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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Chicago’s heartland location has surely played a role in its prominence. But at several inflection points, the city has taken action to build its status, while many peers slipped. Founded as a 10-square-mile enclave on the lake, it annexed the surrounding area until it was nearly twice the physical size of Atlanta, which is only now talking about annexing some land. Chicago proper accounts for 29 percent of the metro Chicago population, while the city of Atlanta represents just 8 percent of its metro area. After the real estate crash and the 2007-09 recession, the city may well stand again at an inflection point, divided politically and economically and troubled by a looming fiscal crisis.
Whatever choices Chicago makes, expect neighborhoods as well as political leaders to have their say in them. Chicago – more than most cities – has a well-organized collection of local groups that live the credo that all politics is local. “This is a critical component of the planning infrastructure,” said former Chicago resident Dan Immergluck, now professor in the Georgia Tech School of City and Regional Planning. “There are hundreds of neighborhood economic development groups (in Chicago), many of which have had serious impact on the city.”
