Special Olympic Games Monument Coming to Neighborhood

A nice statue coming to the neighborhood (via Curbed):

Plans for a permanent monument honoring Chicago’s role in hosting the very first Special Olympics Games 50 years ago was unveiled at a ceremonial groundbreaking event Friday afternoon. Titled the Eternal Flame of Hope, the 30-foot-tall piece of public art will be joined by a new plaza and landscaping on Soldier Field’s north lawn, fronting McFetridge Drive.

The outdoor ceremony was attended by local officials including Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke. She got the idea to create the Special Olympics in 1967 working as a 23-year-old Park District instructor heading a program for children with intellectual disabilities at West Pullman Park.

One year later, Chicago’s Soldier Field hosted nearly 1,000 athletes from 26 states and Canada at the first ever International Special Olympics Games. Since 1968, the games have grown into nothing short of a worldwide movement, attracting 5 million athletes from 172 countries.

#ShotsAroundTheSloop: Rise and Shine

(Hat tip: JH!)

DePaul Basketball Struggles with Attendance at New Wintrust Arena

Unsurprisingly (to us at least) Depaul struggles to fill their new Wintrust arena (via DePaulia):

DePaul’s debut basketball season in the South Loop has been rough — the team is currently at risk of finishing dead last in the Big East standings for the eighth time in the last decade. But tough competition, injuries and streaky offense aren’t the only ghosts to follow the Blue Demons to Wintrust Arena.

Since moving from a cavernous 17,000 seats at Allstate to a cozy 10,000 at Wintrust, DePaul’s men’s basketball team is still struggling to fill the stands, continuing to rely heavily upon ranked opponents and traveling fans to draw sizable crowds.

Through DePaul’s home game against Creighton on Feb. 7, the Blue Demons had drawn an average of 2,993 people to their games, including two that saw fewer than 1,000 people, according to attendance numbers obtained by The DePaulia through a Freedom of Information Act request (FOIA) from the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (commonly known as “McPier”), the quasi-governmental agency that partnered with the university to build and operate Wintrust.

While this is only one of the tenants - it was meant to be the primary tenant.  Curious to see if things improve.  A good basketball team would help!

Chicago's Board of Education Votes to Close NTA and Convert Into Neighborhood High School

Looks like the South Loop High School is moving forward (via SunTimes):

Despite emotional opposition, Chicago’s Board of Education voted Wednesday on the first school closings since 2013, a historic measure that also affected primarily African-American schools.

All six current school board members voted to permanently close Harper, Hope, Robeson and Team Englewood high schools, the last four neighborhood schools in that South Side community. Former principal Gail Ward abstained from voting to close National Teachers Academy elementary school, which will gradually be turned into a high school for the booming South Loop.

NTA, home to mostly African-American students at 55 W. Cermak, will eventually be merged with the wealthier and more diverse South Loop Elementary School, which is getting a new annex. NTA’s building will become a neighborhood high school for the Near South Side, including for the residents of Chinatown who long have lobbied for a nearby neighborhood school.

New Studies Cite Concern for Converting National Teacher's Academy into Sloop High School

Major story on the potential to convert National Teacher's Academy into a South Loop Neighborhood High-school (via Chicagotribune.com):

Chicago Public Schools leaders face “a high level of mistrust” and need more community outreach to address "a significant level of acrimony” between two elementary school communities the city plans to merge, according to a district-commissioned report made public less than two days before a school board vote on the matter.

“A myriad of concerns and challenges have arisen from the CPS proposal” to fold the National Teachers’ Academy into facilities at nearby South Loop Elementary, said the report from Westat, a statistical research firm based in Maryland.

The CPS-financed analysis of an effort meant to transform the NTA building at 55 W. Cermak Road into a culturally diverse high school for the surrounding area follows a separate report produced by opponents of the proposal that came out in January

The analysis from Chicago United for Equity concluded the merger would have “an undue burden” on predominantly poor and black communities including NTA’s existing students, future generations of low-income African-American CPS students and nearby existing high schools that struggle with low enrollment and limited resources.

