Chicago Riverwalk Expansion
Li Yang, Huang Zhuoya   Nov 14.2018
Description Maps

Introduction

The Chicago River has a long and rich history, and it presents the development of the Chicago city itself in many ways. The Chicago River used to be a hazy swamp that was later hardened into an engineering river to support the city's industrial transformation. In order to improve the sanitation situation, the city reversed the direction of the river trunk and the south branch, after which architect and city designer Daniel Burnham proposed a new vision for the River Walk and the Wake Road Viaduct.

In the past decade, the role of the river has changed again with the Chicago Riverfront project – regaining the urban ecology and leisure benefits of the Chicago River.The goal of embracing the river as a recreational amenity seemed impossible years ago given the river’s high levels of pollution. But today that vision is becoming a reality. Recent improvements in river water quality and the increased intensity of public recreational use signal growing life along the river, demanding new connections to the water’s edge. Accordingly, the Chicago Department of Transportation and Ross Barney Architects led Phase One of the Riverwalk, an initial segment that includes Veteran’s Memorial Plaza and the Bridgehouse Museum Plaza.

Reason to Be Selected

In 2012, the team of Sasaki, Ross Barney Architects, Alfred Benesch Engineers, and Jacobs/Ryan Associates, supported by technical consultants, was tasked with completing the vision for Phases Two and Three: six blocks between State Street and Lake Street. Building off the previous studies of the river, the team’s plans provide a pedestrian connection along the river between the lake and the river’s confluence.

Highlights:

From heavy pollution to riverside recreation

Reconnection of cities and rivers.

Details

In 2012, the design team created a vision for six blocks between State Street and Lake Street. Based on previous river research, the team's proposed Chicago Riverfront Concept Plan provides the final critical link between lakes and urban pedestrian systems, as well as river tributaries in cities. But this task is technically challenging. The design team needed to expand the pedestrian project space in a limited 7.6-meter-wide built-up area and coordinate with a series of sections across the bridge. In addition, the design also needs to adapt to the annual flooding of the river, with a vertical height difference of nearly two meters.

Recommended

The team put forward new ideas for this linear park. Instead of a building-oriented trail full of right-angled turns, the trail is seen as a relatively independent system – through its own form of change, it promotes the formation of a series of new functional connections to the river. The new connections make the riverside life more colorful, and each block presents a different form, representing a river-based function. These spaces include:

Marina Square: The restaurant and open-air seating allow people to view the dynamic scenes on the river, including barge sailing, fire department patrols, water taxis and sightseeing boats.

Xiaohewan: rent and store kayaks and canoes, and connect people with water through leisure activities.

Riverside Theatre: The sculptural staircase connecting Wacker and the riverside provides a pedestrian connection to the riverside, and the surrounding trees provide green and shade.

Water Square: The Water View facility provides an opportunity for children and families to interact with water on the river.

Pier: A series of docks and floating island wetland gardens provide an interactive learning environment for people to understand river ecology, including opportunities to fish and know native plants.

Promenade: The barrier-free trails and the new waterfront edge create a continuous experience that leads to Lake Street and establish a backdrop for future development at key intersections.

Conclusions

For many cities, riverside recreation is still an unreachable goal due to river pollution. Relevant departments should start from the improvement of the water quality and the functional quality of the public space along the river, increase the riverside life, and encourage the connection of urban blocks to the waterfront.

 



Lat: 42.8783
Lng: -86.3633
Type:
Region: NorthAmerica
Scale: District
Field: Landscape
City: Chicago
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