does chicagos financial problems and high taxes boil down to one geographical issue (Des Plaines: 2015, tech jobs)

[Thefuturehereanow]

I am always amazed how such a large city exist in the midwest and I know it was and maybe still is a a transportation and freight hub. But I was thinking will we survive not being a major port city like cities with ocean access? Chicago is tenth in the US with a "port complex" valued at 90 billion while Los Angeles is first valued at 400 billion.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...es-in-the-u-s/

If we were a major port it seems we would not have the financial issues we have. How can Chicago survive with its population and infrastructure and not have a port with access to the ocean and the world?What would chicagos econamy be like if it had a larger port value like los angelas, houston, or new york?

[MSchemist80]

Their financial problems boil down to Illinois/Chicago being run by very corrupt, short-sighted, and stupid [read Democrats] people. They handed out million dollar pensions like candy, didn't fund them, and in general spent like the most irresponsible emotional shopaholic you know. Same pattern same party in NJ, CA, NY, CT... Dems are the party of bad government.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by Thefuturehereanow

I am always amazed how such a large city exist in the midwest and I know it was and maybe still is a a transportation and freight hub. But I was thinking will we survive not being a major port city like cities with ocean access? Chicago is tenth in the US with a "port complex" valued at 90 billion while Los Angeles is first valued at 400 billion.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...es-in-the-u-s/

If we were a major port it seems we would not have the financial issues we have. How can Chicago survive with its population and infrastructure and not have a port with access to the ocean and the world?What would chicagos econamy be like if it had a larger port value like los angelas, houston, or new york?

Atlanta, Dallas, and Denver are very confused right now...and Detroit is asking, "Well then what are we doing wrong?"

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

Atlanta, Dallas, and Denver are very confused right now...and Detroit is asking, "Well then what are we doing wrong?"

Yep, the whole concept of the question is kind of ridiculous. Chicago has never been a coastal/port city and never will be. There is no point in even pondering this.

[CCrest182]

Originally Posted by Thefuturehereanow

I am always amazed how such a large city exist in the midwest and I know it was and maybe still is a a transportation and freight hub. But I was thinking will we survive not being a major port city like cities with ocean access? Chicago is tenth in the US with a "port complex" valued at 90 billion while Los Angeles is first valued at 400 billion.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...es-in-the-u-s/

If we were a major port it seems we would not have the financial issues we have. How can Chicago survive with its population and infrastructure and not have a port with access to the ocean and the world?What would chicagos econamy be like if it had a larger port value like los angelas, houston, or new york?

Literally zero of Chicago's problems have to do with it not being located on a coast. It's SOLELY the one party (Democrat) dominated corrupt state and municipal government that IL and Chicago has that is to blame for the problems the city/state are facing.

Saying the population loss here is due to things like the weather is complete nonsense. It's all the terrible politics and taxes that have been killing this state.

The year is 2019, not 1919. Being a transportation hub, especially by rail and ship was much more important back then, but not so much anymore. Chicago grew because it was historically both a shipping hub (from New York through the great lakes) but even moreso, by rail. Chicago and other midwestern cities grew because they were originally stopping/shipping points between the eastern US and the growing western US via the growing network of railroads. That was in the 1800's and early 1900's. Now economies rely more on tech jobs and other higher paid jobs than transportation. That, and if people are travelling across the continent from say, London to D.C., odds are they're flying, not taking a ship. So New York being on a coast doesn't make it necessarily a "better" location if you can fly across the ocean directly into Dallas. Lots of goods are also flown over, but some are still shipped in as that is the cheapest way to transport goods across the ocean. But even then, Chicago is STILL a massive international transportation hub, via O'Hare airport primarily, but also by rail to a lesser extent.

Other than for shipping cheap goods in from China, port cities are pretty much useless nowadays; the same way many railroad towns are more museums/artifacts rather than actually used for moving things and people. The only downside for Chicago is I guess you can't catch a Carnival cruise ship from here to Jamaica. Darn.

[VA All Day]

NY and LA have many of the same problems the chi has, but since they're on the coasts, they're natural ports of entry for immigrants. That's a major reason why they've been able to keep their population numbers up despite their own substantial domestic outflows.

Is that what OP is getting at?

[Thefuturehereanow]

Originally Posted by VA All Day

NY and LA have many of the same problems the chi has, but since they're on the coasts, they're natural ports of entry for immigrants. That's a major reason why they've been able to keep their population numbers up despite their own substantial domestic outflows.

Is that what OP is getting at?

Kind of , we do not have a cushion to fall on.

[Bitey]

Originally Posted by Thefuturehereanow

I am always amazed how such a large city exist in the midwest and I know it was and maybe still is a a transportation and freight hub. But I was thinking will we survive not being a major port city like cities with ocean access? Chicago is tenth in the US with a "port complex" valued at 90 billion while Los Angeles is first valued at 400 billion.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...es-in-the-u-s/

If we were a major port it seems we would not have the financial issues we have. How can Chicago survive with its population and infrastructure and not have a port with access to the ocean and the world?What would chicagos econamy be like if it had a larger port value like los angelas, houston, or new york?

Technically Chicago DOES have access to the ocean and the world via the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Atlantic and the Shipping Canal & Des Plaines/Illinois/Mississippi Rivers to the Gulf of Mexico. Even without much international shipping traffic, Chicago is still a crucial maratime hub because it connects all of the Great Lakes cities to the interior river cities -- this is the place where the cargo has to be offloaded from the sea-going cargo freighters and loaded onto river barges. It's also a major air transportation hub with O'Hare being one of the busiest cargo airports in the world. Where ground transportation is concerned, Illinois has more railroad track than any other state and more interstate mileage than any other state but one -- with most of both either running through or immediately connected to the Chicago area. So in short, we don't need to be a major coastal water port to keep our transportation and logistics industries afloat (pardon the pun).

[Thefuturehereanow]

Originally Posted by Bitey

Technically Chicago DOES have access to the ocean and the world via the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Atlantic and the Shipping Canal & Des Plaines/Illinois/Mississippi Rivers to the Gulf of Mexico. Even without much international shipping traffic, Chicago is still a crucial maratime hub because it connects all of the Great Lakes cities to the interior river cities -- this is the place where the cargo has to be offloaded from the sea-going cargo freighters and loaded onto river barges. It's also a major air transportation hub with O'Hare being one of the busiest cargo airports in the world. Where ground transportation is concerned, Illinois has more railroad track than any other state and more interstate mileage than any other state but one -- with most of both either running through or immediately connected to the Chicago area. So in short, we don't need to be a major coastal water port to keep our transportation and logistics industries afloat (pardon the pun).

If you read article I posted in OP you will see Detroit gets all the benefits of trading with Canada.

[Bitey]

Originally Posted by Thefuturehereanow

If you read article I posted in OP you will see Detroit gets all the benefits of trading with Canada.

Which town would you rather live in, Chicago or Detroit?

If a comparing the two isn't a perfect illustration that being an international port is neither a necessary nor sufficient condition for prosperity, then I don't know what is.