Freedom Center (Chicago)

Last updated
Freedom Center
Freedom Center from the south (1) 4-1-22.jpg
Freedom Center in 2022.
Freedom Center (Chicago)
Alternative namesChicago Tribune Publishing Center
General information
Address777 W. Chicago Ave, Chicago IL, 60654
Coordinates 41°53′43″N87°38′45″W / 41.8952774°N 87.6458309°W / 41.8952774; -87.6458309
Current tenants Chicago Tribune
GroundbreakingSeptember 1979
CompletedSeptember 1982
Cost$185,000,000
Owner Oak Street Real Estate Capital
Technical details
Floor area659,000 sq ft
Design and construction
Architect(s)Skidmore Owings & Merrill

Freedom Center, also known as the Chicago Tribune Publishing Center, is the printing plant and headquarters for the Chicago Tribune , as well as the printing facility for other publications such as the Chicago Sun-Times . It closed May 2024 and is currently in the middle of demolition.

Contents

History

Development and construction

On June 20, 1979, the Chicago Tribune announced plans for a $150 million printing plant, to replace their former printing facility at Tribune Tower. The site was to be located in the River North district, right off of the Chicago River. Architecture firm Skidmore Owings & Merrill designed the building. The Tribune acquired the 21-acre land in 1967. The goal of completion at the beginning of the project was the fall of 1982. The building would be 697,000 sq ft, and contain 10 Goss Metroliner offset presses, with space for two more. The presses could run 75,000 papers per hour, versus 60,000 at Tribune Tower. The maximum issue would also be 144 pages an issue, versus 112 at Tribune Tower. Ground was broken on the building in September 1979. [1] [2] [3]

Freedom Center looking south in 2022. Freedom Center (1) 4-1-22.jpg
Freedom Center looking south in 2022.

Later during construction, the anticipated price was changed to $185 Million. On July 15 , 1981, the Chicago Tribune announced that the name of the facility would be "Freedom Center". The name was suggested by the environment editor at the time, Casey Bukro. Partial production of the facility was expected to be operational by September 1981, with full production capacity by September 1982. [3]

Post-Construction

Starting on July 18, 1985, Chicago Typographical Union No. 16, Chicago Web Printing Pressman's Union No. 7, and Chicago Mailers Union No. 2 all went on strike. This was due to the mandatory transfer of jobs when technology made obsolete the old jobs. The unions had opposed this position. [4] On January 4, 1986, a rally took place during the strike, and violence occurred. The violence broke out at about 5:00 AM when protesters started to throw rocks at delivery trucks leaving the plant. After police tried to use horses to separate the crowd, bricks started to be thrown. The crowd was assumed to be around 10,000 people, with 100 police present. There were 10 people with minor injuries, 35 were arrested, one Police Officer was injured, 5 Tribune employees were injured, and several delivery trucks were damaged as well. [5]

Freedom Center North in 2022. Freedom Center North 4-1-22.jpg
Freedom Center North in 2022.
A inscription on the Side of Freedom Center North, a packaging addition opened in 2002. Freedom Center North.jpg
A inscription on the Side of Freedom Center North, a packaging addition opened in 2002.

In September 2002, a new distribution facility was opened, directly north and across the street of the main Freedom Center Building. The building's name was "Freedom Center North". It was located at 700 W Chicago. It is 115,000-square-feet big. It was closed at a unknown time. [6] [7]

In 2019, Freedom Center was bought by Nexstar Media as part of their wider acquisition of Tribune Media for $4.1 billion dollars. The Chicago Tribune holds a lease on the site until 2023, with two 10 year options for extension. Also included in the lease is a relocation clause, which allows for them to relocate during the lease. [8] [9]

In 2014, when Tribune Media split up their newspaper division in to Tribune Publishing, Tribune Media kept their real estate assets, which included Freedom Center. [8]

In February 2019, the 37 acre site was put up for sale. [10]

In January 2021, the Chicago Tribune moved out of One Prudential Plaza, and relocated their offices and newsroom to Freedom Center. This was only three years after their exit from Tribune Tower. [11]

