The Chicago Riverwalk is a multi-use public open space located on the south bank of the main branch of the Chicago River in Chicago, extending from Lake Michigan and Lake Shore Drive westward to Lake Street. [1] The Chicago Riverwalk contains restaurants, bars, cafes, small parks, boat and kayak rentals, a Vietnam War memorial, and other amenities. [2]
In conjunction with the Chicago Department of Transportation, construction of the Riverwalk began in 2001 as an extension of the Wacker Drive reconstruction project. With the rebuilding of Wacker Drive, the street was purposely relocated to allow for development of the walk. The oldest section now called Market, between Lake Shore Drive and Michigan Avenue was at first an extension of the lake shore trail with tour boat docks, concessions and stair access. [3] Sections at first required going up to street and bridge level to access the next section, until design plans and funding could be arranged over time.
The plan developed by architects at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill called for four separate districts within the riverwalk: Confluence, Arcade, Civic and Market, all with a specific location and theme in mind.
At State and Wabash Streets where the Riverwalk is at its widest is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Plaza, commemorating events that took place during that war. Designed by Ross Barney Architects and built in 2005, it is nestled within the Riverwalk and consists of a terraced lawn, a waterfall and a central pool. The Chicago Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Plaza, one of the largest in the nation outside of Washington, D.C., connects people to the riverfront, provides an escape from the steel and glass of the City, and bejewels the City's waterfront. Its public objectives and finished forms embody what a memorial plaza should be; a remembrance of those that served, and a celebration of the living. The plaza occupies land, reclaimed by the rebuilding and relocation of Wacker Drive, to create an urban park, with terraces and bench-lined ramps that gently transition from busy city streets to more quiet spaces near the river, providing a green refuge. [7]
Plans were announced to deploy the full intention of a connected path from Lake Michigan west toward Lake Street. Ross Barney Architects was again charged with envisioning this extension. Phase 01 was completed in 2009 with under-bridge canopies and new landscaping added south of State Street. [8]
On October 8, 2012, Mayor Rahm Emanuel unveiled plans for an addition to the Riverwalk, extending it another six blocks along Chicago's River from State to Lake streets. [9] Phases Two and Three of the Riverwalk, a collaborative design effort between Sasaki and Ross Barney Architects, links a series of six distinct civic spaces or "rooms", each named for its unique program. [10] Floating gardens, a bridge and fishing piers aim to create more recreational options for the city's "Second Lakefront," and connect the downtown area. [9] As of early summer 2015, three of the rooms were finished, completing Phase Two: the Marina (food vendors and seating to watch watercraft), the Cove (boating and kayak rentals), and the River Theater (amphitheater seating and a link to Upper Wacker Drive). Phase Three, the final three blocks, is planned to be completed by the end of 2016. [11] [12]
In June 2015, The Marina Plaza, The Cove, and The River Theater sections of the Riverwalk from State Street to LaSalle Street was officially opened. [13]
The City has been working on the development plan for the Chicago Riverwalk since the 1990s. During the reconstruction of East-West Wacker Drive, the roadway was reconfigured to allow greater public access to the river. The City received Congressional approval to redefine the navigational channel allowing the build-out of the path 20 feet under each bridge and 25 feet between each bridge and 50 feet between Franklin and Lake Street in order to extend the Riverwalk.
The City obtained $98 million for design engineering and construction from the U.S. Department of Transportation through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act. The remaining phase along the south bank of the river from Lake Street to State Street was connected to the previously completed section of the Riverwalk.
In October 2016, The Water Plaza, The Jetty, and The Boardwalk sections from LaSalle Street to Lake Street opened to the public. [14]
The city has a $10M renovation plan of the Riverwalk east of State Street. This includes new landscaping, seating, play areas, and walkways. [15]
The Riverwalk is one of several mega and large scale development projects over the last several years either completed, under construction, or planned in Chicago. Others include the 606, Lincoln Yards, The 78, One Chicago, Wolf Point Towers, Tribune East Tower, Bronzeville Lakefront, One Central, a city casino, an $8.5 billion revamp of O'Hare International Airport, an extension of the Red Line subway/elevated train, and the Barack Obama Presidential Center among other projects.
The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of 156 miles (251 km) that runs through the city of Chicago, including its center. Though not especially long, the river is notable because it is one of the reasons for Chicago's geographic importance: the related Chicago Portage is a link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basin, and ultimately the Gulf of Mexico.
