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  "path": "/wbez-newsletter/2026/06/25/the-rundown-creative-industries-power-chicagos-economy",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-25T20:45:00.000Z",
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  "textContent": "<p><i>Good afternoon! It’s Thursday, and I still can’t decide if I’m brave enough to watch “</i><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HjdiohVOik\" target=\"_blank\" ><i><u>Backrooms</u></i></a><i>” in a movie theater. Here’s what you need to know today.</i></p><p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/arts-culture/2026/06/25/creative-economy-impact-study-arts-alliance-illinois-workers\" target=\"_blank\" ><b><u>1. A new study found the creative sector is Chicago’s third-largest industry, accounting for nearly 213,000 jobs</u></b></a></p><p>Arts Alliance Illinois Executive Director Claire Rice said this is the most comprehensive report of its kind the group has conducted and that the findings provide arts organizations and advocates with concrete numbers to push for funding and policy changes.</p><p>As my colleague Courtney Kueppers writes for WBEZ, the report states only healthcare and professional, scientific and technical services make up larger workforces in Chicago. It also found Chicago’s creative economy generates $50 billion in economic output, measured by the sales of goods and services, such as concert ticket sales or broadcasting services.</p><p>The sector’s direct jobs account for just over 11% of employment in the city, which the report says makes it a larger workforce than educational services, retail or manufacturing. Rice said there is not a single creative industry driving that number, but rather, it accounts for workers in arts education, design, audiovisual media, performing arts and beyond.</p><p>The report also found that for every $1 of output generated by the creative economy, another $0.38 is generated in local economic activity. The sector generates $5.7 billion in tax revenue annually, with $3.8 billion of that going toward federal taxes and $1.9 billion going toward state, county and local taxes.</p><p>The report arrives as funding for the arts has been cut or stagnant at the city and state levels. Nationally, President Donald Trump has clawed back grants given through the National Endowment for the Arts, closed the Kennedy Center for renovations after taking control of the venue and called for a sweeping review of Smithsonian Institution exhibitions. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/arts-culture/2026/06/25/creative-economy-impact-study-arts-alliance-illinois-workers\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>WBEZ</u></a>]</p><p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2026/06/25/mayor-financial-task-force-chicago-fiscal-outlook-downtown-congestion-fee-service-tax\" target=\"_blank\" ><b><u>2. Mayor Johnson’s financial task force proposed a Downtown congestion fee, service tax and restructuring electricity taxes</u></b></a></p><p>A follow-up report commissioned by Mayor Brandon Johnson lays out an array of revenue-generating options that includes a sales tax on virtually “all consumer services,” taxing high-volume electricity users at a higher rate and imposing a congestion fee on “vehicles entering or exiting a designated central area during peak periods.”</p><p>To chip away at Chicago’s $36 billion pension crisis and erase the city’s structural deficit, the 23-member group of civic leaders also suggested offering retirees lump-sum payouts instead of monthly pension checks, consolidating actuaries and administrators of the four city employee pension funds and restoring annual property tax increases at the rate of inflation.</p><p>Last year, Johnson gave the group chaired by influential businessman Jim Reynolds and Chicago Urban League President Karen Freeman-Wilson carte blanche to create a road map to erase Chicago’s $1.15 billion budget shortfall, my colleague Fran Spielman reports.</p><p>“The stakes of inaction are not merely financial,” the report states. “If the City continues on its current path, fixed and legacy costs will absorb a growing share of available resources, leaving less flexibility to maintain reliable services, invest in neighborhoods, respond to downturns, or support long-term competitiveness… A city that cannot predictably finance its core commitments will increasingly be forced into reactive choices that are more disruptive, more costly, and less fair.” [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2026/06/25/mayor-financial-task-force-chicago-fiscal-outlook-downtown-congestion-fee-service-tax\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>Chicago Sun-Times</u></a>]</p><p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/city-hall/2026/06/25/teen-takeovers-chicago-city-council-hearing-youth-testimony\" target=\"_blank\" ><b><u>3. Chicago teens testified at City Hall about ‘takeovers’</u></b></a></p><p>A group of Chicago teens traded their summer plans for government business to testify about so-called “teen trends” and implore City Council members to think beyond curfew ordinances when trying to stop the large gatherings from turning violent.</p><p>Several of these events have led to high-profile, tragic incidents of violence, my colleague Mariah Woelfel writes, in part because of the ease of access youth have to guns. City officials say many large gatherings also go without incident. Chicago police track teen trends, in part by monitoring flyers on social media advertising the get-togethers. Deputy Mayor for Community Safety Emmanuel Andre said 49 teen trends are expected to take place or have already happened in June alone.</p><p>Kids shared what they would want in a dream community center: live DJ sets, free food, homework help and extracurriculars you don’t get in school, such as budgeting tips or craft workshops. They testified about everything from their favorite social media platforms to what restaurants they want the city to partner with for events.</p><p>Despite the dominating role the topic plays in City Council debates over how to thwart violence, the teens spoke to a largely empty Council chamber yesterday, with many from the 15-member Subcommittee on Youth Employment absent. