Seems the State still wants to dump the Thompson Center and cares less on demolishing this stunning building downtown. (Chicago: apartments, lofts)

[smegmatite]

Originally Posted by DavePa

Illinois Governor moving forward with SALE of the Thompson Center. Structure needing 300-million in neglected and avoided repairs is going o make a sale a sure thing.

https://chicago.curbed.com/2019/8/28...n-preservation

There as been that Casino sight thread going..... it's been floated the Thompson. COULD BE A IDEAL CASINO???? The link notes all mentioned here. From a super-tall butted against it but incorporating the Thompson to Preservationist strong for saving it to be re-purposed and would fight for City Landmark status.

** But a Casino sure sounds interesting. What a GRANDIOSE ONE IT COULD BE and hotel.
But maybe having City Hall right next door doesn't help Casino owning conglomerate liking. Too much overhead viewing inside the grand atrium if a Casino floor.

Funny I've been saying it would be a great spot for a casino for ages now

glad to see my grand idea gaining traction out there lol

[dtcbnd03]

Terrible location for a casino. Middle of financial district and entertainment dead zone besides the theater district. Plus it won't drive surrounding improvement. Put the casino by the United Center and continue to pull Fulton Market / West Loop west which another thread has already highlighted the densely urban benefits.

Much better to tear down and build a giant office building. It will be a tricky tear down / rebuild given the giant CTA interchange below but hope it's a quick sale and cool rebuild of office space.

[smegmatite]

Originally Posted by dtcbnd03

Terrible location for a casino. Middle of financial district and entertainment dead zone besides the theater district. Plus it won't drive surrounding improvement. Put the casino by the United Center and continue to pull Fulton Market / West Loop west which another thread has already highlighted the densely urban benefits.

Much better to tear down and build a giant office building. It will be a tricky tear down / rebuild given the giant CTA interchange below but hope it's a quick sale and cool rebuild of office space.

yeah, put it in the middle of a financial/goverment district... why not? entertainment dead zone? wtf?


casinos don't improve their surroundings... they are a blight on any neighborhood... however if you put a casino on some upper floors of a skyscraper not only would that be secure but it wouldn't be the windowless blight that most casinos are on the streetscape.

[edsg25]

Dave, I look at the Thompson Center and its current state of insecurity and think: this is a time to brainstorm how the TC can be repositioned (and not let mitit to one way only. It could have a number of different uses working together in one spot

What the TC could also use is thinking outside the box so let me throw a possible usage. A number of univerities, both public and private, chose to have a downtown campus for a variety of reasons. Among private universities we have three good examples of having their second campus downton: Northwestern, DePaul and Loyola.

State funded public urban universities have downtown campuses, schools lik UHouston and ASU why couldn’t UIC consider using the TC for some purposes..such as the new law school. Residence hall space could be coNsidered, as a second Loop multi-colleges residence hall to go along with private one at Congress and State that could justify restaurants and stores in the base UIC already has two campuses in the heart of the city. Why not considercacthird

[DavePa]

Originally Posted by edsg25

Dave, I look at the Thompson Center and its current state of insecurity and think: this is a time to brainstorm how the TC can be repositioned (and not let mitit to one way only. It could have a number of different uses working together in one spot

What the TC could also use is thinking outside the box so let me throw a possible usage. A number of univerities, both public and private, chose to have a downtown campus for a variety of reasons. Among private universities we have three good examples of having their second campus downton: Northwestern, DePaul and Loyola.

State funded public urban universities have downtown campuses, schools lik UHouston and ASU why couldn’t UIC consider using the TC for some purposes..such as the new law school. Residence hall space could be coNsidered, as a second Loop multi-colleges residence hall to go along with private one at Congress and State that could justify restaurants and stores in the base UIC already has two campuses in the heart of the city. Why not considercacthird

Yes, so many possibilities.... which is a good thing. Anything but destruction. Just with Casino sights in the news and on C-D. It crossed my mind for its over-the-top atrium and open floor space.

I don't think its action is a Casino drawback. With plenty of hotels NW even in the Loop. No shortage there and they can walk to it. Though I don't like easy L access to locals to gamble if they are addicts to gambling. But Conventioneers to other visitors. The Thompson could be feasible and spectacular in presentation for one too.

