990s. The community will evolve.”

Meanwhile, first-time homebuyers Capers and Yue, who moved in May, are adjusting to

life in their new neighborhood.

They still have to travel to the West Loop area for groceries, Yue says. Otherwise, “It’s a lot of working-class families,” she says.

“There are young kids around, people walking their dogs. This is where people live.”

V his on D san betw mai Cac G Poll sion Pase stre Cali Park tive O also has and Rec tout trad sou B thriv mom hard and resu com

A CHANGING HUMBOLDT PARK I

‘Puerto Rico Town’ proposed as a destination along Division Street

By Judith Crown

8%

1%

Victor Garcia has been serving his popular Puerto Rican jibaritos on Division Street for 22 years. The sandwiches — chicken or steak between fried plantains — is a mainstay of his restaurant, Papa’s Cache Sabroso.

Garcia, who calls himself “Papa Pollo,” or the Chicken Man of Division, is also a mainstay of the Paseo Boricua, a corridor that stretches between Western and California avenues in Humboldt Park and is set off by two distinctive metal flags of Puerto Rico.

Other merchants on the strip also boast longevity. Café Colao has been serving coffee and guava and cheese tarts for 30 years. Lily’s Record Shop, marking 40 years, touts a wall full of CDs, as well as traditional guayabera shirts and souvenirs of Puerto Rico.

But the corridor isn’t exactly thriving. It’s made up of mostly mom-and-pop shops that were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and face higher rents and taxes as a result of gentrification. Now the community, led by local nonprofit

organizations, including the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, hopes that a new state program will help revitalize the Paseo Boricua with what they call “Puerto Rico Town.”

The Illinois General Assembly in 2021 passed a law, championed by the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus, allowing for the designation of cultural districts to promote economic development and also preserve historic traditions. That could theoretically include the Paseo Boricua and other ethnic neighborhood enclaves such as Chinatown and Little Village.

The Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, or DCEO, in September launched the program, inviting applications for five cultural districts to be named this year and another five in 2024.

Lifting businesses Applicants must demonstrate a history of economic disinvestment and show the area has been historically impacted and is at risk of losing its cultural identity because of gentrification displacement or the pandemic, according to the DCEO. Once selected, the cultural districts

will be available to apply for funding from a $3 million pool.

“It’s no secret that many businesses struggled to keep their doors open during the pandemic,” says Ald. Jessie Fuentes, 26th. “We have vacancies because of the cost of commercial rents.” Fuentes, who helped shape the bill, says the program is designed to lift businesses threatened by encroaching gentrification.

José López, executive director and co-founder of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, or PRCC, says the organization proposes to extend “Puerto Rican Town” west of California Avenue, through Humboldt Park and as far as Kostner Avenue, a more than two-mile stretch. It would encompass the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture, housed in the historic Humboldt Park stables, and a new wellness center at the intersection of Division Street and Richmond Street. “It would be an amazing place where we could focus on creating a community that’s strong and dynamic and in which culture is the designated focus,” López says.

Not everyone in the neighbor-

hood agrees with the proposal. Kurt Gippert, a 20-year Humboldt Park resident, says he opposes extending the district through Chicago Park District land, which serves a broader, more diverse community. The cultural designation is essentially a development tool, so how does it fit in a park setting? he says.

Gippert also object to the cultural designation west of Humboldt Park through a mostly residential neighborhood that doesn’t have a dominant cultural identity. That should wait until there’s been investment and proven success in the Paseo Boricua, he adds.

GEOFFREY BLACK

A state law could pave the way for a cultural and economic revitalization along a struggling corridor in Humboldt Park

Federal, state and city support The PRCC already helps small businesses around the Paseo Boricua through several publicly funded programs. The Small Business Development Center is part of a network of centers funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration and the DCEO. It helps owners develop business, financial and marketing plans, access capital and legal services, says Honorio Torres, director of business initiatives at the PRCC, which administers the program in the Humboldt Park area.

Another center on Division Street, funded through the city of Chicago, helps business owners

Honorio Torres

obtain licenses. Called Wepa!

Mercado del Pueblo, it also functions as an incubator, providing free space for entrepreneurs starting businesses. About a dozen vendors get the chance to sell their wares, such as jewelry and crafts, at a market open to the public on weekends. Two food businesses graduated from the incubator and opened shops last year on the Paseo Boricua: Janellie’s Kitchen and the Chucherias Tropical Creations bakery.

