The first of 10 developments planned as part of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Invest South/West initiative to start construction is a 58-unit apartment complex set to be built near 79th and Green streets in Auburn Gresham. 

While some people may have gotten used to the comforts of working from home, others may be itching to get out. The stakes for the city couldn’t be higher, especially for the owners and managers of the massive pieces of real estate in the city’s central business district that are still sitting mostly vacant.

A year after the fanfare-filled launch, city officials said the program had begun to show results — with $70 million in public funds attracting $300 million in private investments.

In a bid to keep restaurants open once cold weather hits, the city has launched a competition aimed at generating creative, yet feasible, ways to extend outdoor dining into Chicago’s winter. 

It was the first neighborhood to feel the economic impact of COVID-19. Months later, on the eve of the city’s move into phase four, the enduring message is that Chinatown is still here, and it is open for business.