Loop Welcoming Home Grown Business
I understand the City’s desire to attract high profile out of town tenants to take up residence in our downtown area – good economics, great transportation, improved visibility for the tenant, etc. But as we all know many of these attraction campaigns can result in tax breaks and other concessions.
I heartily subscribe to the exciting reality of our OWN home grown companies moving from neighborhoods to the Loop! One of those success stories is Grub Hub, an Internet site that helps users find restaurants in a certain radius to their location and order online for take-out or delivery. Started in Chicago, the company has spread to other markets and recently acquired some similar organizations. The article in Crain’s this week about Grub Hub’s headquarters moving from Bucktown to the Burnham Center in the fall. At more than 250 employees they have outgrown their space in the neighborhood where they started, and know that they will be able to attract talent from a wider labor pool downtown. And what better aspiration to be able to relocate in the heart of a continental class city, for a company that intends to be a national service provider!
While it is healthy to attract newcomers, it is heartwarming to see our market home grow tech businesses that become stable participants in the City’s economy. Congratulations to Grub Hub and Chicago!