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by DavePa

Yes, so many possibilities.... which is a good thing. Anything but destruction. Just with Casino sights in the news and on C-D. It crossed my mind for its over-the-top atrium and open floor space.

I don't think its action is a Casino drawback. With plenty of hotels NW even in the Loop. No shortage there and they can walk to it. Though I don't like easy L access to locals to gamble if they are addicts to gambling. But Conventioneers to other visitors. The Thompson could be feasible and spectacular in presentation for one too.

what did you think of my UIC idea?

[DavePa]

Originally Posted by edsg25

what did you think of my UIC idea?

They might find it too costly? Between purchase and redo for their use. Not that it couldn't work. But I'm do not know much on it.
Also a Casino could bring much more past 7:00pm traffic to the Loop and complement the Theaters. I think it could draw high-rollers just to the Casino and they could feed restaurants and retail more as tourist too.

All just general opinion without true knowledge on good and bad points on its possibility. Just don't know enough on your ideas especially. Just first though would be costly repairs plus initial cost.

The state may not get the $$$ for what it wants for it. I doubt it will remain just a office building. Unless incorporated in a skyscraper butted to it as its architect John, last year .... gave his input of a skinny NYC-style super-tall butted to it.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by DavePa

They might find it too costly? Between purchase and redo for their use. Not that it couldn't work. But I'm do not know much on it.
Also a Casino could bring much more past 7:00pm traffic to the Loop and complement the Theaters. I think it could draw high-rollers just to the Casino and they could feed restaurants and retail more as tourist too.

All just general opinion without true knowledge on good and bad points on its possibility. Just don't know enough on your ideas especially. Just first though would be costly repairs plus initial cost.

The state may not get the $$$ for what it wants for it. I doubt it will remain just a office building. Unless incorporated in a skyscraper butted to it as its architect John, last year .... gave his input of a skinny NYC-style super-tall butted to it.

The only people a casino in Chicago will draw are poor and working-class people who have absolutely no business squandering away their money on something that is literally rigged against them. High rollers go to Vegas.

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

The only people a casino in Chicago will draw are poor and working-class people who have absolutely no business squandering away their money on something that is literally rigged against them. High rollers go to Vegas.

I'm not keen on the idea of the TC being a casino, but I suspect that Chicago's one and only casino would play to a pretty upscale crowd. Both Detroit with its downtown casinos and Milwaukee with its near downtown Pottawatomi have advantages over a mid-Chicago casino on accessibility.

Would tourists and business people go to the casino: yes. But it would not be a major component of their trip.My guess would be that being in the heart of the city would be enough to see many tourists and certainly business people utilize it.

No, we are not Las Vegas and happily so. And thank goodness we aren't AC. But that doesn't mean that a Chicago casino couldn't make a more than decent profit. I would think that poor people on the South Side would be more attracted to the Indiana harbor casinos than a downtown Chicago one and that the revenue spent in IN goes into that state's coffers.

[MSchemist80]

Originally Posted by edsg25

Dave, I look at the Thompson Center and its current state of insecurity and think: this is a time to brainstorm how the TC can be repositioned (and not let mitit to one way only. It could have a number of different uses working together in one spot

What the TC could also use is thinking outside the box so let me throw a possible usage. A number of univerities, both public and private, chose to have a downtown campus for a variety of reasons. Among private universities we have three good examples of having their second campus downton: Northwestern, DePaul and Loyola.

State funded public urban universities have downtown campuses, schools lik UHouston and ASU why couldn’t UIC consider using the TC for some purposes..such as the new law school. Residence hall space could be coNsidered, as a second Loop multi-colleges residence hall to go along with private one at Congress and State that could justify restaurants and stores in the base UIC already has two campuses in the heart of the city. Why not considercacthird

Because the same reason it sucks as an office building would make it suck as a university. Poor HVAC, poor configuration, difficulty re-configuring and doing such things as running network wire etc. It simply sucks as a building period. Every maintenance and remodel task is multiples as expensive as it should be, HVAC costs are huge and don't work... It looks nice ascetically but is exceedingly poor in function. It needs to come down.