Brian J. Rogal

Brian J. Rogal is a lifelong Chicagoan if you count a childhood spent in the suburbs. The Bucktown resident is a graduate of DePaul University and then spent several years as an investigative reporter with The Chicago Reporter, mostly writing about the CHA’s transformation. He has covered commercial real estate full-time since 2013.

Store closing signs at a different Treasure Island store at 75 W. Elm St. in Chicago in 2018. (Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune)

Whole Foods Market is coming to Old Town, and will take over old Treasure Island spot

September 2, 2026 at 8:33 a.m.

Whole Foods Market, which already has 10 Chicago locations, will take over a site once used by the Treasure Island supermarket.

The closed Ford City Mall in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2026. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Plan Commission approves Ford City Mall demolition plan, but many neighbors object

August 20, 2026 at 4:24 p.m.

The Chicago Plan Commission voted Thursday to approve a plan to demolish Chicago's closed Ford City Mall, and replace it with a collection of warehouses and distribution buildings.

Elishia Wright, center, prepares orders at a new Chipotle restaurant at 11211 S. Corliss Ave. in Chicago's Pullman neighborhood on Aug. 13, 2026. Chipotle is the latest addition to the Pullman Gateway project, which replaced a parking lot and an OTB facility. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Pullman Gateway complex now fully leased with opening of a new Chipotle Mexican Grill

August 13, 2026 at 3:48 p.m.

The launch of the Far Southeast Side’s first Chipotle completes the lease-up of Pullman Gateway, an 8-acre retail development now 100% occupied by four well-known restaurant chains.

An entrance is shuttered and the parking lot is empty on the west side of Ford City Mall on June 19, 2026, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Developer proposes replacing now-shuttered Ford City Mall with warehouses and distribution buildings

August 13, 2026 at 12:52 p.m.

The plan, which will be presented at the Chicago Plan Commission’s monthly meeting, could potentially bring the now-vacant indoor shopping center one step closer to demolition.

A rendering shows the proposed changes to The Shops at North Bridge on Michigan Avenue. (ParkFowler Plus)

Shops at North Bridge to get $40M makeover as retail outlook brightens on the Mag Mile

August 6, 2026 at 5:01 p.m.

The owner of The Shops at North Bridge will pour $40 million into a dramatic renovation of the complex, giving the Magnifient Mile another jolt of energy.

A coil of tubing rests next to a drill rig used to make wells that will descend more than 800 feet into the ground for geothermal energy used in a high-rise residential tower under construction at 410 N. Elizabeth St. on July 29, 2026. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Fulton Market high-rise powered by geothermal could set new standard for development

August 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

One of Chicago’s first all-electric, geothermal-powered residential high-rises is taking shape in Fulton Market.

Ald. Bill Conway, 34th, left, and Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, talk during a City Council Finance Committee meeting at City Hall, July 13, 2026. Reilly praised the overall plan, but said it’s been a struggle over the past few days to get details from the Department of Planning and Development. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Key City Council committee green-lights $424 million in public funding for Chicago Fire stadium site

July 13, 2026 at 7:05 p.m.

A City Council committee voted Monday to use $424 million in property taxes to help build new infrastructure around the Chicago Fire’s downtown soccer stadium site.

John Altstadt stands in a cornfield across the street from his neighborhood in Hoffman Estates on July 1, 2026. The cornfield is part of the 186-acre Plum Farms property where a data center has been proposed, though the developer recently withdrew his request. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Data center developer reverses course in Hoffman Estates, days before vote on controversial plan

July 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Just days before the Hoffman Estates Village Board was set to vote on a controversial plan to rezone a patch of farmland for possible use as a data center, the...

A shopper exits a JCPenney store with "store closing" signs at Ford City Mall in Chicago on June 19, 2026. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Ford City Mall’s main building shutters for good on Monday, but the site’s future remains in limbo

June 21, 2026 at 5:07 p.m.

The vast indoor mall had a six-decade run as a top retail destination and gathering place for the Southwest Side’s West Lawn community, but a growing number of empty stores...

One of Chicago's largest law firms is ready to occupy more than half of a proposed West Loop tower, pictured here in a rendering, at 725 W. Randolph St. (Related Midwest & KPF)

Deal with law firm likely to kick off construction of downtown Chicago’s first new office skyscraper in years

June 16, 2026 at 6:07 p.m.

One of Chicago's largest law firms is ready to occupy more than half of a proposed West Loop tower, a deal likely to kick off construction of the first new...

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