Developed by local firm Sedgewick Properties, Marquee is just a few minutes walk from Millennium Park, Chicago's answer to Central Park, where Barack Obama made his acceptance speech on the night he was elected president. Marquee is also convenient to the lake front, a major water leisure amenity where Chicagoans walk, jog, cycle, stroll or just chill out.Always interesting to see how foreigners talk/hear about our city and neighborhood.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
How Skyscrapers Are Marketed to Foreigners
Friday, May 29, 2009
Upbeat Coverage of Alderman Fioretti
Our alderman has also been picking up a lot of steam by hosting town hall meetings lately, the second year in a row he’s organized the sessions, wherein Bob talks about the importance of calling 311 (a common reminder from him) and introduces staffers like Luis, the ward sanitation super. The town halls are organized by region — east region, south region, mid-north region, west region. Who knew our ward had so many regions? He’s doing community meetings a mile a minute, too — everywhere that more than two chairs can fit in a room and at least one Doubting Thomas has a question or concern. He schedules appearances wherever ward residents get together: school meetings, block parties, fence dispute demilitarized zones.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Shots Around the Sloop
Alcohol Tax Could Cost Chicago Olympics?
"Having a vibrant restaurant and nightlife scene is an important component of Chicago's bid to be recognized as a world class city capable of hosting the Olympics," the ads declare. "If this alcohol tax goes through, Chicago will become a significantly less attractive candidate for the 2016 Olympics"This is a pretty ridiculous statement...we highly doubt that the IOC will even consider something like this. Regardless about how you feel about the tax, one thing we're certain of is that this tax isn't going to cost Chicago the chance to host the 2016 games.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
One Musuem Park Well Received
If you are interested in the plan and architecture behind One Museum Park and other central station developments we highly suggest you take a look and listen to the lunchtime lecture put on by the Chicago Architectural Foundation.
Jeff Renterghem, one of the architects that helped with the development, talks through various topics (One Museum Park East, Museum Park and the Central Station Planned Development).
For the audio of the lecture, click here.
For the corresponding powerpoint, click here and go down to the lecture on March 25th.
Highly entertaining if you're into this type of stuff!
Monday, May 25, 2009
2009 Movies in the Park Schedule
Tuesday, July 14: Sunset Boulevard
Tuesday, July 21: Duck Soup
Tuesday, July 28: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Tuesday, August 4: Born Yesterday
Tuesday, August 11: Psycho
Tuesday, August 18: Young Mr. Lincoln
Tuesday, August 24: Tootsie
Open Thread: Hot Topics
Open Thread: Best Restaurant
Open Thread: Real Estate Development
Open Thread: Parking in the Sloop
Open Thread: Alderman Fioretti
Please let us know what you think about him. What he's doing right, wrong, etc.
Open Threads and Facebook Page
1) Open Threads
Many people have concerns, questions and topics that they would love to see covered on Sloopin. We are going to do our best to follow these topics but are also hoping for help from our readers. With that said, we are going to start some open threads that ideally will serve as conversations and as a place for the greater South Loop community to discuss rumors, pose questions and tackle issues that might be hot topics.
We will start with some basic topics, but feel free to email us at sloopin@gmail.com to suggest other topics you would like to see covered. You will find the “Open Threads” listed at the top toolbar.
2) Facebook Page
We’ve started a Sloopin Facebook page for a couple of reasons. A) Most everyone is on Facebook these days, so it will hopefully serve as a good place to find and converse with residents or people interested in the Sloop. B) There is a “Discussions” tab that allows Sloopin fans to talk about issues or whatever they want. Again, this hopefully will prove to be a good resource for the neighborhood.
There is a Facebook logo on the right side of Sloopin. Simply click on that and it will direct you to our Facebook page for you to become a fan.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Meeting on Changes to the Vietnam Veterans Musuem
Vietnam Veterans Museum
Community Meeting
Alderman Robert Fioretti and the Chicago Park District
invite you to attend a public meeting on June 2 to
discuss the future of Park 550 (Vietnam Veterans
Museum) located at 1801 S. Indiana.
