Latest news with #1901Project
Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Chicago Blackhawks show off Fifth Third Arena expansion construction — and the future home of the Chicago Steel
The Chicago Blackhawks gave a sneak peek of the Fifth Third Arena expansion to the media Tuesday — still a skeletal collection of steel beams, HVAC systems and construction dust — but they dropped some meatier news during the tour: The Chicago Steel are coming. The United States Hockey League team will play a final season this fall at Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva, their home since 2015, before moving their offices and home ice into the expanded, fancier digs at Fifth Third, the Hawks' training facility. While Hawks players will continue to use the same two rinks they've used for practices and training camps since Fifth Third's opening in 2017, the Steel will host games at one of the two new rinks — the one they're calling Championship Arena. It can seat 1,500 and host up to 2,000 in the same building as lounges, a fan patio with a skyline view, a restaurant named after late team chairman Rocky Wirtz and a 100th anniversary museum called Centennial Hall, which will also house the new Blackhawks Hall of Fame announced last month. The privately funded expansion, which began in May 2024 and is scheduled to open in January 2026, initially was projected to cost $65 million, but a source told the Tribune it will likely land 'significantly higher.' The upgrades are part of a bigger play for the Hawks, who hope to attract more NHL, national and international events, such as the NHL combine, USA Hockey and high-profile prospect tournaments. Fifth Third is already scheduled to host next summer's Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase. 'We really want this expansion to be the epicenter of Midwest hockey,' said Chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz. Chicago Blackhawks unveil plans for a new Hall of Fame as part of their centennial seasonIt also augments the 1901 Project, the Hawks' and Bulls' 15-year, $7 billion United Center campus development plan that will feature new residences, hotels and an entertainment district. 'I think you'll see more of that connection' to Hawks games, Wirtz said. 'Once we build up the plaza for the 1901 Project, just that experience from going from this building to the United Center through the Malcolm X (College) corridor into a beautiful plaza with restaurants and bars and all that kind of stuff, it's just going to be a much nicer, seamless experience.' On a more grassroots level, the Hawks want the Fifth Third Arena to be a gathering place, whether people are there for hockey or not. Malcolm X students can study and West Side groups can hold meetings in its 250,000 square feet of community space, tourists can pop in for coffee, fans can attend watch parties and hockey parents can watch their kids on the ice from a fireplace-heated lounge overlooking Rink 3. 'We spent a lot of time talking to hockey parents, and I am a hockey parent, so I know how frustrating it is when you can't find a charger or a plug, there's nothing to eat or drink, and you have no place to sit down, and you're freezing cold the whole time,' said Hawks president of business operations Jaime Faulkner. 'So we've thought about all these things to be thoughtful of this.' The two-story, 135,000-square-foot expansion, designed by Generator Studio, will double the size of the facility and is expected to bring up to 1.5 million people through its doors annually, according to team estimates. Tuesday's tour culminated with a walkthrough of the Championship Arena footprint. Ironically, the sand floor made the space look more like an indoor desert than somewhere ice will someday be. 'The sand floor we just put down, but we're about a month away from installing the ice floor in Rink 3 and the championship rink here,' said Ryan Snider, the team's executive vice president of affiliates. 'That's all coming fast and furious now.'
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chicago Public Schools Once Again Puts 2013 Closed Schools Up for Sale
This article was originally published in Chalkbeat. The buildings have sat empty for 12 years. Several are architecturally significant with striking details and character taking up multiple city blocks. But many are in rough shape, with copper stripped from the pipes, broken windows, and graffiti covering walls. One had to be torn down after an extra-alarm fire last year. Now, Chicago Public Schools aims to sell the former schools, putting 20 properties out to bid once again, with the hopes of seeing them repurposed and the possibility of bringing in around $8.2 million and avoiding spending more on future upkeep. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter 'Our goal is not to sell them for the highest dollar amount, really. It's to find the most responsible, compatible use,' said Stephen Stults, director of real estate for CPS. 'What we get paid, of course, helps with our budget challenges. But they've been sitting there long enough, and we need to do everything we can to try to get them repurposed.' The solicitation for bids, which are due May 30, includes mostly school buildings closed in 2013. Each property includes a minimum bid and all properties have schools on them with the exception of one on the Near West Side. That property, the site of the old Dett Elementary, has a minimum bid of $1.3 million and sits about five blocks from the United Center in an area poised for a $7 billion development plan, called the 1901 Project, a nod to the sports stadium's address. The city demolished the school building last fall after a fire broke out in late May. Prior to the fire, CPS put the building on the market and received just one bid for $1, which was 'below what the district was willing to accept.' Demolition cost the district $1.25 million. All of the properties have deed restrictions that do not allow them to be used as a K-12 charter or school or for the sale of liquor or tobacco products. Stults said CPS spends between $100,000 and $150,000 to maintain and secure each vacant school per year. That's at least $2 million annually for the past 12 years — or $24 million. The ongoing expense comes as CPS is currently considering