Note to readers from Mark Glennon re: Ukraine
May 6, 2026
10 Comments
Everybody needs a side hustle these days, and mine is Ukraine, where I am now.
-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
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If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
75% occupancy? Believe an old rule of thumb was that 85% is often referenced by lenders as the breakeven occupancy rate for commercial real estate loans. Plus, seem to recall that Chicago has a modest double digit proportion of local commercial real estate loans coming due in 2024, Bottom line – borrower expense cuts, layoffs, asset price declines, and increased lender loss reservations and write-offs pending. More short-term volatility likely ahead for commercial property owners. The good news is we’re better off than the San Fran (approx. 35%) commercial vacancy rate. Perhaps prudent to ensure FDIC insurance technically covers your… Read more »
Death spiral. Let the thugs run wild and the death spiral will continue.
Will be nice to see the Illinois prairies come back after the city empties out like Detroit.
Who in their right mind would ever want to
Return to working in that sh..hole, the loop.
Drive to get there is ridiculous, parking anywhere is ridiculously costly, eating
There with prices and taxes ridiculous,
Chances of car jacking and or mugging
Good, empty stores many, CTA versus
Car ridiculous. CTA aka super mugger
Mover, aka moving outhouse.
Getting home good luck.
End of that story
Chicago told Ken Griffin not to let the door hit him on the way out (it didn’t).
Maimi is now booming, cannot find enough offices. Chicago is in a death spiral thanks to the democrats disregard for the taxpayer’s wallet and safety.
I don’t see any reason to think this is going to get better any time soon, if ever. Business people are very good at doing a cost/benefit analysis, and downtown ends up being increasingly unattractive in most cases. It ends up being a self fulfilling prophecy at some point, as more space becomes available. Then there’s the brainstorm of the progressive leadership to turn downtown into Cabrini Green part duex. Nobody wants to be part of that.
Spouse’s office is doing a national search for high level manager because they can’t find anyone qualified locally who is willing to travel into the loop. They found one out-of-state candidate who actually sat for an interview, and during the interview, expressed serious reservations about actually moving to Chicago and going into the office, wants to work remotely.
I’ve mentioned this before, ALL my neighbors here in semi rural NC know what’s going on in Chicago. Every single one.
Thanks Lori, you made me never want to return downtown ever again!