A previous public meeting occurred on December 15,
2008 where programming input was obtained from the
community. The June 2 meeting will display the
drawings developed by the Chicago Park District.
The meeting will take place on Tuesday, June 2 at 6:30
pm at Park 550 (Vietnam Veterans Museum) located at
1801 S. Indiana.
If you have any questions please contact Maritza Garcia
at the 2nd Ward office at (312)263-9273 or
maritza.garcia@cityofchicago.org
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Chicago 2016: Winner By Default?
Tokyo, by some accounts, may have slipped a bit; Rio de Janeiro showed both its strengths and its flaws, and Madrid, however technically well qualified, is still located in a Europe that already will be hosting the 2012 Summer (London) and 2014 Winter (Sochi, Russia) Olympics.We posted some of the arguments against Chicago's competitors a couple of days ago.
That leaves Chicago, despite its lovely weather, about where it has been for a while now: Perhaps the front-runner, and certainly in it as the race heads to Switzerland. Believe it or not.
Although we didn't find Hinz's post that enlightening, there was an interesting comment by a poster, Charles P:
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
YoChicago on One Museum Park West
South Loop Elementary School (SLS) Hearing
Wednesday evening, community members and parents of South Loop Elementary School (SLS) students will gather in the school's auditorium to discuss increased enrollment at SLS and the school's future. The meeting is organized by the Greater South Loop Association and South Loop Neighbors, and starts at 7 p.m. The organizers ask people who want to speak to arrive between 6:15 p.m. and 6:45 p.m. to sign for the comment period.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Motor Row & Printers Row Prevail
In our opinion, Printers Row is well positioned because of it closer to various CTA stops and the growing "Loop U" area where Columbia and Roosevelt Colleges continue to flourish.
Motor Row also seems well positioned mainly because of the city's investment in the area. The street scape on Michigan Avenue from Roosevelt down to 16th looks great (assuming all the retail fills in eventually). This area also has a ton of residential which in theory should support a thriving retail corridor.
Roosevelt will probably be more of a mass retail area which is evident by the big box retailers that are already on the street (Best Buy, Home Depot, Target, Whole Foods, etc). The other option in the poll was the Cermack Corridor. This is the dark horse and probably will take the longest to develop. Again this area seems to be sitting pretty as it is just a matter of time until the city focuses resources to this area. It's obvious that McCormick Place and Chinatown are city priorities and if the city wins the competition to host the 2016 Olympics you can expect this area to blow up...very very very quickly!
And finally the PC statement...they all will be great...who can argue with that?
In all seriousness, post a comment and let us know who and why you voted the way you did. It's interesting for us to hear different perspectives on the evolution of the area.
Central Area Action Plan: River South Part 2
River South - Part 2
In the first post about the river south area we mentioned how the north portion of this area has developed a lot over the past ten years. Now we're going to talk about the south portion of River South (which is the area south of Roosevelt bound by 18th street on the south, Clark on the east and the Chicago river on the west). As mentioned before this area is gigantic. There was a rumor a poster mentioned about a proposed IKEA that fell through, but besides that we don't know much about this area.
Judging by the city's plan, we figure this will be various mixed use retail and residential (maybe like Roosevelt Collection, which is currently being built). However, there might be an abundance of retail that the Sloop doesn't need and as a result this area might be best served to be completely residential (like Dearborn Park I and/or II). We would love to hear your thoughts on this huge piece of land.
The image to the right details more plans from the city for the River South area. The biggest improvement would be the "Wells-Wentworth" connector which would add an arterial street and restore the city grid structure to this area (noted by dotted line 1). We think this is a much needed addition and something that would make this area highly desirable as it would better connect Chinatown to Printers Row and the rest of the downtown core.
We've already spoken about a couple of the improvements labeled on this map (bridges noted by dotted line 3), but some of the other ones are the infill orange line station (noted by the 7) and the river walk (noted by the 4).
