Chicago Gentrification -- My grandson’s Flat Stanley traveled from San Diego to Chicago & met this worker on a River North section gentrification project. River North and West sprouted & then exploded in the past half-decade thanks to the conversion of storage & manufacturing facilities into hard loft residences & the construction of new single-family homes, condos & high-rises. All this was amidst very hip galleries, restaurants, shopping & easy access to highways & the lakefront. An estimated 25,000 new residents, occupying some 10,000 new condominiums, have moved into the neighborhood since 2000. Note the curtains & shade still on one window even though the room behind is totally demolished.
November 16, 2009