UC moving into Northwestern's turf

A turf war between two major university hospitals may be brewing just north of downtown Chicago.

In an attempt to compete with Northwestern Memorial Hospital in the downtown area, the University of Chicago Medical Center plans to open a physicians' practice just off North Michigan Avenue.

The move by the U. of C. to lease a floor on East Huron Street would give the South Side hospital a presence in the Streeterville neighborhood, which is dominated by providers of medical care affiliated with Northwestern University.

The U. of C. tried a decade ago to have a presence in downtown Chicago when it leased floor space on North LaSalle Street, but that effort lost money and was abandoned in the late 1990s.