Eco-Industrial Park for Addison Corridor?

By Mark Boyer in News on Feb 29, 2008 5:15PM

The Chicago Journal has an update on the Green Exchange, the eco-themed shopping mall that's slated to open in the old Cooper lamp factory on Diversey. There are two bits of news in the article: first, the Green Exchange is expected to open by the end of 2008, and second, "city planners are exploring the possibility of creating an eco-industrial park or green-themed planned manufacturing district nearby."

First Ward Alderman Manny Flores, who was quoted for the article, seems to be behind the idea, and he even suggested offering financial incentives to encourage green businesses to relocate to the area. The while project is still in a very embryonic scoping stage, and the exact criteria for businesses that would be invited (or even permitted) to set up shop is as of yet unclear; however, Flores told the Journal that they would likely consider both what sort of products were being produced and whether the businesses themselves have a record of sustainability.

The boundaries of the proposed industrial park would be Belmont to the north, Western to the east, Rockwell to the west, and Elston and George streets to the south (those boundaries currently fall within the South Addison Industrial Corridor).

This wouldn't be the first American eco-industrial park -- there are currently a couple dozen scattered around the country -- but it would probably be one of the most visible. And paired with the Green Exchange it would create an eco-Mecca on the northwest side.

Artistic rendering of Diversey Elevation via greenexchange.com