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NOVEMBER 13, 2023 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | 15

I A CHANGING HUMBOLDT PARK I COMMENTARY

Let’s make sure affordable housing stays on the agenda J. E. KOONCE VIA FLICKR

A

s Puerto Ricans came to the erdike Redevelopment Corporation, U.S., Chicago became home Hispanic Housing Development to many setting roots in sev- Corporation (HHDC), Latin United eral communities, with Humboldt Community Housing Association Park being one of those key neigh- (LUCHA), and the Puerto Rican borhoods. Humboldt Park today Cultural Center, hosted a housing and the area now known as Puerto summit to collaborate and identify strategies to support Rico Town continues to be a housing affordability. A stronghold that supports resulting report, “Housand affirms Puerto Rican ing Summit: Strengthenculture and pride. ing the Puerto Rican and Paseo Boricua, book endLatino Presence in Chicaed by two steel flags, is the go,” along with the sumheart of Puerto Rico Town mit were the impetus of and gave birth to the Puerto policy to designate an Rican Agenda (PRA), an eneconomic development tity whose mission is to en- Mariana sure the self-determination Osoria is chair district based on culture and preserving cultural of Puerto Ricans in Chicago, of the Puerto identity. Passed into law throughout the diaspora, Rican Agenda. in 2021, SB1833 fulfilled and in Puerto Rico through policy and advocacy. Its members the recommendations of the sumare community leaders and non- mit report, which includes the profit executives committed to this movement against gentrification, mission. The PRA has been a lead- increased economic development ing driver of the work toward Puerto and access to affordable housing.

In February 2023, the University Rico Town’s growth guided by education, health, housing and eco- of Illinois Chicago’s Great Cities Institute authored a report that nomic development.

In 2018, the PRA Housing Com- provides current statistics to guide mittee along with various commu- the development of Puerto Rico nity organizations, including Bick- Town. It indicates that housing is a

As Puerto Ricans came to the United States, Chicago became home to many setting roots in several Chicago communities, with Humboldt Park being one of those key neighborhoods.

challenge for residents, identifying over 50% of PRT homeowners are housing cost burdened, with the rate at 63.7% for the west side of Puerto Rico Town. Renters on the west side also have over 50% burden, further demonstrating the need for affordable housing access. The report showed average monthly rents were higher in East Puerto Rico Town ($1,398) than West Puerto Rico Town ($1,062) from 2016-2020.

All individuals deserve access to housing that should be in a community that affirms and honors its residents. The PRA and its partners have worked hard to bring

affordable housing to do just that.

You see this reflected in the facades of Bickerdike’s La Estancia and HHDC’s Teresa Roldan apartments. Other examples include LUCHA’s Borinquen Bella and Tierra Linda (the first passive apartments in the city). Those partners and others are making or have developed: the Paseo Boricua Arts Building, a mixed-use building that affirms and supports the arts and provides artists affordable access to housing; Pedro Albizu Campos Apartments, which will feature 65 affordable apartments for families; the upcoming “Teacher’s Village,” a

mixed-use project with affordable housing in the shuttered Von Humboldt School building; Humboldt Park Health housing for employees of the health care provider that is affordable and accessible, and LUCHA’s 40-unit affordable housing at 3305 W. Division St. Housing and economic development must be undergirded in the culture of its people. Puerto Rico Town aims to broaden those opportunities for our community and will continue to create housing and economic development opportunities that continue to combat gentrification and promote our selfdetermination.

Development conundrum requires equitable solutions

16 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

CHICAGO FLATS INITIATIVE

P

ersistent disinvestment in es property values (and thereby people and their respective property taxes), which oftentimes communities has contributed creates affordability challenges for to an affordable housing crisis and those that have lived in the comwhat feels like an insurmountable munity for years. This new tax base sea of despair and disrepair in many can attract retail businesses that actually stay in the comChicago communities. munity attracting other Firmly entrenched sysassets and more resourctemic barriers in addition es, but the price points to current market condithat can be sustained by tions — high interest rates, these higher-income resiincreasing home prices, dents worsens the cost high velocity construction burden of its lower-inprices, labor shortages and come residents. well-capitalized real estate Homeownership is a speculators — all aggra- Donna Clarke stabilizing force that vate the stability of these is chief operatbuilds wealth for families. neighborhoods, fueling ing officer at Homeowners have 40 inequitable development Neighborhood times the net worth of in marginalized neighbor- Housing renters, so finding develhoods, particularly on the Services of opment solutions to foster South and West Sides.

