The Last Four Miles: Completing Chicago’s Lakefront Parks
In 1973 the Lake Michigan and Chicago Lakefront Protection Ordinance established a special lakefront district and mandates the City of Chicago to create parks along the entire Chicago Lakefront: “Complete the publicly owned and locally controlled park system along the entire Chicago Lakefront.” The existing 26 miles of Chicago’s public lakeshore park system create a linear park expanse that is unrivaled around the world for its beauty and public accessibility. However, two lakefront stretches, which total approximately four miles, are not part of the continuous lakefront park system: two miles along the south lakefront between 71st and 95th Streets; two miles on the north lakefront between Hollywood and the Evanston border. These four miles include the last remaining barriers to an uninterrupted chain of shoreline parks that all city residents can enjoy: new places to walk, bike, wade, explore nature or just gaze out over the expanse of Lake Michigan.
Motivated by the Burnham Centennial Celebration in 2009 and the mandate of the Lake Michigan and Chicago Lakefront Protection Ordinance to create parks along the entire Chicago lakefront, FOTP began a new initiative to work with citizens, park advisory councils, community groups and public officials to envision a plan to complete Chicago’s lakefront park system from Evanston to the Indiana border.
