Landscape Information
This approximately 25-foot wide, 1.25-mile-long linear park extends from Lake Michigan to Lake Street, paralleling the southern bank of the Chicago River. Nestled between the river’s main branch and the Beaux-Arts viaduct of Wacker Drive, the waterfront park contains a continuous promenade with opportunities for commerce and recreation, as proposed in Daniel H. Burnham and Edward H. Bennett's Plan of Chicago in 1909.
The Riverwalk’s history began in 1976 when landscape architect Joe Karr designed a section to pedestrianize and revitalize the two blocks between Wabash and Dearborn Streets. In 2001 the reclamation of the river for pedestrian use began in earnest, and the Riverwalk was extended from the lakefront to Michigan Avenue (2005). In 2009 the city commissioned Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) to prepare a framework plan; over the next seven years the city engaged several firms—including Sasaki, Jacobs/Ryan Associates, Site Design Group, and Ross Barney Architects—to complete the park.
With distinct segments defined by bascule bridges, the park is unified throughout by a continuous paved walkway that provides uninterrupted views of the opposite shore, with skyscrapers serving as a backdrop. Moving inland from Lake Michigan’s shoreline, the walkway is framed by beds planted with birch and hackberry trees and is often flanked by docks. At Michigan Avenue, where the park curves to follow the course of the river, a Vietnam War Memorial Plaza is flanked by terraced steps and animated by a central fountain. The segments west of State Street interpret distinct landscape typologies including marina, cove, jetty, and riverbank. One, segment known as the “river theater,” connects with Wacker Drive via a staircase and is distinguished by concrete stair-ramps, or “stramps,” and rows of honey locust trees. Another, “the jetty,” includes modest piers that extend into the river at various angles, supporting fish habitats.
In 2018 the segment between State to Franklin Streets, designed by Sasaki and Ross Barney Architects, received an Honor Award in General Design from the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA).