Chicago. the building of more afIf not intentional about stabilizing long-term residents, fordable homes in our communimuch-needed investment in ties is a great return on investment.

Patient and flexible zero-to-low neighborhood development projects can manifest itself as gentrifi- interest rate capital (and reasoncation. New home construction, able deployment schedules) is while effectively spurring activity needed to fund projects in our disin distressed neighborhoods, invested neighborhoods. Building often ends up catering only to the capacity of nonprofits and higher-income borrowers migrat- mission-focused developers long ing from other unaffordable committed to this work, providing neighborhoods. This creates the developer subsidies and competigreat community development tive financing for rehab acquisiconundrum: new development vs. tions, funding down payment assistance endowments, and the effects of new development.

Market-rate new construction enabling the testing of new homedrives up home prices but increas- ownership models to bridge the

The Chicago Flats Initiative is a coalition of community organizations whose goal is to preserve and maintain two- to four-unit housing.

growing affordability gap are all good tools. Equitable development means employing all these tools and strategies alongside market-rate development.

The Connecting Capital & Community project, facilitated by the Chicago Community Trust and Center for Community Investment, is one such effort focused on incubating a holistic solution to promote the participation of longterm neighborhood residents on their journey of neighborhood improvement by way of homeownership. A cross-functional team comprising community groups,

housing counseling agencies and developers is exploring creative solutions to produce mortgage-ready homebuyers from the neighborhood. The goal is to utilize local, mission-focused and minority developers to build affordable homes on vacant lots and raise funds for low-interest-rate recyclable capital to provide non-conventional mortgages.

The Chicago Flats Initiative is another collaborative that is investing in reactivating vacant units in two-to-four-unit buildings that can serve as affordable rentals while stabilizing housing for many

“mom-and-pop” landlords.

Persistent and disproportionate investment in South and West Side communities is the countermeasure to historical and new forms of disinvestment. Fostering mixed-income neighborhood solutions is the key to creating diverse, thriving neighborhoods and critical to preventing displacement of longtime residents. Equitable, or rather more and intentional, development, focused on wealth-building solutions that support existing residents as well as new homebuyers, can bolster culture-rich communities that make us one Chicago.

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Mike Reschke says he’s in discussions with the owners of six to eight suburban hotels. I PHOTO BY JOHN R. BOEHM

Developer Mike Reschke proposes suburban hotels to house migrants He’s trying to help the city with the migrant crisis as he makes a big bet on the Loop rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic

By Leigh Giangreco and Danny Ecker

As migrants from South America and Central America huddle together in tents to brace against Chicago’s cold weather, local developer Mike Reschke is trying to round up around half a dozen suburban hotels that could temporarily house thousands of new arrivals.

Reschke was one of several prominent Chicago developers, along with representatives from AmTrust Realty and the Building Owners & Managers Association, who met with city officials for an Oct. 12 discussion to provide ideas on how to shelter migrants arriving in Chicago from the southern border. Those officials included city of Chicago Chief Operating Officer John Roberson; Deputy Mayor of Business Kenya Merritt; and Deputy Mayor of Immigrant, Migrant and Refugee Rights Beatriz Ponce De León. As of Nov. 3, 11,727 migrants filled the city’s 24 shelters and another 3,228 were waiting at police stations and airports across the city, according to the Office of Emergency Management & Communications.

Following that meeting, Reschke and his employees began calling suburban mayors and hotel owners about using defunct or underutilized hotels to shelter migrants. Reschke believes the hotels, which already come equipped with private rooms and large banquet halls, offer a better solution than winterized base camps or retrofitting warehouses, schools or offices.

“We own a bunch of hotels, but they’re all reasonably successful today and they’re not really conducive for immigrant housing,” Reschke said. “But I’m in the industry, I know a lot of friends and acquaintances that have such facilities that would be happy to sell, or I know a lot of banks and lenders that have real estate on their balance sheet that they took back for foreclosure.”

