I
wonder if Chicago, along with places such as St. Louis, Detroit and Gary, Ind.,
felt the same way I did some nearly four decades ago when I actually tried to make
the baseball team back in high school.
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| Could the one-time Michael Reese Hospital on the South Side become the site of Amazon.com corporate dream? |
I
still remember the day a bunch of us would-be ballplayers were lined up outside
a coach’s office, checking out the list to see which of us were still in the
running to be on the team and which of us just weren’t deemed worthy enough to
play.
FOR
THE RECORD, I didn’t make the cut (which really wasn’t surprising, since I was
never much of a ballplayer in my youth).
Which
means perhaps I can identify with what is going through the mindset of some of
the other Midwestern U.S. states that learned Thursday that Amazon.com’s dreams
of building a second corporate headquarters do not include them.
Chicago
learned that it is among the 20 municipalities still under consideration, as is
Indianapolis. But the other places that had hoped they could get an economic
boost learned they were out of the running.
Detroit’s
rejection had many observers somewhat surprised. It was speculated that
Amazon.com might find it a challenge to be a part of the revitalization of a
major city – which would put that city’s officials in eternal indebtedness to
their corporate priorities.
THE
ONE REJECTION that caught my eye was that of St. Louis. Since that was the bid
that had the endorsement of Gov. Bruce Rauner, who supposedly also was backing
the Illinois-based bid of the Chicago area – which officially says there are 10
possible sites within the city or suburbs that Amazon.com could choose from.
Which
means we’re not setting up the chance of an Illinois political civil war, with
a governor trying to figure out whether his best interests involve supporting
his state’s major city or the portion of another state’s major metropolitan
area that happens to fall within Illinois’ borders.
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| Sears used to be retail giant; could structure regain significance by becoming part of Amazon.com complex downtown? |
There
are those who wonder if Rauner secretly would have rather seen a St. Louis bid
prevail because he could take some credit amongst Southern Illinois voters
while undermining the Chicago interests he sees as his politically partisan
enemy.
The
fact that Chicago made the cut means Mayor Rahm Emanuel was able to boast of “Chicago’s
great strengths, access to talent, transportation, higher education, affordability
and quality of life, which are the keys to growth and prosperity.”
WHETHER
THOSE ISSUES will remain relevant as Chicago now has to go up against 19 other
municipalities (three of which are the District of Columbia and nearby suburbs
in both Virginia and Maryland) will remain to be seen.
As
I recall from several decades ago, there were still several somewhat talented
ballplayers who made that first cut, but wound up not making the roster when springtime
came around and the baseball season began.
Personally,
I wonder if the fact the city hasn’t united behind one single location may be a
factor that goes against us (although I know the conservative ideologues
amongst us are determined to believe that it will be Chicago’s Democratic
leanings that will harm our city’s bid in the end).
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| Oak Brook campus that used to train McDonald's managers could become part of Amazon |
If
we can’t even decide where it should be, why should we expect Amazon.com
officials to be capable of picking a place. Maybe they really will want
proximity to the nation’s capital city, or a spot in Atlanta, Austin (as in Texas)
or Boston for the headquarters campus they want to supplement the existing
facilities in Seattle, Wash.
BUT
FOR THE time being, Chicago can still dream about the possibility of a downtown
complex that might even incorporate part of the formerly-known-as Sears Tower.
Or maybe the old Michael Reese Hospital, or the suburban Oak Brook campus that
once served McDonald’s.
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| U.S. Steel still dominant presence in Gary, Ind. |
Unlike
St. Louis or Detroit, who now will have to move on to other projects to dream
about as a way of revitalizing their communities and creating jobs.
Or
a place like Gary, which although Hoosier-based is close enough to the
Illinois/Indiana border that Chicago could dream of some spillover benefits.
But
instead will now have to set new ambitions for their existence, just as many a
failed athlete has had to accept the fact he wasn’t good enough to make the
team.
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