As an economic power house Chicago is a city with a large talent pool and diverse industries. It is globally connected with the #1 most connected airport in the country – O’Hare International Airport.  On top of these strengths, one of the most valuable parts of Chicago is of the wide array of available land for industrial use.

Intent on leveraging this unique value proposition to accelerate industrial development in five targeted areas across the city, the City of Chicago created the Industrial Growth Zones program. The program addresses two primary issues that developers and business-owners cite as obstacles to site investment:

1. Uncertain environmental conditions of available land
2. Complex government regulations

The designated zones are in close proximity to domestic and international markets via Chicago’s world-class railways, airports, roads, and waterways, making them ideal for many industrial businesses especially those in the food and distribution and logistics verticals. Most importantly this land is ripe for development.

The designated Growth Zones are located in five areas:

• Lake Calumet Industrial Corridor
• Burnside Industrial Corridor
• Greater Southwest Industrial Corridor
• Northwest Industrial Corridor
• Roosevelt/Cicero Redevelopment Area

Through the program, business owners and developers have access to resources that allow site development to increase efficiency and cost-effectiveness. This includes access to an industrial concierge – a single-point-of-contact to guide them through every step of site development and business expansion or relocation in a zone.

To learn more about the Industrial Growth Zones sites and business development opportunities in these areas, please visit www.growthzones.com or contact Dennis Vicchiarelli at dvic@worldbusinesschicago.com.