Reschke is trying to help the city with the migrant crisis as he makes a big bet on the Loop rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic. The veteran real estate developer, who already owns a landmark building on LaSalle Street that he turned into a Residence Inn, is partnering with Google to transform the dilapidated James R. Thompson Center into a modern office building to serve as the tech giant’s new Midwest headquarters. He is also overhauling an office building at 115 S. LaSalle St. to become the state of Illinois’ new Chicago office, and is pitching a nearly $300 million plan to convert former BMO Harris Bank office buildings at 111 W. Monroe St. into a combination of apartments and a separate club and hotel.

Reschke said he’s in discussions with the owners of six to eight suburban hotels, each of which have an average capacity of about 250.

He’s hoping to put a proposal in front of the city in the next few weeks, which would include a total capacity between 1,000 and 2,000 rooms, he said.

Expecting pushback While Reschke would not specify which suburbs he has examined so far, he does expect political pushback from some mayors and residents. NIMBYism has already reached a boiling point within Chicago, where residents have protested the opening of migrant shelters in multiple neighborhoods. Last month, protesters attacked Ald. Julia Ramirez, 12th, and her staffer over the city’s plans to erect a tent encampment in Brighton Park.

“That’s the task that’s unclear . . . whether or not these communities and the local governments where these hotels and other facilities are located, whether they’re going to embrace and accept this use or whether they’re going to fight it,” Reschke said. “Maybe it’s not a practical solution if there’s a political uproar.”

Part of the conversation at the Oct. 12 meeting touched on the extent to which properties outside of the city could be used to shelter migrants, another source who attended the meeting told Crain’s.

However, suburban properties could complicate efforts to deliver social services to a large number of migrants at once.

“It has to be dense, you have to have a certain scale,” the source said. “You have to have a certain size and concentration to provide social services.”

That echoes comments from other Johnson administration officials, such as First Deputy Chief of Staff Cristina Pacione-Zayas, who in September pushed back on the idea of using Airbnbs within the city to provide shelter.

“There’s a little bit of an economies of scale there,” she told Crain’s in September. “We go to congregate for that interim mode so that you can have staff members work with multiple cases under the same kind of shelter.”

Early on in the crisis, Airbnb gave the city vouchers for complex medical cases, she added.

Another ambiguous element of the proposal is whether the city would acquire hotels or lease them for use as shelters. Alternatively, a company like Reschke’s could run the hotel shelters and manage them for a fee, he said. That process is further complicated by a lack of additional state or federal funding to manage the crisis.

The city did not respond to questions about Reschke’s proposal.

“Representatives from the Johnson administration have met with our partners in the business community to explore possible collaborative ventures related to the New Arrivals Mission,” Johnson spokesman Ronnie Reese said in an emailed statement to Crain’s. “These meetings are part of the city’s efforts to identify buildings that are suitable for shelter or that can be quickly retrofitted.”

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LABOR

ployees to do more work. He could also add certain payment systems that reduce work for the employees, such as those that allow customers to pay when they order.

Third Coast Hospitality Group, which owns Tree House in River North, Moe’s Cantina in Wrigleyville and three other restaurants, is also hiring fewer people and having servers do more work. “(It is) trying to figure out, ‘OK,

From Page 1

to make up that dollar amount somewhere,” said Nick Lombardo, chief operating officer of Rosebud Restaurant Group.

“Menu prices in the city are already extremely high, but it’s the cost of doing business now.”

Rosebud is planning to cut operating hours at its Chicago restaurants, possibly opening an hour later or closing between lunch and dinner. Such a move would save on labor costs, helping offset the city mandated increase, Lombardo said.

Many restaurant owners were adamantly opposed to the ordinance, dubbed One Fair Wage by its backers. The industry has notoriously thin profit margins and has watched those margins shrink since the pandemic. Mandated COVID-19 closures devastated the industry, and once restaurants reopened, establishments were hit with inflationary increases across the board. Many Chicago restaurants added surcharges to bills or upped menu prices to offset the rising costs of food, construction materials and labor.

Many restaurant owners were adamantly opposed to the ordinance, dubbed One Fair Wage by its backers.

Largest challenge Increasing labor costs came amid a sort of reckoning during the pandemic. Many workers did not return to the industry once restaurants started reopening, sparking talent shortages. Competition for workers became cutthroat. In the high-turnover industry, restaurants hiked wages to attract talent. Many have also added perks like family leave or health insurance. That, too, eats into restaurants’ bottom lines.