Both of these improvements would do wonders for the area. Although we've said before that the river walk would be great, it really isn't practical right now. The Orange line stop at 18th and Clark would be a massive improvement and in our opinion would help spur future development in this area. The one thing that isn't mentioned is that this stop would only serve the Orange line even though the Green line also could stop there. Maybe we're missing some logistical issue, but we really feel like this proposed stop should be one for both the Orange and Green line.
Lolla Low Down: Thievery Corporation
Remember the scene from
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Zapatista! It's Just Fun to Say
If you read our review about La Cantina (another solid Mexican spot in the Sloop), you probably remember we love guacamole. So once the waiter came we put in a quick order for the green stuff. The girls went with margaritas and the men went for standard Mexican beer. I personally opted for Dos Equis solely because I’m a sucker for great marketing (and the most interesting man in the world drinks that stuff…stay thirsty my friends). The margaritas were strong and seemed to be well received by the ladies.
AP: It's Still Chicago's to Lose
The article cites anonymous IOC sources and others closely associated with the Olympic movement. To be honest, no new topics or subjects are reported in this story, but it's still reassuring to hear that the same thoughts we've read about are still prevalent.
The main arguments are
Obama's support for Chicago's bid may be too much for other bids to overcome:
To vote out Chicago would mean they had snubbed the most powerful person in the worldThe argument for and against Tokyo:
Tokyo has the experience uniquely of the candidates of already hosting the Games - albeit over 40 years ago - but still appear to suffer from the image of Asia having hosted them in 2008 with the hugely successful Beijing Games and other major events also seemingly poised to be hosted on that continentThe article didn't really make much of an argument for or against Madrid, but the biggest reason as to why it wouldn't be there is because London is hosting 2012 and they do like to rotate throughout continents (so the thinking is they would want to avoid Europe in back-to-back summer Olympics). However, they do have the most infrastructure (stadiums and transportation) already created in the competition.
In regards to Rio:
Rio certainly has the passion and the lure of being the first South American city to host the Games but the feeling still persists in some members eyes that Brazil will just have come out of hosting the World Cup in 2014 and they don't want to be seen as one Asian member put it 'the dessert after the main course'.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Columbia's Manifest Kicks-Off Today
So much contemporary creative expression is concentrated on the Net that the idea of a live youth-oriented arts fest downtown gets our our attention. Today, Columbia College’s urban arts festival turns the streets of the South Loop into a veritable canvas with performance art, music and auto-inspired art all in the mix. Tonight, Chicagoist tells us, there’s the Spectacle Fortuna parade with hundreds of giant puppets inspired by Ray Bradbury novels. South Loop locations, 11am–7pm. FREE!
That Beauty that is Grant Park
"If You Can't Sell Them...Rent Them"
In the case of Opera Lofts, sales manager Kathleen Ryan says the hope is that renters will enjoy the development enough to consider buying a home there later on.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
South Loop Elementary Enrollment Grows
Today the Chicago Journal does a good job reporting on this so called "buldge" and talks about whether or not this is going to be a continuing problem. They also tackle some potential solutions if this problem continues to persist. For families in the area with small children it's a good and informative read.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Foreclosure Stalls Motor Row Lofts
In our opinion this area is one of the most underdeveloped portions of the greater Sloopin region. Although today it might not be the most desirable place to live and visit, we agree with this YoChicago commenter assessing this area:
This should not diminish from an area that I think has the best potential when things rebound. Like it or not, Cermak is the new Roosevelt of 1997. So many positive things potentially happening; Ickes Home demo, Olympics, possible Green Line Station, McCormick Place completion, etc., that this area is a sleeper on snooze for another year or two.
Cell Phone Fights on the Red Line
I just cringe when I hear crying fights on the phone. Last week it was a young woman in her late teens who seemed to have her head on straight -- except perhaps for her choice of boyfriends. She made quite the scene at 7:30 am on the Red Line headed toward the Loop.