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/city-hall/2026/06/25/teen-takeovers-chicago-city-council-hearing-youth-testimony\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>WBEZ</u></a>]</p><p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/architecture/2026/06/25/neglected-frank-lloyd-wright-house-austin-coming-together-west-side-sold-125-000\" target=\"_blank\" ><b><u>4. A neglected Frank Lloyd Wright house on the West Side sold for $125,000</u></b></a></p><p>Nonprofit community group Austin Coming Together bought the vacant Wright-designed J.J. Walser Jr. House and seeks to restore the building, Chicago Sun-Times architecture columnist Lee Bey reports.</p><p>Built in 1903, the buff-colored wood-and-stucco Prairie School design is among a set of circa 1900 residences along Central Avenue that mark Austin’s early years as a Chicago neighborhood.</p><p>Austin Coming Together Executive Director Darnell Shields said the organization and the community want to make the home a place where visitors can learn about the house, as well as the neighborhood’s architecture, culture and history.</p><p>“And while they’re here, [visitors can] support our businesses and restaurants along Madison,” Shields said, adding Wright’s open-plan design of the home’s first floor would make the space conducive for hosting events and gatherings. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/architecture/2026/06/25/neglected-frank-lloyd-wright-house-austin-coming-together-west-side-sold-125-000\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>Chicago Sun-Times</u></a>]</p><p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/food-drink/2026/06/25/the-bear-series-finale-chicago-restaurants-food-tour-yes-chef\" target=\"_blank\" ><b><u>5. As ‘The Bear’ ends, it’s still drawing crowds to the real-world restaurants featured onscreen</u></b></a></p><p>Since the show debuted in 2022, it has both delighted and annoyed local viewers. Spotting the actors as they filmed across town and seeing Chicago restaurants featured onscreen became a sort of shared local ritual. So did scrutinizing any detail that felt disingenuous, like Carmy’s 773 tattoo. (“773 isn’t Chicago’s original area code,” one Reddit user wrote.)</p><p>But whether you love it or hate it, the seismic impact of “The Bear” feels undeniable, my colleague Courtney Kueppers writes. Along with making stars of its actors, the show also racked up a lengthy list of awards and boosted the profile of real-life chefs and restaurants, from Avec to Kasama and Lao Peng You.</p><p>“All the actors have put another spotlight on this city, letting everyone know that this city is the culinary destination, not of the universe, but in the nation,” said Donnie Madia, the Chicago restaurateur behind One Off Hospitality. “There’s a heightened awareness and also a spotlight.”</p><p>That attention inspired a food tour of eateries featured on “The Bear,” with stops including Mr. Beef, Margie’s Candies and Publican Quality Meats. Chicago Food and City Tours debuted this outing in 2023 and, much like the show itself, it has consistently been a hit. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/food-drink/2026/06/25/the-bear-series-finale-chicago-restaurants-food-tour-yes-chef\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>WBEZ</u></a>]</p><p><b>Here’s what else is happening</b></p><ul class=\"rte2-style-ul\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-inline-start:48px;\" id=\"rte-65cb2ae2-70d3-11f1-9e7d-dd35796a5caa\"><li>The Trump administration can begin deportations of Syrian and Haitian temporary protected status holders, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/immigration/2026/06/25/supreme-court-allows-trump-administration-to-end-legal-protections-for-haitians-syrians\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>AP</u></a>]</li><li>The high court also said the U.S. can turn away asylum seekers at the border. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/06/25/nx-s1-5838860/supreme-court-asylum-policy\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>NPR</u></a>]</li><li>Powerful earthquakes hit Venezuela, collapsing buildings in Caracas and shaking up relatives in Chicago. [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/nation-world/2026/06/24/back-to-back-powerful-earthquakes-slam-venezuela-collapsing-buildings-in-the-capital-of-caracas\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>Chicago Sun-Times</u></a>]</li><li>The Hallmark Channel will showcase the Chicago Bears in an upcoming Christmas movie, “Holiday Touchdown: A Bears Love Story.” [<a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/movies-tv/2026/06/25/hallmark-channel-picks-bears-for-upcoming-christmas-movie-holiday-touchdown-a-bears-love-story\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>Chicago Sun-Times</u></a>]</li></ul><p><b>Oh, and one more thing …</b></p><p>Have you endured traffic congestion on the Kennedy Expressway over the past three years or experienced long delays since the Illinois Department of Transportation launched its Kennedy rehabilitation in spring 2023?</p><p>My colleagues are investigating the Kennedy reconstruction’s planning, timing and costs — in taxpayers’ dollars and motorists’ time — throughout the multiyear project.</p><p>We’re measuring the project’s impact on travel times, but we’d like to offer real-life examples of the project’s costs to motorists who frequently use the Kennedy. In what ways were you impacted by the expressway’s reconstruction? What did elevated travel times and traffic congestion cost you?</p><p>You can share your story by filling out <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://airtable.com/appbYOvajv9W9MOKI/shrmHaYt4zaG9lR4R\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>this form</u></a>.</p><p><b>Tell me something good …</b></p><p>What is your favorite water activity in the Chicago area?</p><p>Steve writes:</p><p>“I always remember a day when I sat on the beach in Evanston and watched the waves come in. I sat and watched until the disruption in my heart calmed down. Someday I hope to sit on that beach and watch offshore wind turbines churn out safe, clean electricity.”</p><p>Feel free to email me, and your response may be included in the newsletter this week.</p>",
  "title": "Creative industries power Chicago’s economy: The Rundown",
  "updatedAt": "2026-06-25T20:45:01.556Z"
}