Pritzker weighs state’s role in transit center plan
$3.8B project part of proposal for Soldier Field area
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is evaluating a developer’s request for state help to fund construction of a $3.8 billion transit center as part of a megadevelopment along Lake Shore Drive across from Soldier Field.
Pritzker spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh said administration officials, including Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes, the governor’s budget point man, “have met with the developers to understand their proposal.”
“The administration is reviewing the plan and we look forward to continuing discussions,” Abudayyeh wrote in an email.
Lawmakers in the Illinois House will be briefed on the developer’s proposal — which would have the state assume ownership of the transit center after construction costs are paid off — at a hearing set for Thursday in Springfield. Legislation that would make the arrangement possible has not been filed.
Landmark Development is proposing a 34acre development over train tracks between McCormick Place and the Field Museum and seeks a partnership with the state to fund the transit center that would anchor the project, company President Bob Dunn told the Tribune on Wednesday.
Dunn said he wants to move quickly before market conditions for such megaprojects change. As proposed, the $20 billion One Central development would include a row of skyscrapers and residential, retail, restaurant and entertainment space and would take 15 years to complete.
Under Landmark’s proposal, the company and investors would cover the upfront costs of building the transit center, and the developer and the state would together pay off the remaining costs over 20 years using new tax revenue, leasing income and other funds. The state then would assume ownership of the center, which would bring together CTA, Metra and Amtrak trains, and collect all the revenue generated.
State Sen. Robert Peters, a Democrat whose district is home to the proposed development site, said the project “seems very clearly in the early stages.” He said he hopes next week’s hearing will answer many of his questions, including how much affordable housing the project would include, what effect it will have on traffic congestion and whether there will be any provisions for “black workforce development.”
He said he’s unsure whether it would make sense for the state to be involved. “They need to have some community engagement and talk to residents and invite them into the process.”
The area’s state representative, Democrat Kambium Buckner, said he and other local officials have been briefed on Landmark’s plans but that he still has questions.
“It’s going to also be important for us to get from Bob Dunn and the folks at Landmark some clarity on what this means from an infrastructure standpoint — sewers, roads, bridges, all the things that kind of go into this development — as well as the minority participation for the construction piece and what the community benefits are going to look like,” Buckner said.
While “the transit hub piece is something that’s intriguing to a lot of people,” Buckner said, lawmakers need to ensure it makes financial sense for the state to be involved. “We are in a very precarious situation when it comes to the state’s pocketbook.”
Landmark’s request for state assistance comes during a busy final month of
Landmark Development is proposing a development over train tracks between McCormick Place and the Field Museum.
the spring legislative session. Before the scheduled May 31 adjournment, Pritzker is asking lawmakers to approve a graduatedrate income tax plan that requires asking voters to amend the Illinois Constitution, to legalize recreational marijuana and sports betting, and to pass a statewide infrastructure improvement plan — on top of the annual task of finalizing a state budget.
Even if state lawmakers approve the funding mechanism for the transit center, the One Central project still will require city zoning approval. With Mayorelect Lori Lightfoot and a new City Council set to take office this month amid controversies over megadevelopments approved in Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s final weeks, it’s unclear how the project will be received at the city level.