Obama Administration Carries the Torch for Chicago 2016
The article goes onto to explain how intertwined the Chicago 2016 bid is with Obama's administration:
Four of the five co-chairs of Obama’s inaugural committee have unpaid leadership roles in the Chicago bid, including Pat Ryan, the chairman and CEO of Chicago 2016; John Rodgers, the treasurer and director of Chicago 2016; Penny Pritzker, the hotel heiress who led Obama’s meteoric presidential campaign fundraising; and Bill Daley, the former Clinton administration commerce secretary and brother of the Chicago mayor.The biggest association came when the Obama administration named Valerie Jarret (a prominent Chicagoan who made the jump to Washington DC with Obama) to a special role to help aide communication and coordination within multiple federal agencies:
Tapping Jarrett, a longtime Chicago friend and a top adviser who was cleared by administration ethics lawyers to lead the effort, put the Obama administration’s imprimatur on what had been a mostly unofficial push by Obama’s Chicago inner circle to bring the games to its hometown.At the end of the day, this all comes down to wooing IOC members and from the sounds of it Obama's star is shining a bright and favorable light on Chicago's bid. Politco interviewed an Egyptian IOC member and guess who she will vote for in Copenhagen when the IOC convenes to decide which city will host the 2016 games:
Rania Elwani, an IOC member from Egypt who said she adores Obama and has a picture of him on her refrigerator, said the president’s support for Chicago’s bid would definitely have an impact on her vote.With linking the bid so closely to Obama, the Chicago bid team has to be careful. Regardless, at this point it might be to late:
Chicago 2016 officials have alternated between predicting Obama’s attendance (in Copenhagen for the IOC vote) and trying to manage expectations — and nearly every IOC member interviewed for this story warned it might hurt the bid if Obama did not make the trip.After all this planning, all this build-up and all this money spent, does it simply come down to whether or not Obama goes to Copenhagen?
We would be shocked if he doesn't make the trip. If he does our guess is that Chicago wins. If he doesn't, chance are that we will be watching beach volleyball on the beautiful beaches of Rio de Janeiro.
(Image from Matt Wuerker: Politico Website)
(Hat Tip: Wally B - "The Spray Painting Bandit")
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Blackhawks Win; Villians Bar & Grill Erupts!
Villains Bar and Grill (649 S. Clark) was relatively empty (it was a Monday night) but the people who were there were intensely glued to the flat screens yelling, cheering, knocking over bar stools and muttering nonsensical hockey phrases (ie "pass theeee puuuuck...shoot...noooooo). It was a crazy game and a fun night with all the amusement of a 3 hour roller coaster. The capper was the amazing seventh goal scored by baby-faced, peach-fuzzed playoff beard superstar, Patrick Kane:
To top it off, the bar passed out shots of Jameson to celebrate the game...
What a goal! What a game! What a night!
Monday, May 11, 2009
Digital Screens Added to Platform at Roosevelt Stop
There are still a ton of problems with the CTA, but they're making progress. A couple of weeks ago the CTA Tattler had a post about the installation of 52-inch flat screen TVs at the Addison red line stop. The screens serve up information such as when the next train is coming as well as ads.
We recently noticed that these same flat screens were installed at the Roosevelt stop (green/orange line platform). As of today they weren't functional, but we imagine someone will flip the switch soon.
According to the Tattler, this won't cost the city any money and will bring in $101 million over the next ten years thanks to ad revenue.
Plane Lands Next to Northerly Island
That's why we were surprised to see the shot above which was sent to us recently by a reader. Obviously the plane didn't land or take-off on the island, but it's still an interesting shot. We don't have much context about the pictures, but for the full reel check out this link.
If anyone knows more about these shots let us know.
(Hat Tip: MC)
Sunday, May 10, 2009
IOC Official: Obama Will Bring 2016 Olympics to Chicago
The three other cities all have fantastic bids. The Tokyo bid is superb, probably the best of all. Madrid has most of the Olympic infrastructure in place, a great transport system as well. Rio has a big advantage too in that the Olympics have never gone to a South American city, and it's probably about time they did. But Barack Obama is going to show up in Copenhagen in October. He'll work the room for about 20 minutes and that will probably be enough to swing it for Chicago. The same as Tony Blair swung it for London.
