-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
It's a surprising case because apartments stand out as one the strongest property sectors in Chicago, with few visible signs of financial distress. Many office buildings, meanwhile, are struggling, especially along LaSalle Street, the longtime heart of the city's financial district. Amid its troubles, city officials and many developers are touting office-to-apartment conversions like the one at 29 S. LaSalle as the primary strategy to revive the storied street.
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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Where would these new apartment dwellers work and shop?
LaSalle street will be the new Cabrini Green as it becomes another low income housing created by Democrats
The CRE depression isn’t even in full focus yet, but when it comes clearer, it’s going to be epic, like 1929 levels of depression. We, like China, now have overleveraged ghost cities too…
Crime is the straw that breaks the camel’s back. The perception alone keeps people away. DC suffering from the same problems (and with the same politics).
As time goes by the problem is only going to get worse. The financial district is DEAD. The taxman chased big business out of state. No one likes to be gouged.
Not surprising at all. The Chitty is not safe at any speed, cops do not enforce laws. Taxes to landlords have gone up, up and away. Lots more foreclosures on the way. Business are leaving downtown in droves and so are honest working citizens.
Punts Gorda, Punta Gorda, Punta Gorda…… help me I’m stuck saying the same stupid things