Re-development

River District

On September 06, 2017, Tribune Media announced plans to demolish the then vacant Freedom Center North. They would turn it into a mixed-use development consisting of 1.2 million square feet of offices and a 310-unit residential building. Riverside Investment & Development were to be the developers of the project. On Apr 19, 2021, it was reported that the plans were dropped. [12] [7]

On October 04, 2017, Tribune Media announced plans to turn Freedom Center into a mixed-use development with 18 buildings. It would comprise about 9 million square feet of commercial and residential space. The plan aimed to be home to 19,000 jobs, and have 5,900 residential units. This development was planned to fit in with the aforementioned Freedom Center North Development. This plan was canceled after the 37 acre site was put up for sale. [13] [10]

Bally's Casino

As part of the Chicago casino proposals request for proposals, Bally's Corporation proposed to put a casino on the land that Freedom Center sits on. The casino would completely demolish all buildings on the site and replace it with a $1 billion casino development. It would contain 2700 slot machines, 95 table games, a suite-only hotel, with 100 suites, and an outdoor music venue with space for 1000 people. After a 20% return on investment, Bally's proposed that they would go on to have a $600 million expansion. There would be a total of 4000 gaming seats with the expansion, a new 400 room hotel, a 3000 seat indoor venue, and a 20,000 foot exhibition space. [9] On 22 March 2022, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that there were three finalists of the five proposals. The Bally's Freedom Center proposal was one of them. [14] On May 5 2022, Lightfoot announced that she had chosen the Chicago Tribune Freedom Center Bally's Proposal as her selection. After receiving approval from the mayor, the proposal has to go on to receive a majority vote from the City Council and Illinois Gaming Board. [15] The Chicago Tribune has not announced their intentions for relocation of their printing facilities and headquarters if the proposal succeeds. [8]

Bally's purchased the Freedom Center site from Nexstar for $200 million in November 2022, and then promptly sold the property for the same price to Oak Street Real Estate Capital in a leaseback transaction. [16] [17]

In February 2024, Tribune Publishing announced it will layoff about 200 employees from the Freedom Center as the printing plant closes and operations move to the Paddock Printing Center in Schaumburg. Under the building sale agreement, the company has until July to completely leave the property, which will then be demolished with the casino planned to open sometime in 2026. [18]

Current uses

Freedom Center is currently used as the headquarters and office location of the Chicago Tribune. They also print the newspapers for the Chicago Tribune there, along with other publications who rent out space. Freedom Center has a Union Pacific rail spur connected to it, which is used for newsprint delivery to the factory. Along with printing the Chicago Tribune, the press also prints the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Reader, The New York Times and other publications. In 2020, when the Tribune's finances were last public, they made about 9.9% of their revenue from printing and distribution of third-party publications. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MGM Resorts International</span> Hotel and entertainment company

MGM Resorts International is an American hospitality and entertainment company. Operating destination resorts in Las Vegas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Maryland, Ohio, New Jersey, Macau, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Sanya, including Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, and Park MGM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Spire</span> Proposed building in Chicago

The Chicago Spire was a skyscraper project in Chicago that was partially built between 2007 and 2008 before being cancelled. Located at 400 N. Lake Shore Drive, it would have stood 2,000 feet (610 m) high with 150 floors and been the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere. When originally proposed as the Fordham Spire in July 2005, the design had 116 stories, included a hotel and condominiums, and was topped with a broadcast antenna mast. The building was designed and spearheaded by Spanish architect-engineer Santiago Calatrava and Chicago developer Christopher T. Carley of the Fordham Company. On March 16, 2006, the Chicago Plan Commission unanimously approved the initial design of the building. On November 4, 2016, a court ruling brought the original development plan and the extended litigation over the nine-year-old project to a close. Developer Garrett Kelleher signed over the property location to the project's biggest creditor, Related Midwest, who announced that they would not build the Spire and released plans for a different project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hollywood Casino at Greektown</span> Casino and hotel in the United States

Hollywood Casino at Greektown, formerly Greektown Casino-Hotel, is a casino hotel in the Greektown neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by Penn Entertainment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bally's Evansville</span> Casino in Evansville, Indiana, United States

Bally's Evansville is a casino hotel and entertainment complex in downtown Evansville, Indiana, owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties and operated by Bally's Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">333 South Wabash</span> Chicago skyscraper

333 South Wabash is a 600-ft, 44-story skyscraper located at 333 South Wabash Avenue in the central business district of Chicago, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bally's Atlantic City</span> Hotel and casino on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey

Bally's Atlantic City is a casino hotel on the boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It is owned and operated by Bally's Corporation.