hundreds of layoffs in order to close a $529 million deficit for the coming school year. Even though many vacant schools are not in great condition, Stults said the 'bones of the buildings' are good. Demolition may be expensive, but so is rebuilding a core structure. After the deadline, he said the district will consider all bids and select the two 'highest and most responsible' to present to the school board, as required by state law. Stults anticipates bringing some building sales to the board before the end of the calendar year. If there is no demand for certain vacant schools, he added, the district plans to reach out to sister agencies, such as the Chicago Park District, to see if they're interested in the properties. Vacant schools are a visible reminder of the 2013 closures, which disproportionally impacted Black children from low-income families and led to further population loss. Many community groups and neighbors near these properties have called for reinvestment in these public assets for many years. Following the mass school closings in 2013, then-mayor Rahm Emanuel and CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennet appointed a committee to develop guidelines for school repurposing and community development. Their early 2014 report laid out potential uses for each vacant school and recommended a process for repurposing. CPS put 47 buildings up for sale and sold two dozen properties in subsequent years for a collective $38 million. Some have been redeveloped into luxury housing or private schools. One was torn down to make way for 30 new single-family homes and another was rehabbed into a union hall. More recently, the former Emmet Elementary in Austin opened as a gleaming workforce training facility after a more than $40 million renovation supported by city, state, and philanthropic money. The former Overton Elementary in Grand Boulevard on the south side slowly transformed into a community hub with weekend market events and a community garden. Ghian Foreman, a managing partner with the Washington Park Development Group, which has owned the building since 2015, said they will begin renovations to convert the building into offices later this year as soon as the city grants the permits. 'It's harder than you think it is,' Foreman said. 'This has been a really long process of learning. You have to really be committed, and you have to ensure that you have the resources to see it all the way through.' Many vacant schools shuttered a decade ago have garnered interest from buyers and community proposals. But actual redevelopment has stalled for myriad reasons. Some schools up for sale now had buyers previously, but the sales never went through. For example, the school board approved a bid for the old Henson Elementary in 2018, but the local aldermen at the time held it in a City Council committee. The building remains vacant. The school board in 2018 approved a bid for the old Morgan Elementary in Chatham from the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241. But the project never came to fruition. Some schools have been sold and are off the district's books, but remain vacant and undeveloped. One notable example is the old Von Humboldt school, which still sits vacant after being sold by the school board in 2015 for $3.1 million to the nonprofit IFF. The group planned to convert the old school in gentrifying Humboldt Park to a mixed-use building with affordable apartments and market-rate townhomes built on part of the parking lot. But IFF eventually sold the property to Newark, New Jersey-based RBH Group, which promised to convert it to a 'Teachers Village' with subsidized housing for teachers, similar to projects it's done in Atlanta, Newark, New Jersey, and Hartford, Connecticut. Ald. Daniel La Spata, 1st Ward, put brakes on the project in 2019, but it eventually got approval from the City Council in 2020. The city approved $18 million in tax-exempt bonds in 2022 and last fall, the Chicago Housing Authority committed 61 vouchers worth $20 million over 20 years. Today, the historic school built in 1884 sits waiting for activity. What to do with school real estate is another area of governmental entanglement between the city and the Chicago Board of Education. By state law, the City of Chicago or the Public Building Commission hold the title 'in trust for the use of schools.' The sale of old schools must be approved by the City Council in order for the deed to be transferred to a new owner. It also must be approved by two-thirds of the Chicago Board of Education, which now means 14 members must vote yes. In the bid materials, interested buyers are encouraged to contact the local aldermen and local school board representatives for the properties they're interested in purchasing. Ald. Jeanette Taylor, who represents the 20th Ward on the south side, plans to hold meetings later this month to get feedback on repurposing the schools in her ward. Taylor is the City Council's chair of the Committee on Education and Child Development and also participated in a hunger strike to keep Dyett High School open roughly a decade ago. School board member Che 'Rhymefest' Smith, who was elected to represent District 10 on the south side, said he hasn't heard from any prospective buyers yet. He doesn't want to prescribe any uses for the vacant buildings in his district but just hopes that investors would tune in to what communities in these neighborhoods want and need. He also thinks any money the district makes from the sales should be poured into schools in those neighborhoods. 'I would like to see any revenue benefit local schools rather than disappearing into the district bureaucracy,' he said. When asked if she'd been contacted by anybody hoping to buy vacant schools, Therese Boyle, the elected school board representative for District 9 on the south side, said: 'Not a soul.' But she said what to do with these vacant properties is a critically important question for communities, especially given the district's looming deficit. 