-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
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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Downtown should be named Downturn. Going, lower and lower for years to come.
The Chitty belongs to criminals, not businesses. The cops think so at least.
Move to Punta Gorda if you want to be safe, just like the cops do.
The rents will never be *soft* enough to offset taxes and union operating costs. My guess is that in the upcoming years, the companies that must remain in the loop – big consulting firms, white shoe law firms, architecture firms, etc, will consolidate in one particular area, and basically ignore the rest of downtown. Right now it’s looking like west of the river is desirable part of downtown with newer buildings, major tenants with longer term leases, and access to amenities. Those companies stuck in long term leases elsewhere will either just suck it up or break leases early to… Read more »
It’s the prelude to turning downtown office buildings into public housing.
They keep talking about that but the cost of conversion is prohibitively high because of plumbing stacks, electrical, HVAC and window issues. The buildings are more likely to be abandoned before they are repurposed for residential. Now if they become residential in the sense of SROs with shared kitchen/restroom situtions, it would require a total writing of the zoning code to permit tenement housing, which has mostly been prohibited for a century.