Marijuana REIT has crafty legal strategy in Illinois, Rockford mayor favors $310M casino pitch: Daily digest

Every day, The Real Deal rounds up Chicago’s biggest real estate news, from breaking news and scoops to announcements and deals. We update this page throughout the day, starting at 10 a.m. Please send any tips or deals to tips@therealdeal.com.

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The state approved permits to grow marijuana plants for recreational use at seven cultivation centers. Three permits were granted to Cresco Labs, two to Pharmacann, one to Ascend Wellness and one to Columbia Care. There is a three-permit limit for every company. Ascend’s San Diego-based owner, the real estate trust called Innovative Industrial Properties, may be able to navigate around that rule in the future, since each of their centers are technically each their own individual company. [Sun-Times]

Rockford mayor Tom McNamara prefers The Hard Rock Cafe’s casino pitch. The proposal includes a minimum annual payment of $7 million to the town. The $310 million development includes a 64K sf gambling floor and a 1,600-seat concert venue. [Chicago Sun-Times]

The Chicago Park District finalized an estimated $14.8 million dollar improvement project plan for the Clarendon Park Community Center. Ald. James Cappleman announced Friday that the City Park District finished plans — conceived by planning and design firm William Architects — to renovate the building. The renovations will address water infiltration, improve the lobby and recreational spaces as well as ensure the building is ADA compliant. The community center was built in 1916. [Curbed]

AirBnb is leaning towards an non-traditional path for its 2020 IPO. The San Francisco-based short-term rental startup is making preparations to conduct a direct listing, instead of raising capital by issuing new shares — a move which would save the company millions in underwriting fees. Uber and WeWork’s IPO-related struggles have served as cautionary tales for the startup, and other tech firms like Spotify and SoftBank-backed Slack have have also taken the direct listing route recently. [Bloomberg]

CoStar CEO Andrew Florance and STR president and CEO Amanda Hite (Credit: Getty Images, STR, and iStock)

Real estate data and analytics giant the CoStar Group is set to acquire Tennessee-based global hotel data tracker STR for $450 million. The deal will push CoStar into to the hotel real estate data market. [TRD]

The Swiss government purchased a $3.48 million unit in the Near North Side’s Pinnacle building. The 5,300-square-foot four-bedroom unit located on the 47th floor was last bought at $3.7 million in 2013. The reason for the purchase was not immediately clear. [Chicago Tribune]

Local entrepreneur Paul Chernawsky bought Skyridge Club Apartments at 1395 Skyridge Drive for a price estimated to be over $50.9 million. New Jersey-based investor, Strategic Properties of North America sold the 364-unit complex only three years after buying it. [Crain’s]

A Manhattan judge has upheld President Trump’s controversial SALT tax deduction cap. The law, which caps deductions on state and local taxes (including property taxes) at $10,000, “is a part of the landscape of federal law within which states make their decisions as to how they will exercise their own sovereign tax powers,” wrote Judge Paul Oetken. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has criticized the policy as “punitive and politically motivated,” and says he might appeal the decision. [NYDN]

The oil price spike could mean “stagflation” is just around the corner. Rising oil prices resulting from last month’s attack on Saudi oil fields, combined with a slowing economy, could easily lead to the Federal Reserve’s nightmare scenario of stagflation, observers say, and additional trade shocks could make things worse. Such concerns are set to make Fed decisions surrounding further rate cuts even more difficult. [CNN]

Bridge33 Capital bought Woodscreek Commons for $19.1 million. The 210,000-square-foot mall, which fell into foreclosure in 2017, was valued at $21.6 million in February — well below its $28.6 million mortgage. The downturn in value shows the turmoil facing the retail real estate sector. With the sale to Bridge33, CMBS investors will lose $9.5 million. [Crain’s]

Sterigenics is leaving Willowbrook, the company announced Monday. This move comes at the heels of the passage of a new Illinois law that would seriously limit the company’s emissions of ethylene oxide, a cancer-causing chemical. Community members have been protesting the company for over a year. [Tribune]

Chicagoans are leaving the city for Wisconsin and Indiana because of — what else — high taxes. A Tribune report found that the state’s high tax rates are behind the high out-migration rate, which is 21st-highest in the nation and second-to-none compared Illinois’ neighboring states. [Tribune]

Around $90,000, intended for the public housing complex Anchor House, was paid out to a variety of people and organizations, including a total of $54,000 to Rev. Leon Finney, Jr. and his church, court records from a bankruptcy case show. Finney has been tied to the Woodland Community Development Corporation, the nonprofit that runs the development. [Sun-Times]

A 51-year-old construction worker was critically injured yesterday when he was hit by a forklift and fell into a six-foot hole at the Museum of Science and Injury on Cornell Drive. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center. He is currently in critical condition, but doctors expect he will survive. [Sun-Times]