Several large, Chicago-based firms, including Aon and Illinois Tool Works, have expanded into or relocated to Ireland since 2021—but that’s only half the story.
Due to unresolved civic tensions, Chicago's Clark Street faces a potential shutdown despite expansions of outdoor dining programs in other global cities.
Adviser Brenda Jacobsen is holding her breath and suggesting an uptick in activity late last year and the first quarter this year heralds a comeback in 2024 transaction volume overall.
In Illinois, Chinese investors own only about one square mile of land, while Portuguese, Italian, and Canadian interests hold over 760 square miles combined.
For Chicago's sports stadiums, the financing debate between public funds and private investment remains an obstacle, as it has been for stadiums around the world.
As of 2021, China owned less than 1% of all foreign-held land in the U.S. Canada, by contrast, held more than the entire area of Vermont and New Hampshire combined.