The proposed Chicago south suburban airport is a proposed airport that would be located in Peotone, Illinois, United States, approximately 40 miles (64 km) south of Chicago. Serving in addition to the two international commercial airports serving Chicago, the site would serve the south suburbs of the Chicago metropolitan area. The two existing airports currently serving Chicago are located within and operated by the City of Chicago, with the Northern Illinois region also served by two other international airports in Illinois and Wisconsin.

Howard Brown Health is a nonprofit LGBTQ healthcare and social services provider that was founded in 1974. It is based in Chicago and was named after Howard Junior Brown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Children's Museum</span>

The Chicago Children's Museum is located at Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1982 by The Junior League of Chicago who were responding to programming cutbacks in the Chicago Public Schools. Originally housed in two hallways of the Chicago Public Library, it soon began to offer trunk shows and traveling exhibits in response to capacity crowds on-site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Housing Authority</span> Municipal corporation that oversees public housing in Chicago, Illinois, United States

The Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) is a municipal corporation that oversees public housing within the city of Chicago. The agency's Board of Commissioners is appointed by the city's mayor, and has a budget independent from that of the city of Chicago. CHA is the largest rental landlord in Chicago, with more than 50,000 households. CHA owns over 21,000 apartments. It also oversees the administration of 37,000 Section 8 vouchers. The current acting CEO of the Chicago Housing Authority is Tracey Scott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Chicago Main Post Office</span> Building in downtown Chicago

The Old Chicago Main Post Office is a nine-story-tall office building in downtown Chicago. The building was designed by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White and built in 1921. The structure of the building was expanded greatly in 1932 in order to serve Chicago's great volume of postal business, increased significantly by the mail-order businesses of Montgomery Ward and of Sears. In 1997, the post office moved to a modern processing center nearby and the building was sold by the U.S. Postal Service for redevelopment in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medinah Temple</span> Moorish Revival building in Chicago

The Medinah Temple is a large Moorish Revival building in Chicago built by Shriners architects Huehl & Schmid in 1912.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. B. Pritzker</span> Governor of Illinois since 2019

Jay Robert "JB" Pritzker is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and attorney, serving since 2019 as the 43rd governor of Illinois. Pritzker is a member of the wealthy Pritzker family that owns the Hyatt hotel chain. As a businessman, he has started several venture capital and investment startups, including the Pritzker Group, where he is managing partner.

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. is a real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in casino properties, based in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. It was formed in November 2013 as a corporate spin-off from Penn National Gaming. The company owns 60 casino properties, all of which are leased to other companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barack Obama Presidential Center</span> Planned library in Chicago, Illinois

The Barack Obama Presidential Center is a planned museum, library and education project in Chicago to commemorate the presidency of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. The center will also include community and conference facilities and will house the nonprofit Obama Foundation. Construction on the 19.3 acre campus began in 2021, the tower topped out in mid-2024, and the center is expected to open in the first half of 2026.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sophia King</span> Politician

Sophia D. King is an American politician and former member of Chicago City Council, who served as alderman from the 4th ward, which includes portions of the neighborhoods Bronzeville, Hyde Park, Kenwood, Oakland, and South Loop. King was appointed to the position in 2016 to replace retiring incumbent Will Burns. She won a special election to serve out the rest term of the term in 2017 and was re-elected to a full term in 2019. She was a member and chair of the City Council's Progressive Reform Caucus. King forwent reelection to the city council in 2023 in order to make an unsuccessful run for mayor of Chicago in the 2023 Chicago mayoral election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lori Lightfoot</span> 56th mayor of Chicago from 2019 to 2023

Lori Elaine Lightfoot is an American politician and attorney who was the 56th mayor of Chicago from 2019 until 2023. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor, Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as a partner at Mayer Brown and held various government positions in Chicago. She served as president of the Chicago Police Board and chair of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force. In 2019, Lightfoot defeated Toni Preckwinkle in a runoff election for Chicago mayor. She ran again in 2023 but failed to qualify for the runoff, becoming the city's first incumbent mayor to not be reelected since Jane Byrne in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bally's Corporation</span> American gambling, betting, and entertainment company

Bally's Corporation is an American gambling, betting, and interactive entertainment company headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. It operates 13 casinos across ten states, a horse track in Colorado, and online sports betting operations in 14 states.

