Selected research example

New City pop-up license records: a window-sensitive increase

Pop-Up Retail User · 4409 · all other available filters

City source retrieved November 5, 2026 · scan evaluated November 9, 2026 · Review context · not a qualifying candidate

Current dashboard records may have been revised. Analyze is a separate action there. Saved-for-review choices stay in this browser and do not endorse a result.

24-month frequency comparison

Annual-only flag · window-sensitive review context. The two-year comparison does not qualify for the frequency ranking. The annual evidence is retained below, not erased.

October 2022–September 2024
67
October 2024–September 2026
186
Change in monthly mean
+4.96

The two windows each contain 24 complete covered months. The magnitude of the change is 2.78-fold. These are published license records, not a population-adjusted rate. Fixed windows do not establish a breakpoint, remove all seasonal effects or prove a renewal explanation.

12-month comparison · context, not the business ranking

October 2024–September 2025
29
October 2025–September 2026
157
Change in monthly mean
10.67

This annual comparison crosses the original screening gates. Two-year renewal schedules can put a pulse in one annual window and not the other. Opposing directions or threshold sensitivity can have other explanations; an annual-only label is not proof of a renewal cycle.

How to read this example

The New City series is license category 4409, labeled Pop-Up Retail User in the saved category catalogue. October 2024–September 2025 has 29 records; October 2025–September 2026 has 157. It passed the original annual screen but is now retained as window-sensitive review context, not a qualifying two-year frequency candidate.

The revised comparison is 67 records in October 2022–September 2024 versus 186 in October 2024–September 2026. The 2.78-fold difference passes the relative gate, but the monthly-mean increase is 119 divided by 24, or 4.9583 records—just below the declared five-record gate. Rounding for display must not turn this into a pass. This borderline result does not establish that the increase is unimportant or caused by renewals.

The counting date is the license term start, and license records include renewals. A jump in this category could reflect administrative practice or movement between categories. It cannot be read as 128 new shops, new establishments, jobs or a corresponding increase in local spending. Those are different quantities requiring different evidence.

Before drawing an economic conclusion, check the category definition and renewal practices over the same period, and ask whether the overall community license count changes in the same way. Those are proposed follow-ups, not completed investigations. The saved chart and exact monthly observations let a reader check the reported arithmetic without relying on a causal narrative.

Saved observations and fitted phases

Phase suggestions withheld: serial pattern remains in the candidate fits. Manual boundaries can explore, not confirm, a change.

Fixed six-log-cycle frame · 120 calendar months · factors per six months. Raw zeros stay zero; confirmed zeros become one only for log-space fitting and diagnostics. Missing coverage remains unavailable.

