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Emanuel Exit Puts Question Mark on Business Decisions
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s decision to not seek re-election does more than throw the mayoral race wide open. It also creates uncertainty among the city’s business executives, notably those in its burgeoning tech sector, and puts a question mark on the future of some major CRE-related projects.
They include Elon Musk’s high-speed underground link between downtown and O’Hare Airport, and the city’s bid to become Amazon’s second headquarters. On the latter project, consultants told the Chicago Tribune that Emanuel had not only been an effective advocate for bringing Amazon’s HQ2 to Chicago, but had also amassed a record of headquarters relocations to the city despite its reputation for crime.
However, Fifield Companies’ Steve Fifield told the Tribune that Emanuel’s successor would face headwinds in maintaining the boom in jobs and construction. “We are now busier outside Chicago than in it,” said Fifield. “‘The City that works’ needs a new slogan.”
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