Nationally, hospitality workers’ average hourly wage increased to $21.36 in October, up 26.3% from $16.91 in February 2020, just before the pandemic sparked widespread restaurant

LAWSUIT From Page 3

many buyers paying thousands of dollars more in commissions than they might otherwise, attorneys wrote on behalf of seven recent homebuyers. The issue is whether the customary 50/50 split between buyer’s agent and seller’s agent locks out the possibility of a buyer’s agent working for less and still having access to all of the homes that are on the market.

Larger commissions, because they’re wrapped into the buyer’s overall purchase, contribute to higher prices for homes, attorneys from the Chicago and St. Louis offices of law firm Korin Tillery and Lowey Dannenberg of White Plains, N.Y., wrote in their complaint. They’re requesting that the court certify the case as a class-action suit on behalf of anyone who’s bought a home since 1996.

‘Paying inflated prices’ Countless homebuyers, the attorneys wrote, “have been harmed by paying inflated prices

“We’re trying not to cut our labor force, but we’re going to have to make up that dollar amount somewhere,” said Nick Lombardo, chief operating officer of Rosebud Restaurant Group. I PHOTO BY JOHN R. BOEHM

closures, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Though food prices are decelerating, the labor issue remains the largest challenge facing restaurants now, and the biggest driver of increased menu prices, said David Henkes, senior principal at market research firm Technomic.

“The service charges and other fees that are increasingly being added to checks are also a response to higher labor costs,” Henkes said in an email.

In Illinois, the hospitality industry has still not recovered

from the loss of talent it suffered during the pandemic. The industry employed 629,900 people in February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In September, it employed an estimated 599,400.

As restaurants search for places to cut labor costs before July, operators say that employment number could continue to stall.

For The People Hospitality, the parent company of The Duplex in Logan Square and Wicker Park cocktail bar Revolver, paused hiring. Instead of bringing in

new workers, it upped the hourly wage for full-timers as of Nov. 1 to $16 from $10, hoping to incentivize them to stay put.

“Our industry is such a revolving door,” said The Duplex co-owner Le’Qoinne Rice. “We have to limit that as much as possible.”

for their homes and inflated buyer-agent commissions.” The case claims the defendant brokerages violate antitrust laws.

When asked for comment, Redfin’s media office sent a link to a blog post by the firm’s CEO, Glenn Kelman. “For our entire history, at Congressional hearings, in press appearances, in sensationalized debates, and in public and private industry meetings, we’ve campaigned tirelessly for lower fees, commission transparency, and broader consumer access to real estate listings,” Kelman wrote. Shortly before the Kansas City trial, Redfin withdrew from the National Association of Realtors, over both the commission issue and the swirling sexual harassment scandal at the NAR. Redfin, Kelman wrote, “has been on the right side of history.”

The blog post, written before this latest suit was filed, does not directly address the latest suit.

George Zelcs, a Chicago-based Korein Tillery partner and a lead attorney on the case, declined to comment.

Of the defendant brokerages,

three have not yet responded to Crain’s request for comment.

They are Compass, Weichert and United Real Estate. A spokesperson for one defendant brokerage, Douglas Elliman, said the firm declined to comment.

A press representative for Exp Realty emailed a statement that says, “while we are still studying the formal complaint, we have been closely observing the ongoing antitrust litigation against our competitors in recent years. We are committed to upholding fair and transparent practices compliant with law and we already have mechanisms and a plan in place that enables buyers and sellers to negotiate commissions.”

Howard Hanna’s press office emailed a statement that says, “In light of ongoing legal matters within our industry, we are actively monitoring the situation and will provide updates as necessary. We will continue to represent buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, and remain committed to upholding our core values and guiding principles as a company.”

The Chicago case came two

days after a Kansas City court found the National Association of Realtors and a pair of big brokerages guilty of overcharging home sellers, a verdict that has been called “an earthquake” and “a bombshell” for its potential to remake the way Americans have bought and sold homes for more than a century. That same day, the Missouri lawyers who won the case filed another one for sellers, with a new set of brokerages as defendants.

18 | CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Cross-training The idea is to create stability and reduce labor costs, he said.

The industry is high-turnover, and workers are often employed at multiple restaurants. Rice believes that he can train fewer em-

Legal machinations The defendants in that new Kansas City case for sellers are the same as those named in the new Chicago case for buyers.

