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Originally Posted by PittsburghPA
They are calling the SF Tower crown a "Video Wall" which is essentially just a screen covered in LED's but the tests they ran were fantastic. If I'm not mistaken they can play HD video on it. I think that would be great for Chicago and this site. Making the skyline a little more sci-fi (not that sci-fi is my thing) could be cool.
I have no problem with them shutting down the park for private events but they should be careful to not let them find a loop hole to make it private year round. As far as the taxes, they'll definitely get something out of it but not the original ask.
Just my opinions.
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This seems like the natural progression of lights on buildings for Chicago. Many of the prominent buildings have theme lights for certain times of year (i.e., pink for breast cancer awareness, green and red for Christmas, sports team colors during the playoffs). A video wall a la Salesforce Tower in SF is like the digital version of the analog messages the Blue Cross Blue Shield building frequently displays over Millennium Park. I wonder if the city will allow it for artistic and social purposes with limited commercial applications.
While I originally was negatively reactive to the idea of shutting down the Riverwalk along Wolf Point for private events, a night of sleeping on it and thinking about many comments on here made me less resistant. The parks are often cordoned off for private events. I would just suggest that the city try to limit the number of nights that this is allowed. The Riverwalk should be mostly open to the public. A couple of nights a month wouldn't bother me, as if anyone would consider my personal feelings on the matter.
On the matter of tax incentives? No. The city doesn't need to do that sort of corporate giveaway. These companies aren't doing the city as big of a favor as the CEOs and board member might think they are. Be flexible and good hosts, but there's no reason to throw such money at these wildly successful businesses.