Want to speed up a road or transit project? Just host a political convention

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago officials had planned to open a new elevated train station near the United Center more than four years ago, but numerous delays left some neighbors wondering if it ever would happen.

Then the Democratic National Committee picked the city to host its convention.

Construction crews scrambled to finish work this month on the Damen green line L stop before delegates arrived, with most of the high-profile events set for the home of the Bulls and Blackhawks less than a half-mile away. Featuring such flourishes as wooden ceilings, a colorful mural and a glass pedestrian walkway overlooking the Chicago skyline, the new station fills a 1.5-mile (2.4-kilometer) service gap created when a previous stop there closed in 1948.

“It was on target to get done, but the DNC made it quicker,” said Alderman Walter Burnett, who spent years lobbying for the project for his West Side City Council ward. “That helped a lot, and I loved it.”

Cities might factor the ability to host major events when prioritizing infrastructure upgrades, but rarely do they embark on big-ticket projects just to land a political convention or woo its delegates. Speeding up construction, however, is another matter.

Victor Matheson, economics professor at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, co-authored a study that concluded the economic expectations for hosting national political conventions are often “unrealistically large.” Still, he said, there’s “a lot of political will” to accelerate already planned upgrades to impress out-of-town guests — even for an event that lasts just four days.

“The real question with these sort of things is, if this is such a good project, why wasn’t the political will there before?” Matheson said.

After the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, officials there concluded the event directly generated $214 million for the local economy. But more than half the amount cited was for telecommunications upgrades the city would have eventually needed anyway, Matheson said.

Milwaukee hosted last month’s Republican National Convention and the pandemic-altered 2020 Democratic National Convention without any significant public infrastructure investments directly tied to them, city engineer Kevin Muhs said. However, it did adjust the timing of some road projects earlier this year in anticipation of a citywide construction halt during the RNC.

One of Milwaukee's most politically divisive infrastructure projects is the streetcar known as The Hop, which expanded service to the lakefront earlier this year over objections from some Republicans who argued it was a waste of money. But part of the city’s agreement with the Republican National Committee to host the convention stipulated that the service would be open for delegates to use, Muhs said.

Landing the 2016 Republican National Convention was a major reason Cleveland accelerated construction on overdue airport upgrades, a large downtown park called Public Square and a hotel attached to the convention center, said David Gilbert, who served as CEO of the local host committee.

“It was a city that had gone through decades of hard times and was coming back,” Gilbert said, citing the nearly 15,000 members of the national media that descended on Cleveland for the RNC. “It was a great way to show we were ready to host this sort of thing.”

Many of the upgrades were already in place a month earlier when the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Golden State Warriors for their first NBA championship, with home games in the same arena. And the spruced-up downtown was back on the national stage once again that fall with the World Series, which the Cleveland Indians lost in Game 7 to the visiting Chicago Cubs.

During the news conference and ribbon-cutting at the new Chicago L station, officials made only passing references to the Democratic National Convention and instead focused on the transit help for underserved residents on the South and West sides.

Still, Mayor Brandon Johnson concluded his remarks with a nod to the convention, proclaiming that Chicago was “ready to host the world ... so this station comes at a perfect time.”

Commuters Take Action, a group that advocates for more reliable transit options in Chicago, called it “a little sad that it took the hosting of the DNC instead of the everyday needs of Chicagoans to get this project across the finish line.” However, the group’s statement celebrated the station’s opening and encouraged visitors to use transit during the convention and push for more funding on a national level.

Some residents who took the train out of the Damen station on its first day wondered just how influential the convention was in moving up the grand opening.

“I feel like it shouldn’t be the main fuel for projects like this. It should be the communities and the people who live in them,” rider Angelica Arzuaga said. “But I guess it’s a win-win.”

A Chicago Transit Authority employee paints a post at the Ashland Ave. station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

A Chicago Transit Authority employee paints a post at the Ashland Ave. station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

A pedestrian and child walk past a Chicago Transit Authority employee as he makes repairs at the Ashland Ave. station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Chicago Transit Authority employees work on the platform at the Ashland Ave. station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Construction continues on the new Chicago Transit Authority's Damen Ave. Green Line station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Construction continues on the new Chicago Transit Authority's Damen Ave. Green Line station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

A Chicago Transit Authority Green Line train passes the new Damen Ave. station Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention will convene Monday, August 19, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

A Chicago Transit Authority train pulls into the new Damen Ave. station just two blocks from the United Center Monday, Aug. 12, 2024, one week before the start of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

A Chicago Transit Authority train pulls into the new Damen Ave. station just two blocks from the United Center Monday, Aug. 12, 2024, one week before the start of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

LAKE FOREST, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 3, 2025--

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250403102966/en/

The accomplished industry leader and 16-year Toshiba executive is now responsible for positioning the company's products, solutions and services for further success while ensuring revenue objectives are met.

As Toshiba's vice president of sales operations and TBS Latin America, Hawkins oversaw the organization’s sales operations, professional services, project management, managed print services, business development and sales training across U.S. and Latin American distribution channels. Upon joining Toshiba as vice president of operations & acquisitions in November 2009, Hawkins shortly thereafter took over as vice president of TBS, the company's direct sales operation, in May 2010. Prior to joining Toshiba, Hawkins established and refined his sales, marketing and operations acumen in the office technology industry for more than 25 years primarily in high-level roles at Danka Office Imaging.

"Jim is simply an invaluable member of Team Toshiba," states Toshiba America Business Solutions President and Chief Executive Officer Larry White. "He and his teams consistently meet or exceed our domestic and international operational expectations year after year. As our COO, Jim's impact across our entire organization is sure to be even more impactful."

"I'm very much looking forward to collaborating with teammates throughout our organization to ensure Toshiba's products, services and solutions remain positioned for success," says Hawkins. "I'm also here to provide our organization with all of the tools and support necessary for them to continue achieving their collective objectives."

Hawkins is an ENX Magazine Difference Maker, one of the most prestigious honors in the office technology space. Toshiba's new COO is also a proud University of Central Florida Knight and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Orlando, Fla. public research university.

Click-to-Tweet: Toshiba Appoints Jim Hawkins as Chief Operating Officer

About Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc.

Toshiba America Business Solutions is a leading innovator of solutions empowering people to perform efficiently and effectively in their work environment. Serving professionals across the United States, Mexico, and Central and South America, Toshiba delivers secure and sustainable systems, services, and subscriptions to better print, manage, and display information. Toshiba continuously focuses on its clients and communities, is committed to sustainability, and is recognized as a Wall Street Journal Top 100 Sustainable Company. To learn more, please visit business.toshiba.com. Follow Toshiba on LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and YouTube.

Toshiba America Business Solutions is elevating its vice president of sales operations and Toshiba Business Solutions Latin America Jim Hawkins to the role of chief operating officer.