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Union, IL · Business
POLITICO
Johnson pokes the business bears
Happy Thursday, Illinois. Thank you to the West Suburban Chamber for a fun conversation talking politics. TOP TALKER BUDGET MATTERS: Mayor Brandon Johnson unveiled his 2027 “Fair Share Budget” on Wednesday, pitching a plan that would raise new revenue from large corporations while investing in youth jobs, violence prevention, affordable housing and neighborhood services. No property taxes : Johnson said the budget would protect essential services without raising property taxes, arguing that Chicago’s largest corporations should contribute more to the city that helps them prosper. Big quote : “Large corporations can and should contribute more to the city, whose people, infrastructure, and neighborhoods make their success possible,” Johnson said. In a follow-up, the mayor’s office says revenue increases would be $664.2 million and projected savings next year would be $840 million. It’s a head tax : Johnson’s proposal would require large corporations located outside socioeconomically disadvantaged areas to pay $25 a month for each Chicago-based employee. Companies could receive a credit for employees working in historically disinvested communities under a new program he called the SEED credit. Going postal : The mayor also proposed a 15-cent tax on single-use mailers and delivery packages, exempting medicine and food takeout, and adjustments
chicagofoodmagazine.com
Call Your Mother Deli Opens in Lakeview
Call Your Mother Deli is opening its second Chicago shop on Monday, October 26, at 2956 North Sheffield Avenue. Founded by Andrew Dana and Chef Daniela Moreira back in 2018, Call Your Mother grew from a farmers market stand in DC into a neighborhood bagel shop that landed in Chicago earlier this year in Wicker Park.
hoodline.com
River North's Dead Rainforest Café Building Hits Owner With $10M Default Judgment
The owner of Chicago's long-abandoned Rainforest Café building has been ordered to pay $10 million over a loan default, the latest blow for a River North property that has sat empty since the jungle-themed restaurant shut its doors more than five years ago. The two-story, 22,000-square-foot building at 605 N. Clark St. once drew tourists and families with its animatronic animals and thunderstorm effects, but it has stood vacant since the restaurant closed in August 2020.
hispanicexecutive.com
Martin Cabrera Jr. Wants Latinos to Control the Capital
Martin Cabrera Jr. was supposed to become an architect. Growing up in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, the son of Mexican immigrants had little exposure to the financial world. His family worried about paying the mortgage, not investing in the stock market. But a high school economics teacher introduced him to a stock market simulation, and what began as a classroom exercise changed the direction of his life.
WGN News
Habitat for Humanity Women Build brings affordable homes and hope to West Pullman
During the 14th annual Habitat for Humanity Women Build, female volunteers are constructing the first eight units of the Maple Park Landing townhome development in Chicago's West Pullman neighborhood to promote affordable homeownership.
The Center Square
Why Luxury Buyers Are Lining Up in Chicago, but Not Seattle
Vinyl and Velvet
One of Chicago’s Coolest Vintage Shops Is Hidden Behind an Unassuming Door on an Old Loading Dock Inside the Former American Licorice Company Factory
Some of the best shopping adventures begin with a door that looks like it leads nowhere. Chicago creator @kayleejochicago shares one of them in a short tour of a vintage destination that is easy to miss if you do not know where to look. “This might be one of Chicago’s coolest hidden vintage doors,” the […]
The Center Square
Johnson budget spends and taxes more
(The Center Square) – Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2027 budget proposal includes a new package tax, a new tax on large employers and several tax increases. Johnson introduced his $17.6 billion spending plan on Wednesday, up from $16.7 billion this year. The mayor said his budget ensures that every Chicagoan receives their fair share of the city’s investments, services and opportunities. “Funded by responsible spending cuts that protect essential services and by asking the wealthy and the largest corporations in this city to pay their fair share,” Johnson said. The budget includes a 15-cent tax on non-medical and non-food containers and packages, plus a $25 per employee monthly tax on large businesses outside of socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. The mayor’s office said the Equitable Employer Tax would bring in an estimated $113.8 million. The tax would fall on companies with 125 full-time employees or more. Johnson's budget says that it impact 3% of the city's registered businesses. Last month, a group of 29 Chicago aldermen advised the mayor they would work on a budget that includes no head tax or tax on employers. “If we can show the public that we're being good fiscal stewards and looking at what the right
everafterinthewoods.com
These 10 Illinois Fabric And Quilt Shops Are Quietly Filling The Gap Joann Left Behind
When the last Joann stores in Illinois locked their doors, a lot of sewing rooms suddenly felt a little empty. Quilters, crafters, and grandmas who teach kids to stitch were left wondering where to buy a simple yard of cotton. The good news is that small, family-run fabric shops all...