Grant Park is a large urban park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Located within the city's central business district, the 319-acre (1.29 km2) park's features include Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum Campus.
The Loop, one of Chicago's 77 designated community areas, is the central business district of the city and is the main section of Downtown Chicago. Home to Chicago's commercial core, it is the second largest commercial business district in North America after Midtown Manhattan in New York City, and contains the headquarters and regional offices of several global and national businesses, retail establishments, restaurants, hotels, and theaters, as well as many of Chicago's most famous attractions. It is home to Chicago's City Hall, the seat of Cook County, and numerous offices of other levels of government and consulates of foreign nations. The intersection of State Street and Madison Street is the origin point for the address system on Chicago's street grid. Most of Grant Park's 319 acres are in the eastern section of the community area. The Loop community area is bounded on the north and west by the Chicago River, on the east by Lake Michigan, and on the south by Roosevelt Road.
Michigan Avenue is a north-south street in Chicago that runs at 100 east on the Chicago grid. The northern end of the street is at Lake Shore Drive on the shore of Lake Michigan in the Gold Coast Historic District. The street's southern terminus is at Sibley Boulevard in the southern suburb of Dolton, but like many other Chicago streets, it exists in several disjointed segments.
Lake Shore Drive is an expressway that runs alongside the shoreline of Lake Michigan, and adjacent to parkland and beaches, in Chicago. Except for the portion north of Foster Avenue, Lake Shore Drive is designated as part of U.S. Highway 41. A portion of the expressway on the Outer Drive Bridge and its bridge approaches is multilevel.
The Milwaukee River is a river in the state of Wisconsin. It is about 104 miles (167 km) long. Once a locus of industry, the river is now the center of a housing boom. New condos now crowd the downtown and harbor districts of Milwaukee attracting young professionals to the area. The river is also ribboned with parks as it winds through various neighborhoods. Kayaks and fishing boats share the river with party boats. An extensive Riverwalk featuring art displays, boat launches and restaurants lines its banks in downtown Milwaukee.
Wacker Drive is a major multilevel street in Chicago, Illinois, running along the south side of the main branch and the east side of the south branch of the Chicago River in the Loop. The vast majority of the street is double-decked; the upper level intended for local traffic, and the lower level for through-traffic and trucks serving buildings on the road. It is sometimes cited as a precursor to the freeway, though when it was built the idea was that pleasure vehicles would use the upper level. It is the only street in the city that is prefixed with all four cardinal directions, albeit on different parts of its route. The drive is named for early 20th century Chicago businessman and city planner Charles H. Wacker.
Downtown Chicago, Illinois, has some double-decked and a few triple-decked streets immediately north and south of the Main Branch and immediately east of the South Branch of the Chicago River. The most famous and longest of these is Wacker Drive, which replaced the South Water Street Market upon its 1926 completion. The resulting bi-level street has an upper-level riverfront boulevard, a lower-level roadway for commercial and through traffic, and a recreational walkway at water level.
The Chicago Pedway is a network of tunnels, ground-level concourses and bridges in Chicago, Illinois connecting skyscrapers, retail stores, hotels, and train stations throughout the central business district.
Randolph Street is a street in Chicago. It runs east–west through the Chicago Loop, carrying westbound traffic west from Michigan Avenue across the Chicago River on the Randolph Street Bridge, interchanging with the Kennedy Expressway (I-90/I-94), and continuing west. It serves as the northern boundary of Grant Park and the Chicago Landmark Historic Michigan Boulevard District. Several large theaters, as well as city and state government buildings are on and adjacent to Randolph. Metra's Millennium Station is located under Randolph Street.
Lakeshore East is a master-planned mixed use urban development being built by the Magellan Development Group in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is located in the northeastern part of the Loop, which, along with Illinois Center, is called the New Eastside. The development is bordered by Wacker Drive to the north, Columbus Drive to the west, Lake Shore Drive to the east, and East Randolph Street to the south. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill created the master plan for the area. The development, which had been scheduled for completion in 2011, was set for completion in 2013 by 2008. Development continued with revised plans for more buildings in 2018 and continuing construction of the Vista Tower in 2019.