“It is incumbent upon our city to find solutions that get to the same intent without perpetuating inequity,” said Niketa Brar, the group’s executive director and a former policy director to city Treasurer Kurt Summers. “We’re talking about one group of people that are being marginalized by this plan, with the intention that there be this new high school. You can get to that same good intention in multiple ways.”

The two studies are part of an ongoing and tense community debate as the Chicago Board of Education takes up a final vote to approve the plan Wednesday.

Rapper Arrested For Gun Possession on Roosevelt Road

A scary story (via Chicago Tribune):

Chicago rapper G Herbo and two other men were arrested after their limousine driver tipped off police that some of his passengers had weapons, prosecutors said.
After the driver alerted police, officers did surveillance on the limousine, prosecutors said.

About 10:30 p.m. Thursday, officers curbed the limousine in the first block of East Roosevelt Road in the South Loop neighborhood, prosecutors said at a bail hearing Friday afternoon.

Once the officers stopped the vehicle, three men, including G Herbo, exited.

One of the men, Deavonte Royale Kimble, 25, of Compton, Calif., was seated alone in the third row of the vehicle and was the last person to get out. Officers found a Glock directly below where he was sitting, prosecutors said.

We've never heard of him, but if you're curious:



(Hat tip:  AB!)

David Letterman Filming His New Show at Buddy Guy's Legends

Sounds like good old gray beard was in the Sloop (via Chicago Tribune):

Veteran talk show host David Letterman visited Buddy Guy’s Legends in the South Loop and the Athenian Room in Lincoln Park while filming his new Netflix show Tuesday in Chicago.

Despite the rain, Letterman stopped to take selfies with a crowd that had gathered outside the Greek restaurant.

It appears Letterman spent the morning at Guy’s blues club. Parking notices posted outside the club warned of filming of an “Untitled Letterman Project” on Tuesday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Signs posted on the club’s front door said the club would be closed until 5 p.m. Tuesday for a private event.

Guy’s assistant, Annie Lawlor, said Tuesday the club was being used as a film set but would not give additional details. Music coming from the club could be heard from the street. Guy was a musical guest on Letterman’s “The Late Show,” and both men were among those who received Kennedy Center Honors in 2012.

Pretty cool stuff and looking forward to seeing if Buddy Guy was his guest.  The Tribune article also questioned if they could have been interviewing Tina Fey.  If I had to guess, it wasn't her.

Au Bon Pain Apparently Closes at East/West University Wabash Building

It appears that Au Bon Pain has closed up shop within East/West University's Wabash building (829 S. Wabash):

While you can see some people inside, gone are the pastries, coffee machines and salad bar.  Does anyone have any insight if this has been replaced by some other food option?

As a reminder, Au Bon Pain opened here in March of 2015.  

Construction for Columbia College Student Center Begins on Wabash

Judging by this picture below, looks like scaffolding and workers are starting to prep the vacant land for Columbia's new student center:

We're looking forward to this building as it likely will provide additional energy to this stretch of the Sloop.  Here is a rendering of how the building is intended to look once completed:

A Somber but Beautiful Statement at South Loop Elementary

If you were taking your kids to South Loop Elementary today or happened to be walking by, you likely noticed this:

While it took us a minute to wrap our head around the picture above, it quickly became clear that the Chicago Police department was "escorting" the daughter of murdered CPD Commander Paul Bauer back to school (via CBS Chicago):  

Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer is remembered for far more than his leadership on the CPD.

The commander of the 18th Police District was a man who got involved in his community, whether it was at his church – Nativity of Our Lord in Bridgeport — or at the school of his 13-year-old daughter, Grace.

At South Loop Elementary, blue ribbons line the street. Bauer is being remembered for always stepping up, starting the daddy-daughter dance and always smiling when with his daughter.

We were chocked up by the statement and symbolism as we walked to work.  We can only imagine how his daughter and family are feeling.

