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Saturday, April 27, 2024
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Ed Zotti

Columnist

Ed Zotti writes “City at the Crossroads,” a biweekly series about the trends shaping Chicago and the decisions we must make.

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Columnists
Chicago’s post-pandemic recovery plan won’t fix its problems. Here’s an idea that will
The goal can’t merely be to improve the lives of people who already live here, important though that is. It must be to attract talented people from elsewhere — Black people in particular — and keep stoking the downtown jobs machine that will draw them.
By Ed Zotti
 
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City at the Crossroads
To get out of this mess, we need bold thinking. Here’s what city leaders should do
By Ed Zotti
 
Property values in Chicago’s Chinatown continue to rise at a healthy pace, without excessive gentrification.
City at the Crossroads
East Asian immigrant entrepreneurs playing a big part in remaking Chicago
Unlike previous generations coming to Chicago, this one typically brings middle-class backgrounds, coming to the United States for college.
By Ed Zotti
 
A 3D printer by Azul 3D, founded by three Northwestern University researchers, can print production-grade, human-sized objects in just a few hours.
City at the Crossroads
Pandemic shows the need for an American manufacturing revival that Chicago could lead
Among companies already moving us in that direction: mHUB, a product startup incubator, Azul 3D, with leading 3D printers, and Fusion OEM, with robots that operate alongside humans.
By Ed Zotti
 
By mid-century, the Toronto region could overtake Los Angeles to become the second-largest metropolitan area in the United States and Canada.
City at the Crossroads
Toronto is close to topping Chicago as North America’s second city for skyscrapers. Here’s why.
The Canadian metropolis has become a major player on the world stage. In rankings of global urban significance, it vies with and sometimes surpasses Chicago.
By Ed Zotti
 
Given how easily COVID-19 spreads, large-scale contact tracing will require technology, writes Ed Zotti. Older solutions, such as a neighborhood-alert system used in South Korea, involve a risk of privacy loss. That’s less of a problem with newer technology.
City at the Crossroads
We know how to help control COVID-19’s spread once we leave home; we just have to do it
The pandemic will accelerate adoption of digital medical technology, and contact tracing might be carried along in that tide.
By Ed Zotti
 
Bronzeville has many strengths, including a committed middle-class base, but lacks a thriving commercial district.
City at the Crossroads
Rebuilding Bronzeville: Black Chicago’s post-pandemic future starts on the south lakefront
Block-by-block redevelopment is the surest way to bring in people and businesses to strengthen Chicago’s black communities, which COVID-19 has hit especially hard.
By Ed Zotti
 
The 312 River Run bridge spans the Chicago River between Addison Street and Irving Park Road.
City at the Crossroads
Got the COVID-19 blues? Take a bike ride along the Chicago River
If you’re thinking the coronavirus might mean the end of city living as we know it, an hour beside the river will convince you we’ll figure out a way to make this all work.
By Ed Zotti
 
An app for tracing contacts during a pandemic, devised by a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, could prove to be a powerful help in controlling the spread of COVID-19, Ed Zotti writes
City at the Crossroads
Stop the spread of COVID-19? Gov. Pritzker, there’s an app for that
A team led by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology technologist has developed a free digital contact tracing app. But it needs an assist from government to be most effective, and Illinois should lead the way
By Ed Zotti