Hours after Chicago's Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority announced plans Tuesday to construct a $400-million hotel near McCormick Place, the city's largest convention center, the site's owner indicated it had invested millions of dollars to locate an alternative project there.
In a written statement, JRM Technology President James R. McHugh said his firm, an affiliate of James McHugh Construction Co., planned to develop a $400-million data center on the site. “The plan has already received City Council approval and we would start construction as soon as a building permit is issued,” said McHugh.