Extra, Extra

• Motorola is the corporate brand rated most valuable in Chicago. Boeing came in 2nd, McDonalds 3rd, Walgreens 4th and Caterpiller came in 5th.
• The IL Assn. of Realtors reports that home prices in the area kept climbing during the 1st quarter even though sales of houses and condos were down.
• Sun-Times has an interesting look at how the neighborhoods of Portage Park, Uptown, Lakeview, Near South Side, and West Lawn are changing.
• Salvador "Tony" Godinez is taking over as the IL Dept of Corrections chief of staff.
• More than 100 fake IL driver's licenses were found in Louisiana.
• The Palmer House is on the fast track to becoming a landmark.
• Yay! More lunch options in the West Loop, to say the least. This new market, compared to Pike Place Market in Seattle, will be great for commuters going through Ogilvie too.
• Bulls guard Ben Gordon is the first NBA player to have his own energy drink. Called BG7, this beverage is made with pure organic Chinese white tea, which has 5x the antioxidants and health benefits of green tea.
• Anish Kapoor says he's cool with everyone calling his sculpture "The Bean."
• The Wright Plus benefit walk is this weekend. If you participate you'll get rare interior tours of architecturally significant homes designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and his pals.
• An interview with Chris Ware at MCA
• Kinky! We love our six-ways!

Photo via curve my light