Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Quinn, Emanuel, Preckwinkle say 3,000 jobs created - Chicago Sun-Times

Quinn, Emanuel, Preckwinkle say 3,000 jobs created

BY ABDON M. PALLASCH,  FRANCINE KNOWLES  AND MITCH DUDEK Staff Reporters August 23, 2011 12:44PM

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    Gov. Pat Quinn announces a $146 million project to create an underpass to undo the intersection of train tracks and roads near 130th & Torrence, at the Ford Assembly Plant. Tuesday, August 23, 2011 | Brian Jackson~Chicago Sun-Times

    Updated: August 24, 2011 2:13AM

    Gov. Pat Quinn, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle all held news conferences Tuesday taking credit for bringing jobs to the region.

    Quinn stood near the Ford assembly plant at 130th and Torrence to say that a $146 million project to lower the intersection beneath two new bridges to carry freight trains over the roads will create 1,200 new jobs.

    Emanuel stood at DePaul University’s downtown campus to announce that Boston-based EMC Corp. will create a Midwest headquarters in Chicago, bringing 200 jobs to the city. That brings to 4,400 the number of promised jobs he has announced since taking office.

    Preckwinkle toured Franklin Park-based construction company The Hill Group, which she said would be adding 30 new full-time jobs and 25 construction jobs after the county used tax incentives to keep the company from moving out of state.

    EMC and Emanuel noted there were no tax incentives to get them to start a headquarters in Chicago, just a longtime friendship between Emanuel and EMC CEO Joe Tucci and Emanuel’s “persistence,” Emanuel said.

    Quinn said Ford will kick in $1 million to the cost of the new bridges that will cut the delays experienced by 32,000 motorists a day.

    The state of Illinois is paying $64.8 million of the price tag, and Norfolk Southern, federal government, city and Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District are contributing as well.

    Preckwinkle said more than 1,600 jobs have been created in the county this year due to steps taken by her administration, including providing business tax incentives, rolling back the controversial Cook County sales tax, and better allocation of federal block grants.

    The county has awarded $9.4 million in 2011 Community Development Block Grant funds to 101 projects, Preckwinkle said. More than 50 percent of the funds target capital improvements in the suburbs.

    Preckwinkle’s office also noted the county has spent roughly $2 million in federal Workforce Investment Act funds to provide more than 500 Cook County youth with summer employment and workforce training.

    Quinn said businesses are leaving other states to come to Illinois — Navistar coming back from Indiana; a company that makes railroad cars moving here from Wisconsin, he said.

    A young, educated workforce was the enticement for EMC to come to Chicago, Tucci said.

    “This is Chicago — young people really want to be here,” he said.

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