Friday, May 8, 2009
"Most Impressed" by ______ City
This statement was almost identical to statements made about Chicago, Tokyo and Rio. So at the end of the 4 city tour we don't know if any difference has been made in the eyes of the IOC. All we know is that from a public relations standpoint every city didn't have a major gaffe.
Stay tuned for more...
New Updates on Neighborhood Parks
A new park covering the space between the Rowe and Transportation buildings in Printers Row, an area in the middle of the block on Dearborn between Harrison and Polk, was originally slated for completion for the end of 2008. But the Chicago Park District had difficultly hiring a contractor to complete the work.According to a recent article in the Chicago Journal, it looks like construction should be starting soon and is scheduled to be finished around September 15th.
The article also goes on to talk about the city's plans to convert the old National Vietnam Veteran’s Art Museum (1801 S. Indiana) into the South Loop’s first park field house. A couple months ago we read another story about this project if you want more background.
Finally, something that's new news to us is a potential new park at 1611-29 S. Wabash. This empty parcel of land is located on the east side of Wabash and would be next to the proposed expansion of the True Rock Ministry (which has signs up about an expansion to the corner of Wabash and 16th).
We love parks and are happy to see the city investing in green space for the neighborhood!
North Entrance of Harison Red line Stop Will Be Closed
Starting Monday, May 11, the Polk Street entrance will serve as the primary entrance to the Harrison Red Line station while the Harrison Street entrance is under construction. The Polk Street entrance is one block south of the Harrison entrance at the southwest corner of Polk and State. The Harrison Street entrance will remain closed for five months in order to replace the escalator that connects the mezzanine to the platform.Seems like a long time to fix an escalator. The CTA Tattler has more info and commentary here.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Central Area Action Plan: River South Part 1
River South
The city has broken up the area we consider the sloop into various specific neighborhoods (which is reasonable since it's a relatively large area). The River South neighborhood is a name we've never heard of, but has a ton of potential in our mind. According to the plan this are is bound on the north by Congress, the Chicago River on the west, Clark street on the east and 18th street on the south.
Roosevelt road intersects this neighborhood and really showcases the difference in the two areas. To the north, River City, Target and the under construction Roosevelt Collection stand out (with other residential buildings). There are a couple huge lots that have a lot of potential and almost certainly will get developed at some point.
South of Roosevelt is a different story. This gigantic 62 acre area is completely desolate. Commuter Metra trains runs through the area, but besides that it's a huge empty, grassy lot. Again, this provides a huge development opportunity for the future as it's a prime, large piece of real estate. We envision a great residential neighborhood similar to Dearborn park 2 (directly east of this area), but by no means is that necessarily going to happen.
Central Area Action Plan for this Area
In part one, we are going to look at the area directly north of Roosevelt. This area has already seen recent development in the form of Target and AMLI (among other buildings). The biggest recent project is currently still under construction, Roosevelt Collection. Franklin point (which is directly south of Congress and next to the Chicago River) is also a big planned development, but has recently been put on hold according to some reports.
The riverfront path would greatly benefit this area mostly from a quality of life perspective but in our mind this is a great to have, but not necessarily a must have. Probably the biggest two improvements would be the potential bridges at Taylor and Polk that would cross the Chicago River. This would help the River South area become connected to the South West Loop (which we posted about before). Another big improvement would be the Wells-Wentworth connector which would provide a new street connecting the northern parts of the sloop to the southern.
The blue areas on the map above are deemed opportunity sites. Right now they sit vacant, but serve as enticing and interesting sites for future planning. Does anyone have any insight on what they would like to see in these sites? Is the area missing something? Do we need more of something (townhouses? retail? new football stadium? casino? school?)?
