Chicago Construction News staff writer
Mayor Brandon Johnson introduced a proposed amendment to the public infrastructure agreement for The 78 development last week, seeking to align public investments with the current redevelopment plans for the 62-acre Near South Side site.
The proposal would provide up to $424.9 million in tax increment financing reimbursements to Roosevelt/Clark Partners LLC for eligible infrastructure costs tied to the mixed-use project with funding for improvements to portions of LaSalle, 13th, 14th and 15th streets, as well as sections of Wells and Clark streets and Roosevelt Road.
Upgrades to on-site Metra tracks, improvements to the river wall along the South Branch of the Chicago River, publicly accessible open space and construction of an approximately 1,200-space underground parking structure that would be owned and operated by the city would also be included.
TIF funding would come from the Roosevelt/Clark and Canal/Congress TIF districts. Developer reimbursements would occur as construction advances through various phases.
Roosevelt/Clark Partners LLC, led by Related Midwest, is developing The 78, an $8 billion project planned for a long-vacant tract of land between downtown and Chinatown.
The amendment would replace portions of the current public infrastructure agreement approved in 2019 and amended in 2022. The existing agreement authorizes up to $453.7 million in TIF-funded reimbursements.
City Council approved a revised development plan for The 78 in September 2025. The updated plan includes a privately financed 22,000-seat Chicago Fire soccer stadium, which broke ground this spring, along with changes to the project’s infrastructure framework.
Future phases of the development are expected to include as many as 10,000 residential units, along with retail, office and institutional space.
The site, vacant for about 50 years, was once occupied by a rail yard.
