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  "path": "/real-estate/2026/02/10/university-illinois-wacker-drive-office-building-dpi-tech-research-hub",
  "publishedAt": "2026-02-10T21:44:33.606Z",
  "site": "https://chicago.suntimes.com",
  "textContent": "<p>The University of Illinois plans to expand the Discovery Partners Institute with a new location on Wacker Drive, more than a year after <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/money/2024/10/18/university-illinois-discover-partners-institute-tech-hub-leaves-the-78-developer-white-sox-fire-stadiums\" >backing out</a> of plans to build the research and technology<b> </b>hub at The 78. </p><p>The university's board of trustees last week approved the $23.7 million purchase of 250 S. Wacker Drive, according to an online document from the board’s February meeting. </p><p>“At this stage, the Board’s action provides approval to move forward,” University of Illinois System spokesperson Deneen Gillespie said in a statement. “The transaction is not yet complete, and until it is finalized, we are not at liberty to share additional details about the property or its intended use.”</p><p>The purchase represents another office building in Downtown that’s being sold at a fraction of its pre-pandemic price. The previous owner, Credit Suisse, purchased the Wacker Drive building in 2011, through an affiliate, for $90 million.</p><p>Once the deal closes, the building will undergo renovations “to customize the spaces for the best utilization of the Discovery Partners Institute,” according to university documents and first reported by <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.costar.com/article/1268399079/tech-research-institute-to-buy-mostly-vacant-chicago-office-tower\" target=\"_blank\" >CoStar News</a>. The school system pegs renovation costs at $36.2 million.</p><p>The 16-story building is across from Willis Tower and adjacent to <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/real-estate/2026/02/04/harry-weese-designed-office-tower-will-get-a-25m-atrium-renovation-designed-to-lure-renters-with-amenities\" >200 S. Wacker Drive</a>, where the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the DPI currently lease space through June 30, 2035. Documents from U. of I. said DPI “needs a larger space for its growing program” and it expects DPI's partners to use the new space and “contribute financially” for their use.</p><p>The institute's larger focus is on artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and the future of computing — finding ways to apply those technologies across industries such as finance, logistics and energy, while partnering with companies, according to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. And last month, it named Gene Robinson as the institute's new executive director and CEO. </p><p>The research and technology hub was initially supposed to build a roughly $300 million campus at The 78. But in October 2024, the university announced it would no longer have a presence at the long-vacant 62-acre South Loop property. That change cost Illinois taxpayers <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2025/01/31/discovery-partners-institute-university-illinois-the-78-related-midwest-bruce-rauner\" target=\"_blank\" >more than $30 million</a>, the Chicago Sun-Times previously reported.</p><p>At the time, the DPI was already under construction at The 78, investing about $25 million in design and pre-planning. The university cited a desire to make Illinois a global leader in technology as the reason for moving to the state’s Quantum and Microelectronics Park, and that it was also exploring more cost-effective options for its headquarters. </p><p>The university has said it would operate a Downtown headquarters, called DPI North, with DPI South opening at the state's quantum park.</p><p>A spokesperson for the U. of I. System said the university has spent $38.9 million to date unwinding operations at The 78, including design and pre-planning costs.</p><p>The DPI hub was <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/2017/10/18/18331332/rauner-hopes-to-turn-south-loop-dud-into-world-class-research-hub\" >announced in 2017</a> under former Gov. Bruce Rauner. Plans from 2022 for the hub showed it would include five buildings, including a signature steel-and-glass curved building.</p><div class=\"RelatedList Enhancement\" data-module data-align-center> <div class=\"RelatedList-title\">Related</div> <ul class=\"RelatedList-items\"> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2025/01/31/discovery-partners-institute-university-illinois-the-78-related-midwest-bruce-rauner\" >Taxpayers are out more than $30 million for University of Illinois’ scuttled South Loop project</a> </li> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/money/2024/10/18/university-illinois-discover-partners-institute-tech-hub-leaves-the-78-developer-white-sox-fire-stadiums\" >U of I pulls its tech hub out of The 78; developer suggests White Sox, Fire stadiums instead</a> </li> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/2022/9/23/23368822/discovery-partners-institute-the-78-academic-research-hub-new-design-university-illinois\" >U. of I. issues new design for academic and research hub at The 78</a> </li> </ul> </div> <p></p>",
  "title": "U of I purchases Wacker Drive office building for tech and research hub",
  "updatedAt": "2026-02-10T22:03:24.781Z"
}