Knowing that a casino won’t be a next-door neighbor, the University of Illinois and developer Related Midwest have laid out a new design and ambitions for the planned technology and research hub on the development site known as The 78.
The university’s Discovery Partners Institute will anchor the planned complex with a flashy new building on the southern portion of the 62-acre property, an old rail yard south of the Loop that has been vacant for decades. The 78 was a finalist site for a Chicago casino but wasn’t selected.
