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A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Chicago. Written by Monica Eng, Justin Kaufmann and Carrie Shepherd.

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Chicago's Berlin closes doors after 40 years

The famous LGBTQ+ club faced a recent boycott over union negotiations.

Food and Drink

6 New York-style pizza slices in Chicago

Axios readers sound off on the best slices.

Micro homes could help house migrants in Chicago

News

What's driving Chicago's robbery sprees

The rise in crime is putting Chicago's new police superintendent to the test.

Fewer Chicago homeowners are selling at a loss

The median loss was around $29,000, per Redfin data.

Real Estate

A shrinking share of Chicago-area homeowners are selling their houses for less than they paid for them, per data Redfin shared with Axios.Why it matters: Chicago is among the top five cities with the highest proportion of losses — all north of 6%.

Illustration of a real estate sale sign shaped like a downward point arrow

Dog showers and cat stoops: Chicago pets live in pampered homes

Pets are treated as members of the family, a local architect tells Axios.

<figure><img alt="custom dog wash and crate area" height="1913" id="c76e6527-f66d-4a87-b907-c2744127ddfe" src="https://images.axios.com/mQvxxK2Sf229peHXW6qF2P2PbVA=/2023/11/15/1700073977183.jpg" width="2867"/><figcaption>A custom dog oasis. Photo: AJ Brown Imaging, courtesy of Kipnis Architecture + Planning</figcaption></figure>This custom Skokie shower boasts dotted tiles, hinged glass doors and an attached crate for one lucky pup.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Pet owners" data-vars-click-url="https://www.rover.com/blog/dog-owner-showdown-chicago/" data-vars-content-id="80821eb2-54ce-4946-b74e-08da8ec42cd3" data-vars-headline="Dog showers and cat stoops: Chicago pets live in pampered homes" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.rover.com/blog/dog-owner-showdown-chicago/" target="_blank">Pet owners</a> are increasingly eager to cater their homes to dogs, cats and other companion animals.

New Wilmette building luring renters with luxury amenities

Pickeball courts, golf simulators and hanging gardens.

New, stylish residential buildings are popping up all over Chicago, and now they&#x27;re spreading to the north suburbs.What&#x27;s happening: Developer Optima Communities is looking to lure young professionals out of the city limits with its new luxury rental community, The Optima Verdana, in downtown Wilmette. The building opened this summer.

How to host an HGTV-worthy holiday gathering in Chicago

We asked HGTV's Jasmine Roth and a local pro how to be a host extraordinaire.

<figure><img alt="HGTV&#x27;s Jasmine Roth sets a festive table." height="7360" id="c74e23e4-0876-4f1c-9183-99bba509e18a" src="https://images.axios.com/O4S7xQWMR_DSyqDP7gu0GvQ5vCw=/2023/11/01/1698871468105.jpg" width="4912"/><figcaption>HGTV&#x27;s Jasmine Roth sets a festive table. Photo: Courtesy of Mike Radford/Michael Radford Photography</figcaption></figure>&#x27;Tis the season for more people to crowd into your home.<ul><li>Which means you&#x27;ll be <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="cooking" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2022/11/22/chicago-really-loves-stuffing" data-vars-content-id="c34717dc-5382-4e82-a40c-418f9c9f7d38" data-vars-headline="How to host an HGTV-worthy holiday gathering in Chicago" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2022/11/22/chicago-really-loves-stuffing" target="_self">cooking</a> or ordering more meals.</li></ul>Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Planning" data-vars-click-url="https://health.gov/myhealthfinder/health-conditions/heart-health/manage-stress" data-vars-content-id="c34717dc-5382-4e82-a40c-418f9c9f7d38" data-vars-headline="How to host an HGTV-worthy holiday gathering in Chicago" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://health.gov/myhealthfinder/health-conditions/heart-health/manage-stress" target="_blank">Planning</a> is one big way to soothe the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="added stress" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/21/how-to-relieve-stress-hug-kiss" data-vars-content-id="c34717dc-5382-4e82-a40c-418f9c9f7d38" data-vars-headline="How to host an HGTV-worthy holiday gathering in Chicago" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/21/how-to-relieve-stress-hug-kiss" target="_self">added stress</a> of the holiday season. (Sorry, procrastinators.)

designer setting a holiday themed dinner table

Chicago's first all-affordable condo building opens in Lincoln Park

Residents are moving into below-market-rate condos in The Seng.

Residents are moving into a new Lincoln Park building that&#x27;s delivering below-market-rate condos to the traditionally expensive area.What&#x27;s happening: The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Seng" data-vars-click-url="https://www.sengchicago.com/" data-vars-content-id="acaf7fd6-bcf8-46ef-8499-cbbbec2c9715" data-vars-headline="Chicago&#x27;s first all-affordable condo building opens in Lincoln Park" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.sengchicago.com/" target="_blank">Seng</a>, a five-story building at 869 W. Blackhawk St., is the first all-affordable condo building of its kind in Chicago.

New Bathhouse will go up in West Loop

The property will have large spa, multiple pools, a restaurant and a rooftop pool.

