1000M Construction has indeed begun on 1000M, with caisson drilling under way. Financing for the project has been secured from Goldman Sachs.

717 South Clark   The project now known as Imprint is up far enough now to see what it will look like.   The project architects had two different renderings on its website, but it looks like the version without balconies is being built.  Just south of the new tower, the former Palmer Printing building is to be refaced with glass and used for amenity and parking spaces.

Roots Pizza Exterior work is nearly complete on this new restaurant at Polk & Dearborn. The hole in the roof is to allow a retractable portion for second-floor dining under the summer sky. Ald. King held a meeting Dec. 16 about the restaurant's Public Place of Amusement license, which will allow for live music.

Cannabis dispensary?  PharmaCann is reportedly looking at two possible South Loop locations for a recreational cannabis dispensary. One is the one-story building at 418 S. Wabash, across the street from Roosevelt University's highrise building; the other is the "Halloween store" space at 9th & Wabash.

410 South Wabash  A building permit was issued on Dec. 17 for new construction of a 25 story, 344 unit building with ground floor retail at Wabash and Van Buren.

The 78 The December Plan Commission meeting passed a minor amendment to allow the planned Red Line station as a use within the project. Though there are still technical hurdles to be worked out, the station is expected to be built on the west side of Clark at 15th.

One Central   Financing for this project remains very uncertain, despite inclusion of the possibility of state involvement in this year's must-pass budget bill. Developer Landmark Properties is now working with a new team of architects and planners, and has begun trying to make a case that the massive project would somehow magically transform Chicago's troubled South and West Sides.   Just before Christmas, the developer managed to get Congress to include in the omnibus budget bill a special extension to a federal railroad funding program that might be relevant to the project.

2300 S. Indiana Hotel  A business called Financial  Guru International has proposed turning the vacant building at 2300 S. Indiana in Motor Row into a 200-key hotel. This $36 million renovation would be home to a Studio 6 extended stay hotel, the first urban Studio 6 in Chicago. Building designs and construction schedules have not yet been set.

State Street Plan   The Chicago Loop Alliance has retained the South Loop firm of Site Design Group to create a Plan for State Street. The exact scope isn't yet clear, but it will probably focus on street furnishings and programming rather than the lanes devoted to traffic, and on the part of State Street between Wacker and Ida B. Wells Dr.

Pritzker Park   The city will be issuing a request for proposal for a developer to redevelop city owned land at State and Van Buren. The site includes the rather uninspiring Pritzker Park as well as the parking garage south of Plymouth Restaurant.

Circle Interchange   As regular users already know, t he ramp from outbound Ida B. Wells Drive to the outbound Kennedy Expressway (I-90/94) is closed until the end of 2020 to demolish and reconstruct the ramp.

The latest on all South Loop projects is always available at southloopupdate.com

Alderman Sophia King's Office has been in the process of forming advisory councils that will serve the ward's six different communities. Each council will take the lead in advising our office on areas such as arts & parks, development, public safety, infrastructure, education and much more. One of the six communities is the South Loop and an organizational meeting was held on January 15. 

They are still looking for interested citizens to serve as Chairs of Sub-Committees as well as persons interested in working on the various committees. For more information on the Council, how it is structured,  what committees there are, etc, see: 

 

Advisory Council Powerpoint