It comes more than a year after Pritzker, alongside developers, city and county leaders, announced the 128-acre Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park<\/a> at the former U.S. Steel South Works facility. Co-developers CRG and Related Midwest purchased the land from U.S. Steel this month \u2014 the last step needed after the project netted city approvals<\/a> last year. The developers received financing for the land purchase from funds managed by private credit lender Blue Owl Capital.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gov. JB Pritzker (center right) and Mayor Brandon Johnson (center left) lift ceremonial shovels at the groundbreaking of the Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park.<\/p>\n Candace Dane Chambers\/Sun-Times<\/p>\n \u201cThis project has been marked by individuals who decided this was going to happen and wouldn\u2019t let it not happen,\u201d Related Midwest CEO Curt Bailey said. \u201cNumber one [on] the list: Governor Pritzker.\u201d<\/p>\n The park is estimated to have an economic impact of $50 billion over the next 20 years, Mayor Brandon Johnson said. It\u2019s also projected to create thousands of jobsfrom quantum computing to construction and retail.<\/p>\n PsiQuantum will create 150 jobs, as the campus\u2019 anchor tenant. The 500-person company expects to hire more as it grows its presence at the campus.<\/p>\n The park is the crown jewel of what Related Midwest and CRG have dubbed Quantum Shore Chicago, the 440 acres where U.S. Steel used to operate. The steel mill closed in 1992, and various redevelopment plans for the site withered over the years.<\/p>\n Developers envision Quantum Shore as a hub for innovation, drawing businesses from fields such as quantum computing, technology and health care. Advocate Health Care will build a new 52-bed hospital<\/a> on Quantum Shore\u2019s north end.<\/p>\n The park will consist of more than 100 acres on the south end of the site. It will include a cryoplant, equipment labs, research and office spaces for local universities and private companies. PsiQuantum will occupy a 80,700-square-foot office and research building, and several buildings will be built in the future for the company. <\/p>\n Quantum computing creates infinite combinations of the binary bits used by computers to calculate larger and more complex problems. It could lead to the manufacturing of new medical drugs and make sensitive data almost impermeable to hacking, among other possibilities touted by experts.<\/p>\n Other companies like IBM<\/a> and Diraq<\/a> recently announced they\u2019ll join the park. The U.S. Department of Defense\u2019s research and development agency, or DARPA, will also take residency, where it will establish a program to test quantum computing prototypes.<\/p>\n \u201cThis can be an engine of transformational economic growth,\u201d Pritzker said of the campus. \u201cWith new jobs at all skill levels, innovation at a rapid pace and a global scale, and a major influx of demand in construction and manufacturing and retail and agriculture and services and beyond \u2014 that is a level of impact that can anchor growth for Illinois and a revitalization of this very neighborhood that will span generations.\u201d<\/p>\n Community response<\/p>\n Some small businesses and neighbors are excited about the benefits the quantum campus will bring, after the land sat underutilized for decades.<\/p>\n But others have reservations.<\/p>\n The Coalition for South Works CBA has been pushing for a legally binding agreement, or a community benefits agreement<\/a>, that would ensure residents benefit from the project. The coalition includes residents and more than 40 organizations like the Alliance of the Southeast, as well as businesses and churches.<\/p>\n![\"Gov.](\"https:\/\/cst.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/7879c48\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/5044x3364+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F81%2F56%2Fdb1d73cb45b7b2488e7e1b035fb3%2Fquantum-100125-0019.jpg\")
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