A trendy New York-based bathhouse concept is coming to the West Loop.Driving the news: Fulton Street Cos. and design firm Gensler recently announced the project at the long-abandoned parking lot at 1010 W. Madison St.Details: Plans call for a 40,000-square-foot structure, in partnership with <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Bathhouse" data-vars-click-url="https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/bathhouse-expanding-flatiron-district-and-chicago" data-vars-content-id="85533d25-ab2b-4b5a-9ec8-9897212d7f04" data-vars-headline="New Bathhouse will go up in West Loop" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/bathhouse-expanding-flatiron-district-and-chicago" target="_blank">Bathhouse</a>, which has locations in Brooklyn and is opening a spot next year in Manhattan.<ul><li>Chicago&#x27;s bathhouse will have a large spa, multiple pools, a restaurant and a rooftop pool. There are no plans for retail space, instead featuring two-story concrete arches on the ground level.</li></ul>The intrigue: The project is a departure from the original plan to develop a 10-story residential building with 25 condominiums on that plot.<ul><li>The plans changed due to the downturn in the condo market.</li></ul><figure><img alt="Photo of an indoor pool " height="1500" id="453ea0c7-70b1-475e-a9ce-13f4646807c5" src="https://images.axios.com/ScEZ20PBEL17lPOT_3Nne7pep0Q=/2023/10/27/1698417025649.jpg" width="2669"/><figcaption>Renderings of the interior pool and spa. Courtesy of Gensler Design</figcaption></figure>Flashback: The upscale bathhouse will reside at the epicenter of the gentrified neighborhood that Time magazine called the &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Land of the Living Dead" data-vars-click-url="https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,854992,00.html" data-vars-content-id="85533d25-ab2b-4b5a-9ec8-9897212d7f04" data-vars-headline="New Bathhouse will go up in West Loop" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,854992,00.html" target="_blank">Land of the Living Dead</a>&quot; in 1949.<ul><li>Cheap hotels, saloons and, you guessed it, bathhouses lined &quot;Skid Row&quot; up until the end of the 20th century.</li><li>Those &#x27;40s-era bathhouses may not have charged <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="$250 for a massage and scrub" data-vars-click-url="https://na.spatime.com/abh11249/73814252/spa-service/package/87712142" data-vars-content-id="85533d25-ab2b-4b5a-9ec8-9897212d7f04" data-vars-headline="New Bathhouse will go up in West Loop" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://na.spatime.com/abh11249/73814252/spa-service/package/87712142" target="_blank">$250 for a massage and scrub</a>, though.</li></ul>What&#x27;s next: According to Crain&#x27;s, construction should begin in early 2024 with plans to open in 2025.

Luxury senior living moves into hot Chicago suburbs

Swanky retirement communities are moving into hot Chicago suburbs.

More Chicagoland senior communities look like <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="modern luxury apartments" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2023/04/22/chicago-apartments-luxury-amenities" data-vars-content-id="005b2408-6c44-4426-b965-ec7dea148df5" data-vars-headline="Luxury senior living moves into hot Chicago suburbs" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2023/04/22/chicago-apartments-luxury-amenities" target="_self">modern luxury apartments</a> — including a resort pool with cabanas, sometimes filled with grandkids.Why it matters: America is going gray. Baby boomers and their kids make up a growing share of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="country&#x27;s population" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/22/median-age-america-population-older" data-vars-content-id="005b2408-6c44-4426-b965-ec7dea148df5" data-vars-headline="Luxury senior living moves into hot Chicago suburbs" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/22/median-age-america-population-older" target="_self">country&#x27;s population</a>, according to census data.

rooftop sky deck at luxury senior building

Chicago homeowners' advice for aspiring buyers

"Buy as much home as you can afford today."

We asked Chicago&#x27;s seasoned homeowners to share their sage advice for anyone looking to buy.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="High rents" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gen-z-rent-income-housing" data-vars-content-id="8b09f99c-bfad-45ee-9b1c-7bb2161cf1a4" data-vars-headline="Chicago homeowners&#x27; advice for aspiring buyers" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gen-z-rent-income-housing" target="_self">High rents</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="mortgage rates" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/22/mortgage-rates-current" data-vars-content-id="8b09f99c-bfad-45ee-9b1c-7bb2161cf1a4" data-vars-headline="Chicago homeowners&#x27; advice for aspiring buyers" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/22/mortgage-rates-current" target="_self">mortgage rates</a> mean making the leap to homeownership has seemingly never been harder.

Animated illustration of a floating key rotating to reveal an exclamation point.

Mortgage rates lock up Gen X wealth in Chicago homes

Higher mortgage rates make tapping into equity gains less appealing or feasible for many.

Roughly seven in 10 Gen Xers <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="own their homes" data-vars-click-url="https://www.redfin.com/news/gen-z-millennial-homeownership-rate-home-purchases/" data-vars-content-id="93a20ca7-2cb5-4cca-8b44-cfab816bc59d" data-vars-headline="Mortgage rates lock up Gen X wealth in Chicago homes" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.redfin.com/news/gen-z-millennial-homeownership-rate-home-purchases/" target="_blank">own their homes</a>, but <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="accessing that equity isn&#x27;t easy" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/07/equity-loan-home-value-high-interest-mortgages-refinancing" data-vars-content-id="93a20ca7-2cb5-4cca-8b44-cfab816bc59d" data-vars-headline="Mortgage rates lock up Gen X wealth in Chicago homes" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/07/equity-loan-home-value-high-interest-mortgages-refinancing" target="_self">accessing that equity isn&#x27;t easy</a>.Why it matters: Chicagoland median home values jumped nearly 37% in the past five years, Redfin figures show, which should be a boon to homeowners.

Illustration of a safe with a roof like a house.

Inside new luxury apartment tower The Row in Fulton Market

The 43-story building has a pool, gym, event spaces and a communal terrace with hammocks.

A recently built residential tower in Fulton Market nods to Chicago&#x27;s architectural past with matte black finish and arches, similar to our famous skyscrapers.Stats: Located just south of Lake Street on Peoria, the 43-story building offers 300 units.

Real Estate 🏠