Yahoo!
Delivery Robots Accused of Scanning Customer Faces, Sharing Biometrics, Chicago Residents Are Suing for Privacy Violations
Two proposed Cook County class-action lawsuits allege Coco Robotics and Serve Robotics collected biometric data without consent. Both companies deny it. A Coco Robotics delivery robot navigates a Chicago sidewalk. Two proposed class-action lawsuits filed in October allege the robots collected biometric data without customer consent. Most people retrieving a...
hoodline.com
Fulton Market's 33-Story Geothermal Tower Is Planned With 65 Wells Drilled 850 Feet Down
Construction is underway in Chicago’s Fulton Market neighborhood on a 33-story apartment tower that will not burn a drop of fossil fuel to keep its future residents warm or cool. Instead, 410 N. Elizabeth St. is drawing on 65 wells drilled roughly 850 feet into the ground, part of a system developers say will make it the city’s first all-electric, geothermal-powered multifamily high-rise.
restaurantmagazine.com
Home Run Inn Pizza Launches New Television, Integrated Marketing Campaign
The work brings consumers on a tavern-to-table journey and is the first from the company’s partnership with food and beverage marketing agency, quench. Home Run Inn Pizza, the iconic Chicago pizza brand known for bringing its tavern-style pizza from its restaurants to freezer aisles across the country, is launching a new integrated marketing campaign to drive awareness and demand for its growing CPG offering in key markets nationwide.
hoodline.com
Foundation Permit Advances 79-Unit Morgan Street Project; Construction Timing Remains Unknown
A foundation permit has advanced plans for a seven-story, 79-unit building at N. Morgan and W. Hubbard streets in West Town, but it does not settle when construction will begin. Urbanize Chicago reports that contractor Summit Design & Build can proceed with construction; no start date has been announced. A...
TripJaunt
Block Club Chicago
‘Chaos Continues’ At Closed Ford City Mall As Owners Face Fines, Losing Control Of Property
WEST LAWN — The owners of Ford City Mall once again failed to meet a court-ordered deadline to present a security plan for the shuttered mall, leading a Cook County Judge to threaten to have a receiver take control of the property that has become a public safety concern.
Secret Chicago
Key takeaways from the Chicago 2027 budget proposal: corporate head tax, new taxes on package waste, sports betting tax increase
Mayor Brandon Johnson introduced the $17.6 billion Fair Share Budget proposal for fiscal year 2027 (FY2027) on Wednesday, October 21 before Chicago City Council. The proposal targets Chicago’s $882.4 million budget shortfall without relying on city staffing layoffs or public service cuts. The proposal builds on existing revenue streams and establishes new funding sources for infrastructure repair, public libraries, violence reduction, and other city services. Here are some of the key takeaways . FY2027 budget reintroduces corporate head tax The FY2027 Fair Share Budget proposes reintroducing a corporate head tax in Chicago. The Equitable Employer Tax (EET) would require corporations with 125 employees or more to pay $25 per month for each Chicago-based employee. If approved, the EET would be Chicago’s first corporate head tax in over a decade. An attempt to incorporate a head tax in the FY2026 budget was struck down by City Council in 2025, according to Illinois Policy. A head tax was previously in effect in Chicago from 1973 until 2014, according to city records and the Civic Federation . The tax was eliminated under Mayor Rahm Emanuel after city hall opted to phase it out in a 2011 vote. Critics of corporate head taxes argue