'We need every penny for the operation of the schools that are open,' Boyle said. Boyle, a retired school psychologist, worked inside the old Wentworth school building now up for sale when it was closed in 2013. She remembered how difficult it was for students and staff to move to a new building and said it's awful to have an old school sitting empty in a neighborhood. Michilla Blaise, who was appointed to the school board by Mayor Brandon Johnson to represent District 5 on the west side, said she's been talking with district, city, and county officials about what to do with the old vacant schools. She said it's important to do something because right now, they're just reminders of neighborhood disinvestment for the people who live around them. Foreman, the community developer that owns the old Overton school, echoed that sentiment. For the 10 years he's owned the old school, he's allowed the community to use the gym to play basketball and workout. He had to stop that in the past year to prepare for construction and said there have been break-ins recently, but not from people looking to steal things. 'They were young people who wanted to come and play in the gym,' he said. Even though financing Overton's redevelopment has been a big challenge, Foreman questioned the argument often made by city officials that it's too costly to repurpose these properties or make them available to the community while trying to sell them or even demolish them for use as a park. 'What's more expensive?' he asked. 'What we pay the police in overtime or opening up a gym for the kids to play basketball?' This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools. Sign up for their newsletters at
Washington Post
19-02-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Bulls, Blackhawks owners get the OK from City Council to transform area around United Center
CHICAGO — The owners of the NBA's Chicago Bulls and NHL's Blackhawks got the go-ahead to transform the area surrounding the United Center on Wednesday when the Chicago City Council approved a $7 billion plan to replace the parking lots with green space, mixed-income housing, a music hall and more. The 1901 Project , touted as the largest private investment in Chicago's West Side, is being spearheaded by the Reinsdorf and Wirtz families, who own the arena. It is to be built in phases on more than 55 acres of privately owned land over about a decade-long period.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
City Council gives final approval to ‘1901 Project' at United Center
CHICAGO (WGN) — Alders at Wednesday's City Council meeting gave final approval on a $7 billion plan to redevelop 55 acres around the United Center with housing, retail, entertainment space and a public plaza. The action comes one day after the council's Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards signed off on the multi-phased project, and a month after it got the OK from the Chicago Plan Commission. 'Today is a historic moment for the West Side,' Chicago Bulls president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement released after the council's action. 'This project is more than just development. It's a bold and unprecedented commitment to the future of our community.' Phase one of the '1901 Project,' named after the United Center's postal address on West Madison Street, is expected to take two years to complete and will include the construction of a large music hall designed to seat 6,000 people. It also includes a hotel and a public plaza for special events. 'Our commitment is to create spaces that empower all generations, fostering a thriving community that enhances the cultural and economic fabric of the West Side,' said Chicago Blackhawks chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz. Construction will take place in seven phases over the course of 10-15 years, with the work financed by the two families who own the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Blackhawks. There is no government funding in the plan. The United Center is about 30 years-old and was also not built with public money. It hosts about three million people a year. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bulls, Blackhawks owners get the OK from City Council to transform area around United Center
CHICAGO (AP) — The owners of the NBA's Chicago Bulls and NHL's Blackhawks got the go-ahead to transform the area surrounding the United Center on Wednesday when the Chicago City Council approved a $7 billion plan to replace the parking lots with green space, mixed-income housing, a music hall and more. The 1901 Project, touted as the largest private investment in Chicago's West Side, is being spearheaded by the Reinsdorf and Wirtz families, who own the arena. It is to be built in phases on more than 55 acres of privately owned land over about a decade-long period. 'Today is a historic moment for the West Side,' Bulls CEO Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement. "This project is more than just development. It's a bold and unprecedented commitment to the future of our community. We are excited for the opportunity to reimagine what the future can look like. Our team is eager to get to work and turn this vision into reality.' See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. The first phase calls for a 6,000-seat theater, multilevel parking facilities with rooftop greenspace, more pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and bike lanes, and hotel and retail space. Plans for future phases include housing and transportation enhancements. 'We set out to do something with no existing blueprint,' Blackhawks chairman Danny Wirtz said. "Our commitment is to create spaces that empower all generations, fostering a thriving community that enhances the cultural and economic fabric of the West Side.' The approval for this project comes at a time when the NFL's Chicago Bears and MLB's Chicago White Sox — also owned by the Reinsdorfs — are looking to build new stadiums with public funding. The Bears are trying to build an enclosed stadium next to Soldier Field as part of a reimagined museum campus. They also own a 326-acre tract of land in suburban Arlington Heights that could also be the site of a future home, and have looked at the old Michael Reese Hospital site on the near South Side. The White Sox are looking to move out of Guaranteed Rate Field on the South Side and construct a new stadium as part of a ballpark village in the city's South Loop with green spaces, residences and businesses. ___ AP sports:
