'One Central' Benefits May Be Overblown

Some updates about One Central (via WBEZ):

City officials told the public Monday night that enormous economic benefits projected for the proposed One Central megadevelopment may be significantly overstated.

One Central — which Wisconsin-based developer Bob Dunn of Landmark Development has proposed to build over the Metra tracks near Soldier Field — assumes 20 million square feet of new housing, commercial and hotel space.

But officials with Chicago’s Department of Planning and Development say current zoning restrictions allow for less than a quarter of that to be built. They made their comments at a community meeting Monday evening.

“The development plans appear to be based on assumptions that go far beyond what the site’s current zoning would allow,” said Bob McKenna, an assistant commissioner with the planning department. Current guidelines would permit some 4.7 million square feet to be developed, said McKenna and zoning administrator Patrick Murphey.