Online shopping and gentrification is fueling a bona fide building boom of warehouse spaces in Chicago.
Ryan Ori reports: "In the shadows of the apartment, hotel and office towers rising in recent years, an often unnoticed form of real estate has begun taking off in Chicago: warehouses."
"Developers are on track to complete at least seven speculative warehouses—constructed without leases signed in advance—in Chicago between late 2015 and the end of 2017, adding up to more than 1 million square feet of space," adds Ori.
"That is more than double the amount of spec industrial space built in the city in the previous 14 years combined…"
The sudden spec industrial space developments are filling a need created by rapidly growing online shopping and e-commerce businesses. Among the companies driving the demand for warehouse space in Chicago, for instance is Amazon.
Read the full story: Warehouses are sexy all of a sudden. Here's why.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority