A Renaissance in Chicago?

Back in 1950, Chicago had roughly 3.5 million residents, compared to today’s population of 2.7 million. The large decline was gradual and due to the decline in industrial cities in the Midwest, known as the Rustbelt. Thankfully, the population has held roughly stagnant since 1990 due to the city diversifying it’s economy into technology, aviation, and other sectors.

With COVID changing geographical demographics at a rapid clip, many residents are flocking to states like Florida, Texas, Arizona, and Idaho. Who would have thought that locking residents in their homes for an indefinite period and shutting down the economy would result in people leaving? Well, now the city must convince folks that it is still a place of strong commerce and culture, while trying to minimize widespread crime and financial difficulties at the city and state level.

One indicator in the housing sector that things are starting to pick back up in the city, post-COVID, is that rental rates surged in 2021. This is a good sign that younger white collar professionals were still interested in what Chicago has to offer. Given that the city generates a large portion of it’s revenue from these types of people, it would be in their best interest to keep enticing more to come, and eventually stay put.

Time will only tell what the long-term effects of COVID were to Chicago, and if the city is trending in the right direction, but it still presents a wide array of economic opportunities for the right people with education and work effort to make it happen. With winter being halfway over, we shall see the vibrancy of the city come summer, and further understand the next steps forward as a city to revive everything from the Loop to neighborhoods like West Loop and Wrigleyville.