2016 March Issue
New developers breathe life into moribund Caseyville subdivision
By ALAN J. ORTBALS CASEYVILLE — The massive Forest Lakes subdivision on Illinois Route 159 in Caseyville is being resurrected and given a new name, Tanglewood. Its new owners expect to formally kick things off with a ribbon cutting later this month. Forest Lakes was emblematic of the collapse of the housing market in 2008…
Read MoreFreightway hopes to take advantage of Panama Canal expansion
By DENNIS GRUBAUGH Ports and rail hubs around America are gearing up for the completion of expansion of the Panama Canal, and the Southwestern Illinois area is among them. Intermodal facilities each hope to take advantage of the likely surge of freight movement. “I don’t have a crystal ball and there are a lot of…
Read MoreCommercial Real Estate Roundup
RASI: 2015 was a great year for real estate sales, and 2016 is expected to be even better
Spotlight on Southwestern Illinois Commercial Real Estate RASI: 2015 was a great year for real estate sales, and 2016 is expected to be even better By ALAN J. ORTBALS The year 2015 was great for residential real estate sales, according to Deb Frazier, CEO of the Realtor Association of Southwestern Illinois. Home sales were up…
Read MoreNAI DESCO: Retail developers will be staking their claims in 2016
Spotlight on Southwestern Illinois Commercial Real Estate NAI DESCO: Retail developers will be staking their claims in 2016 By ALAN J. ORTBALS Look for real estate developers to be sowing seeds this year and retail developments to bloom in 2017, says Toby Martin, chief executive officer of NAI DESCO of the Greater St.…
Read MoreBARBERMurphy Group: Demand growing for industrial and investment properties
Spotlight on Southwestern Illinois Commercial Real Estate BARBERMurphy Group: Demand growing for industrial and investment properties By ALAN J. ORTBALS 2015 was the best year the 10-year-old BARBERMurphy Group has ever had, according to Wayne Barber, a principal of the firm. He says 2016 might be even better. With 18 licensed brokers and more…
Read MoreQ&A with David Kolata, executive director, Citizens Utility Board, Illinois
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Illinois General Assembly created the Citizens Utility Board in 1983, giving the nonprofit, nonpartisan organization a mission to represent the interests of residential utility customers across the state. CUB intervenes in ratemaking proceedings before the Illinois Commerce Commission, in the courts and before other public bodies and by providing consumers with information…
Read MoreCOUNTERPOINT: Is Madison County ground zero for venue shopping?
No, campaign to warp public understanding of our legal system is about profits before people By PERRY J. BROWDER Illinois, like all states, has its share of problems, but so-called “lawsuit abuse” is not one of them. Anecdotes of businesses leaving the state in fear of lawsuits are spread by special interests groups seeking to…
Read MorePOINT: Is Madison County ground zero for venue shopping?
Yes, county remains one of nation’s worst ‘judicial hellholes’ By TRAVIS AKIN When people outside of Madison County first hear about Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch and the organization’s efforts to stop lawsuit abuse in Illinois, their first reaction is to equate lawsuit abuse with what happens in Madison County. In many ways Madison County has…
Read MoreTriStar Properties launches two more spec buildings in Edwardsville
Illinois Business Journal Report EDWARDSVILLE — Gateway Commerce Center’s contribution to regional employment will get a big boost with plans to build two more spec buildings in the eastern half of the distribution complex. TriStar Properties has begun development of two mega-cube speculative distribution buildings initially totaling 1.13 million square feet at the 2,300-acre logistics…
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