Add water to land; add land to water (Chicago, Evanston: neighborhoods, buy)

[edsg25]

Think of the many ways we have charged the landscape of Chicagoland through the inclusion of land in water and water in land...

virtually all of Lincoln Park and much of our South Side lakefront parkland is from fill into Michigan. Most of what is east of Michigan Avenue in Streeterville, Grant Park, Lakeshore East, Museum Campus is fill....with the Museum Campus area giving us the peninsula that is Northerly Island. In Evanston, NU has a good portion its campus on fill.

The Chicago River was given a straightened channel south of the Loop and north of the Loop on the North Bridge, a channel was built going from the river and ending up back in it to create Goose Island. Up on the North Shore, the sanitary district canal lands on the Evanston/Skokie border are sided with parkland.

If you could change our environment to make a better Chicagoland today in reasonable/possible ways, what might you do to...

put land in the lake, in the form of peninsulas, islands, or even just straight out expansion of beach/parkland

and/or

bring water to the land in the city, possibly by canals that would extend the rivers (would you like to see the South Branch of the river connected by canal to Lake Michigan, somewhere in the vicinity of McCPl?), possibly in the form of man made lakes (a number exist in the area, Lake Arlington in Arl Hts being a large and prominent one), lagoons that mimic the work done when the city beautiful era produced such in lakefront parks and in endless inland parks, tied together by the parkway system.

[NealIRC]

Chicago could use more artificial waterfalls. There was 1 on Diversey and Pulaski in the '70s but taken down.

[NealIRC]

All of Chicago's artificial ponds, except 1, are in parks (Garfield Park, Marquette Park).

I used to live 1 block from this artificial pond:

[OyCrumbler]

Some hills might be a good addition. There's Palmisano and Mt. Trashmore in Evanston.

[ToriaT]

I would be completely against putting anything in the lake or changing it anymore. I am not opposed to creating artificial ponds or wetlands in parks if it makes sense.

[beaniemac]

Originally Posted by NealIRC

All of Chicago's artificial ponds, except 1, are in parks (Garfield Park, Marquette Park).

I used to live 1 block from this artificial pond:

thats right over there off 79th, just west of vincennes.

[IrishIllini]

I'd totally be game for restoring the prairies and wetlands out in the burbs. Would help tremendously with flooding. Hopefully the South Side bottoms out sooner rather than later, but if things continue to head south that way (no pun intended) it would be cool to give parts of it back to nature. Maybe buy out existing properties and have those living there relocated to other declining neighborhoods. Increased density/foot traffic shouldn't make things worse...plus there'd be some cool forest preserve type places nearby.

[NealIRC]

Originally Posted by beaniemac

thats right over there off 79th, just west of vincennes.

Yup. I looked at the map around there and it seems in the whole city, there's only 1 pond in any street.

I heard there used to be a hospital there.

The park district puts fish in there as people often fish.

There's also man-made mini fountains in the summer times.

[xsboost]

Originally Posted by ToriaT

I would be completely against putting anything in the lake or changing it anymore. I am not opposed to creating artificial ponds or wetlands in parks if it makes sense.

Yup. Same.

[Alacran]

Wish we had some sort of peak at the edge of town to view the city lights at night.

Traveling out west makes you realize how Chicago lacks views.