Monthly business license records on a standard celeration chartCity of Chicago published records. Fixed six-decade count scale, 120 calendar months, celeration per 6 months. Zero markers are unconnected below the plot. Exact counts and coverage are available in the data table. Analyze: suggested. Phase suggestions withheld: serial pattern remains in the candidate fits. Manual boundaries can explore, not confirm, a change. See the phase results table for dates, factors and uncertainty.1510501005001,0005,00010,00050,000100,000500,0001,000,000License records per monthSingle-trend reference: 2016-10–2026-09Jun 2017: 2Jun 2018: 1Jun 2019: 1Oct 2020: 10Nov 2020: 2Jan 2021: 1Jul 2021: 3Aug 2021: 5Sep 2021: 1Oct 2021: 2Apr 2022: 1May 2022: 3Jun 2022: 4Jul 2022: 4Aug 2022: 2Sep 2022: 5Oct 2022: 2Nov 2022: 1Dec 2022: 1Jan 2023: 3Mar 2023: 2Apr 2023: 1May 2023: 9Jun 2023: 3Jul 2023: 3Aug 2023: 4Sep 2023: 5Nov 2023: 1Dec 2023: 1Jan 2024: 1Feb 2024: 1Apr 2024: 3May 2024: 4Jun 2024: 4Jul 2024: 7Aug 2024: 4Sep 2024: 7Oct 2024: 2Nov 2024: 2Dec 2024: 1Jan 2025: 1Apr 2025: 2May 2025: 4Jun 2025: 4Jul 2025: 6Aug 2025: 3Sep 2025: 4Oct 2025: 2Nov 2025: 1Jan 2026: 1Feb 2026: 12Mar 2026: 12Apr 2026: 24May 2026: 24Jun 2026: 19Jul 2026: 19Aug 2026: 18Sep 2026: 25ZeroUnknownOct 2016: zero license records; not connectedNov 2016: zero license records; not connectedDec 2016: zero license records; not connectedJan 2017: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2017: zero license records; not connectedMar 2017: zero license records; not connectedApr 2017: zero license records; not connectedMay 2017: zero license records; not connectedJul 2017: zero license records; not connectedAug 2017: zero license records; not connectedSep 2017: zero license records; not connectedOct 2017: zero license records; not connectedNov 2017: zero license records; not connectedDec 2017: zero license records; not connectedJan 2018: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2018: zero license records; not connectedMar 2018: zero license records; not connectedApr 2018: zero license records; not connectedMay 2018: zero license records; not connectedJul 2018: zero license records; not connectedAug 2018: zero license records; not connectedSep 2018: zero license records; not connectedOct 2018: zero license records; not connectedNov 2018: zero license records; not connectedDec 2018: zero license records; not connectedJan 2019: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2019: zero license records; not connectedMar 2019: zero license records; not connectedApr 2019: zero license records; not connectedMay 2019: zero license records; not connectedJul 2019: zero license records; not connectedAug 2019: zero license records; not connectedSep 2019: zero license records; not connectedOct 2019: zero license records; not connectedNov 2019: zero license records; not connectedDec 2019: zero license records; not connectedJan 2020: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2020: zero license records; not connectedMar 2020: zero license records; not connectedApr 2020: zero license records; not connectedMay 2020: zero license records; not connectedJun 2020: zero license records; not connectedJul 2020: zero license records; not connectedAug 2020: zero license records; not connectedSep 2020: zero license records; not connectedDec 2020: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2021: zero license records; not connectedMar 2021: zero license records; not connectedApr 2021: zero license records; not connectedMay 2021: zero license records; not connectedJun 2021: zero license records; not connectedNov 2021: zero license records; not connectedDec 2021: zero license records; not connectedJan 2022: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2022: zero license records; not connectedMar 2022: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2023: zero license records; not connectedOct 2023: zero license records; not connectedMar 2024: zero license records; not connectedFeb 2025: zero license records; not connectedMar 2025: zero license records; not connectedDec 2025: zero license records; not connectedOct 2016Oct 2017Oct 2018Oct 2019Oct 2020Oct 2021Oct 2022Oct 2023Oct 2024Oct 2025Oct 2026Calendar months

Single-trend reference · exploratory · per six months

  1. 1 · Oct 2016–Sep 2026×1.10Direction uncertain (serial pattern) · 62 zeros fitted as 1

Check the evidence

Interpretation and limitations (14)
  • Exploratory description, not a forecast, causal explanation or proof of a change.
  • Approximate 95% factor intervals assume independent, constant-variance log residuals and fixed boundaries. They do not account for boundary search, serial dependence or source revisions.
  • Confirmed zeros are treated as 1 only for fitting and its diagnostics. Raw counts stay zero; low-count results depend on this convention.
  • Independent phase lines may jump at boundaries. Every observation belongs to exactly one phase.
  • Reporting, classifications and seasonality can change. Counts are not population-adjusted; a level shift without a slope change is not the target of this search.
  • Uses dated last-good cached data, not newly verified source counts.
  • 62 confirmed zeros fitted as 1; raw counts remain zero. Low-count trends are sensitive to this adjustment.
  • The best candidate failed the residual-independence diagnostic. A single-trend reference is shown instead; this does not establish a stable trend.
  • Serial pattern in residuals: independence is doubtful; the reported intervals may be too narrow. Seasonality is not modeled.
  • License records include renewals and use license-term dates. Category/ward changes and administrative practice can affect counts; these are not business openings, closures or employment.
  • Business frequency screening compares adjacent 24-month windows, requiring 48 complete months. The 12-month comparison is context only. Fixed two-year windows reduce renewal-calendar mismatch; they are not seasonal adjustment, proof of a renewal mechanism, or a test of stability.
  • Window assessment: annual-only. Annual-only flags do not enter the frequency ranking. Opposite directions and short history must not be described as persistent changes.
  • Many dependent filter conditions were searched. No multiple-testing-adjusted significance or causal attribution is claimed.
  • Frequency compares fixed equal-length windows of raw counts, not population risk or a celeration-factor ratio. Reporting, classifications and exposure may have changed.
Phase diagnostics

Intervals assume fixed boundaries and independent log residuals. They are not adjusted for the phase or filter search. Near-optimal boundary ranges are not confidence intervals.