Lobo Rey Brings Flavorful Food and Vibe to the Sloop

Lobo Rey has garnered a lot of attention from this here blog and rightfully so.  It took over a prominent spot on South Wabash and was being led by the crew behind The Scout - one of the Sloop's more popular restaurant/bars.  Additionally, they had a well respected chef who was bringing a unique concept of hibachi style Mexican to the hood.

Unfortunately for that chef, Daniel Esponoza, it wasn't meant to be at Lobo Rey as he left in December - a short stint that lasted less than four months.  We've heard that it was a function of creative control of the menu - namely Esponoza wanting a more creative menu vs. ownership wanting something that catered to the neighborhoods more modest desires.

Despite this surprising change in the kitchen, Lobo Rey seems well positioned for the future.  We recently had our first visit and overall had a good experience.  If you've eaten at Zapatista, the previous tenant which closed in 2015, the cavernous layout likely looks familiar.  However, you'll notice a much trendier, airy and updated feel.  Gone are the "rooms" that made the space feel intimate.  Instead you will find more open space:

On the Saturday night we were there, it certainly wasn't crowded, but still felt like the restaurant had a solid energy.  The one other thing that was noticeably different was that there are two bars areas.  One on the south side of the restaurant (where Zapatista had their bar) and an island bar (which you can see on the left side of our panorama pic above).  In the back there is the much ballyhooed about hibachi style grills.  On the night we were there, it appeared there was a private party so we didn't get a chance to check it out, but hope to soon.

Moving on to the most important thing - the food and drinks.  The menu was a single page and seemed like it could have been found at a trendier food neighborhood up North or West.  This isn't a knock on the restaurant, but just an observation - it's a fun menu, but not unique to the city (albeit a trendier one than you would typically find in the Sloop).

The table next to us was getting into some Mezcal, but that wasn't the type of night we were getting into - although maybe we should have.  We opted for their signature drinks - a unique version of a Paloma and a Margarita.  Both were fine, but won't have a rushing back for more.  There were some other interesting options, so we'll go that route next time.

Although the drinks didn't really tickle our fancy, the food exceed our expectations.  We ordered some pre-meal guac, which was delicious.  They also had some salsa that had a noticeable kick which we added to each bite of guacamole - yum on that one!

For the main course we did the taco sampler which consisted of 8 total tacos - 2x pork, chicken, steak and mahi mahi:

For us, the tacos were certainly the highlight of our experience.  The presentation was festive and the flavor was bold.  We over ordered for two people, but better to go this route than the alternative.  The steak and mahi mahi were my favorites, while my wife seemed to prefer the pork shoulder.  The chicken was good, but the peppers were beyond hot and frankly overpowered the rest of my bites. 

They also had "foot long" quesadillas which seemed to be a nod to The Scout's similar foot long grilled cheese dishes.  We didn't' check it out, but look to next time.

So what did we learn from our experience?  In the Sloop, Lobo Rey has the most flavorful tacos in the neighborhood!  The vibe is fun and more hip than most other options in the neighborhood.  Compared to other Sloopin taco spots - Flacos Tacos, Spanglish, Mago Grill  and La Cantina - Lobo Rey provides a differentiated "Mexican" approach.  Trendier, more flavorful and a better "going out" experience overall. 

If we had friends coming down who wanted Mexican, we likely would head here.

Happy Presidents Day!

#ShotsAroundTheSloop: Urban Igloo

(Hat tip:  AS!)

Taco Bell Cantina at 407 S. Dearborn Getting Close to Opening

A reader provides an update on the Taco Bell Catina:

I know you folks can be sticklers about boundaries - but have lived in this area since '98 and consider this at least "southside" if not South Loop! Barely north of South Loop? Anyway - very close here. No inside info but bet by the weekend they go live.

As a reminder, we first heard about this back in April of 2017.  Some time passed which made us question whether or not this was actually happening, but then construction picked up in January of this year.  Judging by the above looks like this is close.

(Hat tip: IC!)