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CICERO, IL-Wirtz Beverage tells GlobeSt.com that it is nearing completion of its new 604,970-square-foot office and industrial property The beverage company, which also owns the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team, built on the site of the former Sportsman’s Park horse racetrack here, once a hangout of some of Chicago’s most famous mobsters.
The racetrack was once used for dog racing, but became the reputed “employer” and hangout of many mob figures when it was run by Edward O’Hare, father of the airport’s namesake, the war-decorated Edward “Butch” O’Hare. The elder O’Hare, an attorney, represented Al Capone for his various businesses, was murdered in 1939 after helping the US put Capone in prison for tax evasion. He was shot to death in his car shortly after leaving the racetrack.
Sportsman’s was never considered successful, as the Hawthorne horse track, another also operated nearby (also at one point run by Capone). The town bought the 80-acre Sportsman’s for $16 million after it closed in 2002, following an unsuccessful try as an automobile racetrack.
The DiMucci Cos. had proposed a $150 million mixed-use project for the site, including a convention center, hotel and retail center. The John Buck Co. took up the retail plan, but that project failed as well in 2009. In early 2011, the town voted to sell half the land to Wirtz for the hub property, as well as some retail.
Now, Wirtz says the facility will serve as the company’s hub for sales, wine/spirits distributon and training programs. The office portion of the building is about 100,000 square feet. The site also includes the Bobby Hull Community Ice Rink, which opened in December 2011. It’s not clear what the city intends to do with the other half of the property.
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