It’s in rough shape just like the state budget, and you can thank the poor state of the state budget for that.
The James R. Thompson Center, the seat of state government, has a new nickname, courtesy of the former governor it’s named after: “Scrap heap.”
Crain’s Chicago Business took a closer look at the 1.2 million-square-foot building that’s dotted with ceiling leaks, rusty panels and carpeting held together with duct tape.
“It looks like a scrap heap,” Thompson told Crain’s. “It’s terrible, just terrible.”
They still have the same stuff we put in when the building opened in 1985, Thompson said. And we did cheap carpeting then to stay within the budget. But it wasn’t supposed to last 30 years.
And Gov. Pat Quinn, who has an executive mansion that’s in a state of disrepair, doesn’t have things much better in the city.
One official told Crain’s that Quinn’s office has a “rhinoceros-sized lump” in the carpet and describes the entire place as “a dump.”
“They haven’t spent a penny on it lately,” the official told Crain’s. “Can you imagine what a CEO thinks if he comes to talk to the governor about expanding in Illinois and walks through this?”
None of this should be a surprise. On Wednesday, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said the state’s credit rating could be further downgraded unless finances improve in the next two years.
