Chicago now offers developers the chance to build bigger buildings in its booming downtown area if they pay into a fund that goes towards economic development in poorer parts of the city. Developers took them up on the offer: in a little over a year, the city has received commitments to pay $35 million into the Neighbourhood Opportunity Fund, and it recently ran the first round of grant funding from a $4 million pot. Thirty-two applicants received grants to acquire, build or renovate properties for projects, from bakeries to cinemas, that add value to their historically underserved neighbourhoods.

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