South Loop: Home to the Longest Active Strike in the Country
The strike has amazingly been going on for over six years, but no progress has been made:
Little progress has been made since the détente began. In fact, Congress employees watched UNITE-HERE win another contract for the city’s housekeepers in 2006, meaning the Congress’ average hourly wage of $8.21 now sits 37 percent below the region’s average.The Congress hotel was an amazing place back in the day and was the home to many upper crust individuals who would visit Chicago:
Erected within spitting distance of Chicago’s Grant Park on the eve of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, the Congress prided itself on providing a luxurious resting spot for the world’s well-to-do. Its opulent banquet hall was the first American hotel ballroom to use air-conditioning. Its chic nightclub featured a revolving bandstand of the nation’s finest musicians, including bandleader Benny Goodman, who recorded his radio show on location in 1935 and 1936. It was even dubbed the “Home of Presidents,” playing host to eight commanders-in-chief (Cleveland, McKinley, Roosevelt, Taft, Wilson, Harding, Coolidge, and Roosevelt) and serving as the Democratic Party’s headquarters throughout the 1932 election cycle.Now the only thing the hotel and presidents have in common is the picket line. Politicians and even presidential candidates often stop by to offer their support (such as candidate Obama and John Edwards).
It's an interesting story on many fronts and one that doesn't seem to be going away any time soon.
Beautiful Buckingham Fountain
Segways....Seriously?!?!?!
With that in mind, we bring you a new feature on Sloopin we like to call "Segways...Seriously?!?!?". We are going to do our best to capture images of the shenanigans and silliness that come with Segways. Regardless of your feelings about these two wheeled transportation thing-a ma-gigs you can't help but notice them scooting around the Sloop. They mostly tend to be tourists, but every once in awhile we will see Chicago's finest patrolling the streets on these machines.
We will continue to take pictures when we see them in the Sloop, but if you see anyone grab your camera or take out your cell phone and take a picture and send it to us at sloopin@gmail.com. Extra points to anyone who can find an actual resident riding around on their Segway.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
"Rebirth of South Loop Cool"
The South Loop used to be one of the most thriving nightlife neighborhoods in the city. The Cotton Club on Michigan Avenue was the place to be. And back when Chicago house music was the main beat of the underground, many of those clubs were located in and around the SoLo -- or the Sloop -- or whatever you want to call it.They also focus on the new club, The Shrine, we've been mentioning:
Late night options in the area have been sorely lacking, but that will change in June with the opening of Shrine (2109 S. Wabash St). Joe Russo, the founder of The Funky Buddha Lounge and several other concepts in Chicago, is behind this new venue.South Loop cool...It's described as a "new hub for music across an eclectic cross-section of genres" and a destination for "culturally aware urbanites."
The 8,000 sq. ft. venue can accommodate more than 600 guests. Connected to the main club area is a small, upscale lounge called Coup d’état, complete with it's own separate DJ, bar and service staff.
Once a month the venue will feature an "Eyes Wide Shut" series featuring A-List hip-hop, R&B and reggae artist for the same $20 cover charge. These are acts that usually play in larger arenas that you'll now get to see in an intimate setting.
Lolla Low Down: Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes
Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, the Fleet Foxes, blend beautiful voices with great harmony to produce a unique sound not often heard these days. We had the pleasure of catching them at the Pitchfork Music Festival last year and were pleasantly surprised by the set. Although you won't be screaming and dancing during their shows, you will enjoy their talent and leave feeling fulfilled. Here is their band bio from the Lollapalooza website:
There’s little fast moving about Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut album. The Seattle band creates an ethereal stripe of roots music that doesn’t lend itself to easy categorization. The high, echoed harmonies that ringleader Robin Pecknold creates with his fuzzy bandmates is reminiscent of My Morning Jacket. But where MMJ runs straight ahead on guitar-driven fuel, Fleet Foxes tends to deconstruct popular song. The band never relies on a verse/chorus/verse format, instead piecing together riveting portions of compatible music into suites that unfold a few minutes at a time. If it all sounds airy, Fleet Foxes’ songs are driven by agitated contrasts — be it a buzzy guitar on “Sun It Rises” or a booming drum on “White Winter Hymnal.”One of many great songs, here is our favorite, Mykonos:
For more songs and information check out their myspace page.