It’s the second suit that Korein Tillery and Lowey Dannenberg has filed for homebuyers. It’s substantially similar to the first, and the attorneys are likely to request combining the two into one large class-action suit against the NAR and a total of 15 national brokerages.

The first, filed in January 2021, named as defendants the NAR and six national brokerages, including Realogy (now called

how many people do we need on the floor? Do we really need this many people?’ ” said Korina Sanchez, Third Coast’s vice president and general counsel. “We’re looking at a lot of cross-training.”

Meanwhile, the City Council last week passed a measure requiring employers to provide 10 paid days off to their workers starting next year. It’s the most expansive paid leave policy of any big city in the country and doubles the number of days the city had required companies to provide.

Restaurant operators were adamantly opposed. More than 120 operators from across the city signed an op-ed to Crain’s voicing their concerns. Sanchez from Third Coast Hospitality was among them. It’s a one-two punch, with the looming changes to the sub-minimum wage for tipped workers, she said.

“The timing really sucks. It’s really disheartening,” Sanchez said. “So many increasing costs, all happening at the same time.”

Anywhere Real Estate), the parent of Coldwell Banker; HomeServices of America; Remax and Keller Williams. Those defendants filed to have the case dismissed, arguing that homebuyers don’t directly purchase the services of an agent because sellers disburse the commission to their agent, who then pass along half to the buyer’s agent.

That would mean homebuyers have no standing to sue.

In May 2022, U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys later resubmitted the case, rewritten to explain why they believe buyers do buy their agents’ services directly. It is, essentially, the buyers who are the ones paying the money from which the seller disburses commissions.

Wood has not yet ruled on whether that case can go forward as resubmitted. If she allows it, the attorneys would presumably request to have that case rolled into one with the more recent case against different defendants — which uses the same language on buyers being direct purchasers.

O’HARE From Page 3

it paid the airport $17.7 million.

Traffic at O’Hare last year was still 19% below pre-pandemic levels, reducing sales.

The city plans to bid out the concessions deals for Terminals 1 and 3 by the first quarter of 2024.

Terminal 2 is scheduled to be demolished and replaced by a new terminal that will primarily handle international arrivals for United and American airlines, which primarily operate out of Terminal 1 and 3, respectively.

A new contract for Terminal 2 and two satellite concourses likely will be bid out later. The new and remade space will not only give O’Hare more gates for boarding and exiting planes, but it will provide a big boost in retail space that airport officials have long sought.

Airport officials estimate the new terminals will boost retail space 60% to 70%.

‘Different models’ Over the years, city officials have toyed with the idea of splitting up the O’Hare contracts to encourage competition that experts say could lead to a wider variety of eateries, bars and shops, as well as more favorable deals. More contracts could provide local shops and eateries more opportunities to get a piece of the action, which traditionally has been a focal point for

NEW-BUILD From Page 1

quarter of this year, an increase of nearly 41% from the same period in 2022, according to the firm’s latest report, which was released late last week.

That’s even stronger than the previous quarter, when sales were up almost 38%. They’ve more than made up for a steep drop in the first quarter, and now, year-to-date, home sales are up 8.4%.

New home developments are “absolutely”pulling in customers from the tight existing-home market, Doersching said, but it’s not only the mere availability of a house that’s pulling them in. Unlike individuals selling their family home, the big national homebuilding firms that make up 80% of the Chicago area’s new home sales all have the financial wherewithal to offer reduced interest rates as “their primary incentive in this high inter-

BELVIDERE From Page 3

Bloomington for three years, and Lion Electric opened an electric bus plant in Channahon this summer.

Illinois hit the trifecta in the latest UAW contract, trailing only Indiana in the amount of investment to be made during the life of the 4.5-year contract.

Indiana will receive $7.7 billion, mostly to build two battery plants, which are estimated to cost $6.2 billion. Michigan will get $4.55 billion.

ChicagoBusiness.com President and CEO KC Crain Group publisher Jim Kirk, (312) 397-5503 or jkirk@crain.com

Traffic at O’Hare last year was still 19% below pre-pandemic levels, reducing sales. I CRAIN’S FILE PHOTO

City Council members who must ultimately approve the concession deals.

Rhee didn’t tip her hand during the committee hearing.

“One of the things . . . we really are looking at is there are different models out there,” she said. “How do we get first-time entrants?. . . .These are economic engines for the city and we need to make sure everyone has the chance to participate.”

