Blair Kamin interviews the new planning commissioner
In the interview, Cox touched on a wide range of other development topics:
The Obama Presidential Center offers a “once in generation” chance to revitalize the South Side, he said, so he hopes Chicagoans can move past the debate over whether the center should be built in Jackson Park. “As far as I’m concerned, let’s consider that decision done and look more at the benefits and how we can assure that it doesn’t just sit as a building in a park, but that it has a catalytic role in re-imagining an economic center for the South Side.”
A “preservationist at heart,” he’s open to the idea of saving the much-maligned James R. Thompson Center and adding a high-rise that would boost its value. If Lightfoot agrees, her administration could be on a collision course with state officials who want to sell the 34-year-old Helmut Jahn-designed postmodern buildingto a developer, possibly for a tear-down.
Tax-increment financing that subsidizes the cost of roads and other infrastructure is well-suited for the planned redevelopment of the former Michael Reese Hospital site at 31st Street and Lake Shore Drive, Cox said, because new housing and public spaces there would benefit the nearby Bronzeville neighborhood. In contrast, he indirectly criticized the $1.3 billion TIF deal for the massive Lincoln Yards project on the North Side, which the City Council approved and Lightfoot signed off on before she took office. “I would like to see TIF used to advance a more equitable distribution throughout the city,” Cox said. “It’s a very different model than ‘let’s cluster everything at the heart and then — the soul, we can forget about it.’"
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