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NOVEMBER 18, 2024

Assessing the Trump risk to Pritzker’s plans Illinois has a lot riding on economic programs that rely on federal funding

JOHN R. BOEHM

By John Pletz

Kaegi sizes up the Loop, completing reassessment Releasing his final batch of data for all city property, the Cook County assessor says the downtown plight isn’t as bad as recent deals suggest I By Danny Ecker

oop office buildings are worth less than they were three years ago, but the plight isn't as bad as recent deals suggest, according to Fritz Kaegi. Releasing his final batch of data in a reassessment of all city property, the Cook County assessor recently illustrated his relatively rosy view of the vacancy-plagued downtown office market. A Crain's analysis of newly issued assessments for two dozen large office buildings in and around the Loop show a mix of increases and decreases from Kaegi's last estimates and an average drop-off of just under 16%. It's the first time his office has See KAEGI on Page 33

Remote work and elevated interest rates have weakened some, but not all, of the vacancy-plagued downtown office market.

about our ability to withstand anything the Trump administration brings to us.” Here is a look at some of the industries that are key to the Chicago and Illinois economy.

Several of Gov. JB Pritzker’s economic development initiatives are fueled by federal funding, such as biotech, clean energy and quantum computing. Illinois benefited from some Quantum computing of the Biden administration’s One of Pritzker’s signature signature spending programs, economic development efforts such as the Inflation Reduction is quantum computing. He’s Act and the infrastructure bills. putting $500 million behind the Donald Trump has talkcreation of a quantum ed of dumping some and microelectronics programs, and he’s unpark on U.S. Steel’s forlikely to look to reward a mer South Works site stalwart blue state. in Chicago. One of the But it doesn’t neceskey tenants is the Desarily mean the funding fense Advanced Reis in imminent danger. search Projects AgenFederal research funding cy, or DARPA, which is cocooned in a bureau- Donald Trump plans to spend up to cratic thicket that’s not $140 million over five easy to penetrate. Even if Trump years on a benchmarking cenwere inclined to punish per- ter to develop and evaluate ceived opponents, the political prototypes. reality is that many of the proThe $2.6 billion National grams and even particular proj- Quantum Initiative was enacted ects also benefit his supporters. in 2018, during Trump’s first “The federal government, sep- term, which included more than arate and apart from the politics $250 million for projects at Arof the office of the president, has gonne and Fermi national laboa certain pace to it that contin- ratories and the University of Illiued to a large degree during nois Urbana-Champaign. the first Trump administration,” “I think he will continue to be Pritzker told reporters Nov. 7 interested in supporting quanwhen asked about his ability to tum R&D,” says Paul Stimers, a get what the state needs from partner at law firm Holland & Washington. “Any political ac- Knight in Washington, D.C. “He tions the president-elect takes continues to view it and similar will work to his detriment politically. . . .I feel reasonably OK See RISK on Page 33

NOTABLE LATINO LEADERS From architecture and the arts to tech and transportation, these 100-plus leaders are making their mark on a wide range of industries. PAGE 13

CRAIN’S LISTS See our annual ranking of the highest-paid hospital executives and doctors. PAGES 8 & 10

DEAN M. HARRISON

BOOTH INSIGHTS If you’re serious about creating value for your business, this is the mindset you need. PAGE 11