Although I would prefer a park nearer to me, this is still good news. There needs to be much more green-space in the West Loop, no doubt.
From the Chi-Tribune
The city of Chicago intends to buy a 65,000-square-foot parcel at Adams and Sangamon Streets to turn the property into a public park.Chicago officials have agreed to pay more than $6 million to obtain the property from the University of Illinois at Chicago, said Pete Scales, spokesman for the city's Planning Department.
The purchase of the land will culminate a years-long effort by community activists, said Ald. Madeline Haithcock, whose 2nd Ward includes the site.
Community meetings will be held to determine how the park in the neighborhood should be designed. Work on the site will end in about 19 months, according to the West Loop Community Organization, which pushed for the park.
Until the recent housing boom, the Near West Side was primarily a commercial and industrial neighborhood.
There are more than 6,000 lofts and town houses in the area bounded by the Chicago River, Ashland Avenue, the Eisenhower Expressway and Grand Avenue, according to the community organization.
The city is set to buy the property for the park from UIC in early 2005.
update here (7/2005)