The city has made clear that it wants concessions-management companies to partner with local

businesses, especially minorityand women-owned companies that meet federal qualifications as Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Businesses.

“As we look to reimagine the concession opportunities at Terminals 1 and 3 at O’Hare, we’re laser-like focused on increasing opportunities for small, diverse firms across our neighborhoods to get a foothold in O’Hare,” Rhee told Aviation Committee members Oct. 30.

A vendor education event at a University of Illinois Chicago fo-

rum on Nov. 1 was aimed at casting a wider net to increase the number of local companies bidding for a piece of the action.

est rate climate,” Doersching said.

For some of Tailor’s clients, the builder’s offer of lower interest rates or other incentives, like a $20,000 package of upgrades, reduced the cost difference between existing homes and new product. While the available new homes are priced higher than existing homes, Tailor said, “those incentives knock it back down to the price they were looking at” in the existing home market.

The major national homebuilders all make a regular practice of declining to comment to Crain’s on their sales and the Tracy Cross reports.

There’s also the problem that much of the land that’s available for building is in the outer rings of the metro area, while demand for homes is strongest in the inner- or mid-range rings.

“Our supply of land is disjointed,” Doershing said.

Elmhurst is feeling it. In this older, established suburb that has been an epicenter of teardowns for more than 20 years, “we’re desperate to find land to build on now,” said Tim Schiller, an @properties Christie’s International Real Estate agent who handles many of the new-build sales in town. Demand, he said, is high, particularly from Chicago residents planning a move to Elmhurst.

“They want new,” he said. “They don’t want something dated.”

The lack of sites to build on has its upside, of course. “Having low inventory keeps prices high,” said Schiller. His team represented a new five-bedroom, roughly 3,470-square-foot house on Third Street that sold for about $1.07 mil-

lion in mid-October.

“If we had a few more, we could sell them,” Schiller said.

Two-year process If new homes are a solution to the tight inventory housing market, why aren’t more of them being rushed onto the market? “It’s not like baking more loaves of bread to get on the shelves,” Doersching said. Getting new homes onto the market “is a process that can take two years, with land acquisition, permitting and construction.”

UAW President Shawn Fain made “Saving Belvidere” a rallying cry in the negotiations with Stellantis, which included 25% raises and a cost-of-living provision, as well as the elimination of two-tier wage system that emerged during the Great Recession, which threatened to wipe out Detroit’s Big Three automakers.

“We fought like hell to bring product back to this plant,” the UAW said in its first detailed explanation to members of the recent deal. “Not only have we saved Belvidere, we’ve shown that these companies can reopen plants, if we unite and fight to

force them to.”

The UAW went on strike at several facilities, including a Stellantis parts distribution center in Naperville, over six weeks. The Belvidere plant was idled in February, laying off 1,350 workers there.

The contract agreed to by union leaders requires approval by its members, who will vote on ratification in coming weeks.

Incentives The gains at Belvidere aren’t without cost. The state hasn’t yet said how much it’s offering in incentives to Stellantis, but the total is expected to be significantly

‘Brand awareness’ Israel Garcia, who co-founded Taco Madre restaurant in 2014 in Montgomery, now has five locations. He partnered with mall operator Brookfield Properties to open his first store outside of Illinois in Augusta, Ga. Now he’s eyeing the airports “for the brand awareness that comes from all the traffic.”

Shallower pool A comparison to national data shows Chicago’s pool of new home offerings is far shallower than what it’s like nationwide. Redfin reported in late October that about 31% of homes for sale were new construction. That’s considerably higher than the proportion offered here.

Crain’s research in the Midwest Real Estate Data listings indicates that about 7% of the homes for sale in the six-county metro area are new construction.

One significant reason for the difference is that the homebuilding industry in the Chicago area was laid low by the fallow 2010s. From an early-2000s peak of selling over 25,000 new homes a year, the industry dropped to less than one-fifth of that for a long stretch and only began solid recovery during the COVID-era housing boom. higher than the $536 million package given to Gotion Hi-Tech to build a $2 billion battery-assembly facility in Manteno.

Belvidere’s win also demonstrates the extent to which jobs are shifting in the transition to EVs. Because electric motors and transmissions have far fewer parts than those used in traditional vehicles, they require fewer employees for manufacturing and assembly. However, EV batteries are larger, more numerous and more complex, offsetting some of the losses, but only if the assembly and battery plants are kept together.

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