Plan to Turn Kennedy Expressway Into a Park Still Kicking

Written By on April 6, 2015

Rendering of proposed park over the Kennedy Expressway

Remember that plan floated by Fifield Companies a few years ago to build a deck over I-90/94 through downtown and fill it with parks and restaurants and skyscrapers?  While we haven’t heard anything about it in a while, it turns out to still be alive.

It’s now the subject of this year’s Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation Midwest Real Estate Challenge:

The 2015 Challenge will focus on the “Cap the Kennedy” Project over the Kennedy Expressway (I-90/94) between Lake Street and Jackson Boulevard in Chicago, Illinois. The Cap the Kennedy Project has been proposed by Fifield Companies in an effort to establish a more functional connection from Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood to the downtown Loop/Central Business District. In addition, the connection and amenities the “Cap” creates will serve as a catalyst to activate additional development opportunities and further establish growth west of the Chicago River.

Fifield is sponsoring the contest that has students from the University of Illinois at Chicago, Roosevelt University, Marquette University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign working on ways to make it a reality.

They’ve been working on the project for six weeks, and will present their findings Saturday, April 11th at the Standard Club.  The winning team’s school gets a scholarship of “up to” $5,000.

Rendering of proposed park over the Kennedy Expressway

Author: Editor

Editor founded the Chicago Architecture Blog in 2003, after a long career in journalism. He can be reached at chicagoarchitectureinfo@gmail.com.

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