McDonald's Hopes To Build New Headquarters At Oprah's Old Studios
By Emma G. Gallegos in News on Jun 2, 2016 4:42PM
McDonald's is in the final stages of a deal that would relocate its headquarters from suburban Oak Brook to Oprah Winfrey's former studios in the West Loop, according to Crain's Chicago Business.
The company has been talking about relocating eastward for some time, since the Oak Brook campus where it's been headquartered since 1971 has been showing signs of wear and tear. The cost-conscious McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook did tell employees in February that the Oak Brook building was getting expensive to maintain. But a bid last year to move to One Prudential Plaza near Millennium Park last year fell through after it got to the final stages, Crain's says.
This time McDonald's has their eye on the former Harpo Studios campus on Randolph Street. Developer Sterling Bay purchased the 300,000 square feet structure for $30.5 million with the intent of demolishing the structure and building a new space that is scheduled to be completed in 2018, Crain's says.
A spokeswoman for the company said it was too early to comment on a deal. There are a lot of unknowns, namely how much of the staff currently working at headquarters off the I-88 would be relocated downtown. Last year, the company's digital team moved to River North.