The DuSable Bridge is a bascule bridge that carries Michigan Avenue across the main stem of the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States. The bridge was proposed in the early 20th century as part of a plan to link Grant Park (downtown) and Lincoln Park (uptown) with a grand boulevard. Construction of the bridge started in 1918, it opened to traffic in 1920, and decorative work was completed in 1928. The bridge provides passage for vehicles and pedestrians on two levels. An example of a fixed trunnion bascule bridge, it may be raised to allow tall ships and boats to pass underneath. The bridge is included in the Michigan–Wacker Historic District and has been designated as a Chicago Landmark.
Ping Tom Memorial Park is a 17.24-acre (6.98 ha) public urban park in Chicago's Chinatown neighborhood, in South Side, Chicago. It is part of the Chicago Park District (CPD).
The Detroit International Riverfront is a tourist attraction and landmark of Detroit, Michigan, extending from the Ambassador Bridge in the west to Belle Isle in the east, for a total of 5.5 miles. The International Riverfront encompasses a cruise ship passenger terminal and dock, a marina, a multitude of parks, restaurants, retail shops, skyscrapers, and high rise residential areas along with Huntington Place. The Marriott at the Renaissance Center and the Robert's Riverwalk Hotel are also situated along the International Riverfront. Private companies and foundations together with the city, state, and federal government have contributed several hundred million dollars toward the riverfront development. Key public spaces in the International Riverfront, such as the RiverWalk, Dequindre Cut Greenway and Trail, William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor, and a cruise ship passenger terminal and dock at Hart Plaza complement the architecture of the area. The area provides a venue for a variety of annual events and festivals including the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, Detroit Free Press International Marathon, the Detroit International Jazz Festival, Motor City Pride, the North American International Auto Show, River Days and Detroit China Festival. In February 2021, the Detroit International Riverfront was voted best riverwalk in the United States by USA Today readers. It was selected a second time as the best riverwalk in the U.S. in 2022.
The Chattahoochee RiverWalk is a 22-mile walking and biking area along the Chattahoochee River in Columbus, Georgia, United States. The trail is paved with asphalt, concrete, or brick. Due to the RiverWalk bike path, Columbus has been listed by the League of American Bicyclists as one of the forty most Bicycle Friendly Communities in the United States.
Stuyvesant Cove Park is a 1.9-acre (7,700 m2) public park on the East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan that runs from 18th Street to 23rd Street between the FDR Drive and the East River. Part of the East River Greenway, it is located to the south of the Waterside Plaza apartment complex, to the east of Stuyvesant Town–Peter Cooper Village, and to the north of the East River Park, and connects to the Captain Patrick J. Brown Walk on the south end. Stuyvesant Cove is served by the NYC Ferry Soundview route.
Wolf Point is the location at the confluence of the North, South and Main Branches of the Chicago River in the present day Near North Side, Loop, and Near West Side community areas of Chicago. This fork in the river is historically important in the development of early Chicago. Located about 1.6 miles (2.6 km) from Lake Michigan, this was the location of Chicago's first three taverns, its first hotel, Sauganash Hotel, its first ferry, its first drug store, its first church, its first theater company, and the first bridges across the Chicago River. The name is said to possibly derive from a Native American Chief whose name translated to wolf, but alternate theories exist.
The East River Greenway is an approximately 9.44-mile-long (15.19 km) foreshoreway for walking or cycling on the east side of the island of Manhattan on the East River. It is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separated from motor traffic, and many sections also separate pedestrians from cyclists. The greenway is parallel to the Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive for a majority of its length.
Ida B. Wells Drive is a major east–west street in downtown Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It runs east from the Jane Byrne Interchange, where it meets Interstate 90 (I-90), I-94 and I-290. At Wells Street, Ida B. Wells Drive continues as a surface street past State Street and Michigan Avenue, until ending at Columbus Drive in Grant Park in front of the Buckingham Fountain. In 2018, the editorial board of The New York Times praised the Chicago City Council's renaming of the street to honor the journalist and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells.
The Scioto Mile Promenade, also known simply as the Promenade, is a public park and promenade in downtown Columbus, Ohio. The park is part of the Scioto Mile network of parks and trails around the city's downtown area, and has a riverwalk stretching along the east bank of the Scioto River, from Battelle Riverfront Park to Bicentennial Park.
41°53′18″N87°37′18″W / 41.8883°N 87.6218°W
