From Crain’s Chicago Business | The court-appointed receiver for the upstart mall at Block 37 has filed a lawsuit to evict two big tenants — Bigsby and Kuruthers and a food court-like restaurant planned by Lettuce Entertain You — both part of joint ventures with Block 37’s previous developer, Joseph Freed & Associates.
Filed under: Retail
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July 2, 2010 at 6:53 a.m.
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Filed under: Commercial real estate, Food, Litigation, Real estate, Retail Suit seeks to evict 2 tenants from Block 37
Walgreens hopes to be ‘destination’ for dinner
Walgreen Co. will be conducting a test of chilled foods at up to 12 stores this fall in a bid to become a bigger player in the growing fresh food sector. Walgreen spokeswoman Tiffani Washington confirmed the test and said the fresh food initiative could help the drugstore chain be eventually seen as “destination for tonight’s meal.” Get the full story »
Amazon purchases deal-a-day Web site Woot
Amazon.com has purchased deal-a-day website Woot.com. Woot says on its company blog that it agreed to be acquired by the online retailer. Woot started out in 2004 as a site that sold one heavily discounted item every day — usually consumer electronics.
June 30, 2010 at 2:39 p.m.
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Filed under: Development, Government, Hotels, Housing, Real estate, Retail Hotel, retail development near Wrigley approved
A plan for an eight-story hotel, large chain stores and apartments across the street from Wrigley Field passed the Chicago City Council without dissent today.
Some neighborhood residents and business owners earlier had argued that the Addison Park on Clark development would “suburbanize” the neighborhood around the iconic ballpark, but the plan passed the full council without discussion.
A plan for an eight-story hotel, large chain stores and apartments across the street from Wrigley Field passed the Chicago City Council without dissent today.
Some neighborhood residents and business owners earlier had argued that the Addison Park on Clark development would “suburbanize” the neighborhood around the iconic ballpark, but the plan passed the full council without discussion.
June 30, 2010 at 2:22 p.m.
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Filed under: Government, Jobs/employment, Real estate, Retail South Side Wal-Mart wins unanimous OK
The City Council unanimously voted today to let Wal-Mart build a second store in Chicago, ending six years of political gridlock that prevented the giant retailer to expand inside city limits.
The vote allows construction to begin on the 270-acre Pullman Park development on the South Side that will be anchored by a Super Wal-Mart. It is a project long championed by Ald. Anthony Beale, 9th, who said the new store will bring badly needed jobs in a hard-hit area suffering from a dearth of grocery stores.
Wal-Mart sued for firing legal pot smoker
Michigan man has sued Wal-Mart Stores Inc. for firing him after he tested positive for medical marijuana he was using legally to treat pain from an inoperable brain tumor and sinus cancer. Joseph Casias, 30, said he was fired late last year after five years of employment at a Wal-Mart store in his hometown of Battle Creek. Get the full story »
Amazon raises royalties offer for Kindle books
Amazon.com said Wednesday it is now offering do-it-yourself authors and publishers royalties of about 70 percent on their e-books. The online retailer in January had announced plans to offer users of its e-book self-publishing program, the Kindle Digital Text Platform, book sale royalties of 70 percent after delivery costs. Get the full story »
General Growth to file Ch. 11 reorg plan July 9
Chicago-based mall operator General Growth Properties Inc. said it expects to file its Chapter 11 reorganization plan on or around July 9.
The company today also asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York to extend its exclusive right to file a plan until Oct. 18. It is currently set to expire July 15. General Growth said it requested the extensions to allow it to “explore all financing emergence options available to it.”
Wal-Mart names new CEO of U.S. stores
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Tuesday named Bill Simon to run its U.S. discount stores, which have struggled with sluggish sales as their core customer continues to be pressured by high unemployment. Get the full story »
BBQ chicken pizzas sold at Wal-Mart recalled
Great Kitchens Inc., an Illinois firm that distributes frozen food to Wal-Mart, is recalling some 109,800 pounds of BBQ chicken pizza products because they may contain foreign materials.
Kiddieland demolition to begin for new Costco
Demolition is set to begin today at Kiddieland, the longtime Melrose Park amusement park that was purchased by a Costco to make way for a new store.
Officials from the store chain and the village closed on the deal last week. Melrose Park officials say the new store, scheduled to open in November, will generate about two times the annual tax revenue — $500,000 to $600,000 — that the park brought in.
Consumer spending, incomes rise in May
U.S. consumer spending rose slightly more than expected in May even as savings touched their highest level in eight months, a government report showed on Monday. The Commerce Department said spending edged up 0.2 percent after being flat in April. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected consumer spending to rise 0.1 percent. Get the full story »
Starbucks testing wine, beer, meals, new colors
In this photo from April 27, 2010, customers visit a redesigned New York Starbucks located in the SoHo neighborhood. Starbucks plans to redesign some stores by combining separate elements from nearly a dozen locations around the globe. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
Starbucks’ “Olive Way” laboratory store near Seattle will be the coffee chain’s biggest percolator yet for ideas that the world’s largest coffee company has been testing separately at nearly a dozen locations around the globe. And what succeeds at Olive Way will most likely be spread to other Starbucks stores around the country.
With muted, earthy colors, an indoor-outdoor fireplace, cushy chairs, and a menu with wine from the Pacific Northwest’s vineyards and beer from local craft brewers, this 2,500-square-foot shop in the Capitol Hill neighborhood will reopen in the fall with espresso machines in the middle.
“It’s going to feel very different,” said Kris Engskov, Starbucks’ regional vice president.
Wal-Mart’s second Chicago store a big victory
In a move that could have nationwide implications for Wal-Mart’s expansion in major cities, the City Council Zoning Committee signed off today on a second store in Chicago. The decision marks Wal-Mart’s first victory in six years. The giant retailer overcame powerful union opposition that kept Chicago aldermen at bay as they weighed the prospect of bringing more jobs to their wards against the possibility of losing their own to labor-backed opponents at election time. The breakthrough followed months of behind-the-scenes wrangling among unions and Wal-Mart over how much workers will get paid, with Mayor Richard Daley publicly exhorting the two sides to agree.