The Chicago Casino Proposals is a request for proposals made to the City of Chicago, for the first permanent casino within city limits. There were 5 original proposals. After vetoing 2, there were 3 remaining after the first round of selections. This included the Bally's Tribune site, the Hard Rock International One Chicago site, and the Rush Street Gaming 78 neighborhood site. On May 5, 2022, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that the Bally's Tribune site was the choice as the location for a city casino.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bally's Chicago</span> Proposed casino in Chicago, IL.

Bally's Chicago is a casino and entertainment venue temporarily located in the Medinah Temple Building, and a planned casino resort that will be built on the North Branch of the Chicago River in Chicago. In May 2022, then Mayor Lori Lightfoot approved Bally's Corporation's bid to construct a casino complex in the city. The complex will be located in the city's River West neighborhood, near Grand Avenue, Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street. The plan was approved by the Chicago City Council in May 2022, and a State of Illinois gambling licence was issued in 2023. The resort is expected to begin construction in 2024, and open in 2026.

References

  1. ↑ "Freedom Center P1". Chicago Tribune. 1979-06-21. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2022-04-05. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  2. ↑ "Freedom Center P14". Chicago Tribune. 1979-06-21. p. 14. Archived from the original on 2022-04-05. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  3. 1 2 "Freedom Center Name". Chicago Tribune. 1981-07-16. p. 18. Archived from the original on 2022-04-05. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  4. ↑ "Chicago tribune strke". The Belleville News-Democrat. 1985-07-23. p. 9. Archived from the original on 2022-05-06. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  5. ↑ "Freedom Center Strike". Arizona Daily Star. 1986-01-05. p. 20. Archived from the original on 2022-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  6. ↑ "freedom center north". Chicago Tribune. 2002-09-11. pp. 6–7. Archived from the original on 2022-05-06. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  7. 1 2 "Four-tower complex planned for Tribune's riverside land". Crain's Chicago Business. 2017-09-05. Archived from the original on 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Bally's casino bid won. Now what happens to the Tribune?". Crain's Chicago Business. 2022-05-05. Archived from the original on 2022-05-05. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  9. 1 2 "Chicago has five competing casino bids. Here's a look at what's proposed, and where". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-04-12. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  10. 1 2 "Tribune Media puts North Branch megasite up for sale". Crain's Chicago Business. 2019-02-15. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  11. ↑ "Chicago Tribune to exit Prudential Plaza, move newsroom to printing facility". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-04-25. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  12. ↑ "Developer gives up on huge office-apartment project on Chicago Avenue across from Goose Island". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-05-05. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  13. ↑ "Tribune Media's bold plan to transform giant printing plant site". Crain's Chicago Business. 2017-10-03. Archived from the original on 2021-03-02. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  14. ↑ "Lightfoot cuts Chicago casino hand to three finalists — tosses two McCormick proposals to the discard pile". Chicago Sun-Times. 2022-03-22. Archived from the original on 2022-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  15. ↑ "It's official: Bally's casino in River West is Mayor Lori Lightfoot's pick for Chicago's gambling complex — but it's not a done deal yet". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-05-05. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  16. ↑ "Bally's buys Freedom Center for $200 million, taking ownership of Tribune printing plant and future site of Chicago's casino". Chicago Tribune. November 19, 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-20.
  17. ↑ "Bally's executes sale-leaseback on newly acquired Freedom Center site, raising up to $500 million to develop Chicago casino". Chicago Tribune. November 21, 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  18. ↑ "Tribune Publishing to lay off nearly 200 workers as printing operations prepare for move to Schaumburg". Chicago Sun-Times. 2024-02-21. Retrieved 2024-02-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.