Environmental work at The 78 in South Loop, which will have Chicago Fire stadium, to begin this week

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Changes are coming to the South Loop with work set to begin to prepare the area known as The 78 for development.

The centerpiece will be a new Chicago Fire stadium.

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Crews are expected to start environmental remediation at The 78 this week. This will be part of Phase 1 of development, which will last four to six weeks.

During this time remediation materials and impacted soil will be moved by trucks.

This will kick off the groundwork for the $8 billion project in the South Loop.

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The project includes a $750 million privately funded stadium for the Chicago Fire.

The 78 site will also have businesses, parks, more than 5,000 apartment units.

Last September, City Council approved plans for the new stadium.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency also gave the developer the greenlight to begin work.

The new stadium is expected to seat over 22,000 people and open by 2028. Developers say the project would create up to 15,000 jobs.