Saved phase results
PhaseStart–endMonthsFactor / six monthsConditional 95% intervalZeros fitted as 1Lag-one residual
1October 2016–September 2026120×1.11.073–1.122620.590
Exact monthly observations (120 slots)

Newest first. Unknown coverage is not a zero. These are the original saved observations, not fitted or rounded predictions.

Raw monthly license records
MonthRaw countCoverage
September 202625complete
August 202618complete
July 202619complete
June 202619complete
May 202624complete
April 202624complete
March 202612complete
February 202612complete
January 20261complete
December 20250complete
November 20251complete
October 20252complete
September 20254complete
August 20253complete
July 20256complete
June 20254complete
May 20254complete
April 20252complete
March 20250complete
February 20250complete
January 20251complete
December 20241complete
November 20242complete
October 20242complete
September 20247complete
August 20244complete
July 20247complete
June 20244complete
May 20244complete
April 20243complete
March 20240complete
February 20241complete
January 20241complete
December 20231complete
November 20231complete
October 20230complete
September 20235complete
August 20234complete
July 20233complete
June 20233complete
May 20239complete
April 20231complete
March 20232complete
February 20230complete
January 20233complete
December 20221complete
November 20221complete
October 20222complete
September 20225complete
August 20222complete
July 20224complete
June 20224complete
May 20223complete
April 20221complete
March 20220complete
February 20220complete
January 20220complete
December 20210complete
November 20210complete
October 20212complete
September 20211complete
August 20215complete
July 20213complete
June 20210complete
May 20210complete
April 20210complete
March 20210complete
February 20210complete
January 20211complete
December 20200complete
November 20202complete
October 202010complete
September 20200complete
August 20200complete
July 20200complete
June 20200complete
May 20200complete
April 20200complete
March 20200complete
February 20200complete
January 20200complete
December 20190complete
November 20190complete
October 20190complete
September 20190complete
August 20190complete
July 20190complete
June 20191complete
May 20190complete
April 20190complete
March 20190complete
February 20190complete
January 20190complete
December 20180complete
November 20180complete
October 20180complete
September 20180complete
August 20180complete
July 20180complete
June 20181complete
May 20180complete
April 20180complete
March 20180complete
February 20180complete
January 20180complete
December 20170complete
November 20170complete
October 20170complete
September 20170complete
August 20170complete
July 20170complete
June 20172complete
May 20170complete
April 20170complete
March 20170complete
February 20170complete
January 20170complete
December 20160complete
November 20160complete
October 20160complete
Source and reproducibility
Publisher dataset
Business Licenses · City of Chicago
Source retrieved
2026-11-05T21:09:58.696Z
Publisher update
2026-11-05T11:01:01.000Z
Covered months
October 2016–September 2026
Source note
Source xqx5-8hwx. Joint day/category/hour/applicable-flag/ward/status counts; no addresses, coordinates or incident identifiers. Each year's cells reconcile with an independent source total. Reads are not an atomic publisher snapshot. License records by term start, including renewals; not new businesses. Ward is as published, not reconstructed historical boundaries. Prepared daily community-area snapshot; scheduled rebuild at 06:00 America/Chicago. Full supported history is rechecked for corrections. Retrieval timestamps are preserved; this is not a real-time feed. Local indexed neighborhood snapshot. Totals are for the loaded area before other filters, not citywide totals. Citywide and unassigned-area views use a separate network-backed scope.
Snapshot
daily-v1:8a9771a7-dde2-4246-9cf6-d11519e895d6:neighborhood-v2:064fc304ae162bd27fe3d35f964f27b5
Discovery method
multi-feed-turn-and-frequency-renewal-v2
Analyze method
exploratory-segmented-log10-ols-zero-as-one-v3
Search plan
a3ffccedeb8d8ce18a30df3636839f775af1e5188e55a1f685695133135c6e35
Evidence run
1f6860e64f2daa9ddc1cb42ee7498461de7055ae62d58de73bba00881e5b78c3

Challenge the pattern

Check unfiltered totals, comparable communities, source revisions and administrative definitions before treating this candidate as evidence of a real-world explanation. Only explicitly documented follow-ups above have been performed; no others are implied by the ranking. Browse the other business licenses candidates or review the complete screening method.