Solidarity Drive Pedestrian Underpass Now Open
Solidarity Drive is the street that allows buses and cars to get to the Adler Planetarium, Charter One Pavilion and other things on Northerly Island. In the past, this break in the lakefront path was seen as a huge inconvenience and unsafe for pedestrians. The new underpass solves this problem. Although landscaping and minor finishing touches need to be completed, the underpass is functional and we got our first peak at it this past weekend.
For more information here is a link to a CDOT description of the project.
Good improvement by the city and it even delivered on time...
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Olympic Controversies: Tokyo Lacks Public Support; Madrid Spies on Rio
IOC Leaks Their Public Opinion Poll for Tokyo's 2016 Olympic Bid
We're not sure why Tokyo's poll was the only one that was leaked, but the results are definitely at odds with what the Bid team's poll and the local newspaper, Yomiuri, found:
Looks like we will have to wait until September to find out what the IOC's poll for Chicago and the other competitors found.The 56 percent figure for Tokyo was dramatically at odds with the bid committee's own findings and those of Japan's mass circulation Yomiuri newspaper.A senior Tokyo official confirmed the IOC figure to Reuters on Saturday, while pointing to results of the bid committee's own survey carried out in January.Tokyo bid leaders said 70 percent of those interviewed nationwide supported the plan to stage the Games, two percent more than the backing of the city's residents.A recent Yomiuri poll put support from Tokyoites at 76 percent.
Madrid 2016 Spies on Rio's 2016 Bid?
According to gamesbid.com, Rio has accusing Madrid of spying on their bid presentations last week. Does this matter? Probably not, but it's funny how dramatic this whole process can be.
Library Tower Price Reductions
- One-bedroom / one-baths with 865 to 1,080 square feet: $240s to $360s
- Two-bedroom / two-baths with 1,265 to 1,805 square feet: $300s to $670s
- Two-bedroom / two-baths with dens and 1,530 square feet: $590s to $680s
- Two-bedroom / 2.5-baths with dens and 1,680 to 1,790 square feet: $680s to $790s
- Three-bedroom / 2.5-baths with 2,030 to 2,130 square feet: $790s to $950s
Monday, May 4, 2009
More Info About IOC Visit to Rio
Sunday, May 3, 2009
IOC Leaves Rio "Impressed" and With Silly Photo-Ops
IOC Committee "Impressed" with Rio's 2016 Olympic Bid
The IOC leaves Rio with a great photo (see above) and various other politically correct statements. The main story out of the visit was that there wasn't much of a story. In the press conference following the evaluation, the same adjective was used to describe Rio's bid as was used for Chicago, Tokyo and we imagine for Madrid next week: Impressed.
As we said before, we're not going to get a good read until the evaluation committee releases its findings in an extensive report in September. For now, we have to rely on stale and predictable press conferences. At least we got some funny photos out of this one.
According to the media, the main concerns we read about were hotel accommodations, safety issues, and mistreatment of homeless (aka street dwellers):
(image from REUTERS/Bruno Domingos)Earlier on Saturday the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper reported that street dwellers had been rounded up in three key areas of the city before the inspection team visited.
The newspaper said their reporters witnessed the homeless being placed into buses and taken away.
The city government was quoted by the newspaper as saying it was a routine operation.
YoChicago Takes it to New 1555 S. Wabash Developers
Until New West cleans up its act by removing from the Web all of the deceptive information it's planted, this site will not write any posts on New West projects that rely on information furnished by New West.Dammmmmmmmmmmmn...
Friday, May 1, 2009
Big Swap Bonanza Invades Soldier Field this Saturday
"Bargain lovers, treasure hunters and vintage fanatics of all ages will find something to buy or sell at this exciting one day event," so says Sally Schwartz, organizer of the new Big Swap Bonanza, to be held Saturday May 2 at Soldier Field, outdoors in the South parking lot.Interesting....
The Big Swap Bonanza, Chicago's Biggest Yard Sale, comes to Solider Field on Saturday, May 2nd. Gates open for sales display set up at 5:00 a.m., and shoppers can arrive as early as 7:00 am, rain or shine.