Regarding rail, Schultz mentioned that all class 1 rails converge in Illinois and that only happens in two places in the United States- Illinois and Louisiana. Chairman Schultz indicated the State is working on river transportation opportunities. “We have three navigable rivers that pass through or are adjacent to our state. And the Panama Canal expansion could bring great benefits for future generations.”
Discussing roads in Illinois, Schultz expressed, “We have the 3rd largest interstate system in the country. This ties into intermodal and freight and moving it from one point to another.” He continued and said, “It also relates to runways. O’Hare and Midway Airports give us hub opportunities with the number of flights that leave from both of those airports to destinations everywhere on the globe.”
Routers are used primarily for the data centers and moving data. Schultz expressed, “All of the New York Stock Exchange trades are backed up here in the City of Chicago. That’s a pretty big deal.”
Chairman Schultz highlighted examples of wins for the state of Illinois. Businesses are locating here in Illinois. In his first example, he discussed Amazon. Earlier this year, Amazon disclosed plans for expanding its Joliet facility. Schultz shared how he was able to expand that opportunity by asking Amazon officials about how rivers, rail, air cargo ties into the future of the company. That conversation led to 6 new facilities being built in the state of Illinois, creating roughly 7500 new jobs, and a $400 million investment. Another example of a win included the company Vetter. Schultz stated that Illinois was the only State that took the extra step of visiting offices in their hometown throughout the bidding process. In the meetings, Schultz provided three main positives for Illinois: 3rd lowest energy cost state in the county, great workforce, and the Midwest being the heartbeat of North America.
Challenges were also acknowledged. Schultz said, “At least 50% of the time, if you don’t have the “right to work” process, you’re eliminated from the 1st cut of even being considered for the job.” Schultz is working with Governor Bruce Rauner on workman comp reform and property tax freeze. “Illinois is a great state, and has a lot of great assets; but we can do a lot better,” said Schultz.
Following up on the November Summit for Regional Competitiveness keynote, Schultz reinforced the importance of regionalism and cross jurisdictional collaboration. Schultz divulged his plan of meeting with his counterparts in the mega-region to discuss how best to co-brand and co-market. “We need to work together and not compete”, Schultz expressed. Using the Big10 Football Conference as an analogy, he mentioned there were 4 teams in the top 8 of the football rankings that were from the Midwest. “We ought to be winning all the time. The Midwest is a great part of the country.”
Questions were asked regarding the perception of the City of Chicago. Schultz responded “The City has a crime problem. That issue and its perception around the world must be addressed.” He elaborated and said he spent time with the Chicago Police Department Superintendent, Eddie Johnson to learn about the crime issue. “It’s pretty compartmentalized and for the people living in high crime neighborhoods, we must find a solution. That’s the most pressing issue”, explained Schultz. Continuing his presentation, Schultz noted the second biggest issue Chicago faces are the fiscal challenges on both the city and state level. Despite these problems, Schultz reminded the audience that there is a lot to be proud of and that we can celebrate being in the heartbeat of the Midwest…the greatest place in this great country.
Closing his remarks, Schultz explained the motivations behind the creation Intersect Illinois. Intersect Illinois is a 501c3--all privately funded. To date, Schultz indicated they have raised approximately $6.5 million dollars. “We’re not going to use any public money—it’s not fair to the taxpayers”, Schultz said. Intersect Illinois works very closely with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) on grants and tax incentives. Under Schultz’s leadership, a structure is now in place for future Governors to use Intersect Illinois as a tool to benefit our state.
