Mayor Rahm Emanuel today joined officials from the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the Department of Fleet and Facilities Management (2FM) to preview the third and final stretch of the Chicago Riverwalk from LaSalle Street to Lake Street. When construction on Phase 3 is completed later this week, the transformative Chicago Riverwalk project will provide a 1.25 mile promenade through the heart of the City.

The technically challenging project, which involved extending the south bank of the Chicago River out by 25 feet, was constructed by CDOT.  The ecologically sensitive design aids in improving water quality, enabling people to interact with the river as they have never been able to before. 

The three new sections, or “rooms,” of the Riverwalk to open later this week include:

• The Water Plaza: A water feature for children and families to engage with water at the river’s edge. (From LaSalle to Wells.)
• The Jetty: A series of piers and floating wetland gardens with interactive learning about the ecology of the river, including opportunities for fishing and identifying native plants. (From Wells to Franklin.)
• The Riverbank: An accessible walkway and new marine edge creates access to Lake Street and features a public lawn at the confluence. It provides an accessible route from lower to upper Wacker and Lake Street. The City is continuing to explore possibilities for how the room can be developed. (From Franklin to Lake.)

This section of the Riverwalk was designed by a team of architects including Sasaki and Ross Barney Architects and constructed by Alfred Benesch & Co. Engineers and Walsh Construction. The project is funded through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act (TIFIA) program which provided a loan of $98 million. The project also received $10 million in state funding.