Community-Led Riverfront Projects
The Chicago Community Trust is currently funding ten community-led riverfront projects through their Our Great Rivers grant. These projects, taking place across the Chicago region, align with the Our Great Rivers themes of inviting, living, and productive, and address two or more of the Trust’s funding priorities: sustainable development, economic development, arts and culture, and public health. This series highlights each of the current projects. Get to know more about each project by following the links below (additional links will be added as blog posts are completed).
Looking for information about the recently awarded second round of Our Great Rivers projects? Find more info here!
Chicago River North Branch
- Chicago Public Art Group and the American Indian Center will develop the Northwest Trail Outdoor Museum, featuring art installations and gardens to tell the story of the Native American portage between the Des Plaines River and Chicago River.
- Heartland Housing, in partnership with the Chicago Housing Authority, will establish a Friends of Lathrop entity in conjunction with the new housing development at Lathrop Homes which will open in 2018.
Little Calumet River
- The Forest Preserves of Cook County is engaging the surrounding communities in a 10-year plan to connect the nearby residential areas to Beaubien Woods and the Calumet River to improve access to the river and explore programming that will support this initiative.
- The Chicago Neighborhood Improvement Project and partners are supporting environmental and aesthetic improvements to the Mayor Taylor Trail near the Little Calumet River.
The Calumet Connect is a local coalition of community and civic stakeholders focused on improving the health and well-being of communities and residents in Southeast Chicago by shaping the future of the Calumet region based on community vision. Funded by The Trust’s Our Great Rivers grant, the partnership conducted community engagement and research to create the Calumet Connect Databook, highlighting the environmental and public health challenges in the Calumet Industrial Corridor. This initiative (along with years of organizing efforts by many other community groups and activists) helped inform the HUD investigation that found “the city of Chicago is violating the civil rights of its residents by relocating polluting businesses from white communities into Black and Latino areas that already are overwhelmed with environmental and health issues.” The agreement settled from the investigation requires the City of Chicago to take actionable steps to protect neighborhoods in the Calumet region that have been burdened by environmental harm and led to the creation of City’s Environmental Justice Action Plans.
Chicago River South Branch
- The Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community will strengthen Chinatown’s position as a riverfront neighborhood by implementing a wayfinding program and culturally significant placemaking activities, including a mural installation and dragon boat activities.
- The Little Village Environmental Justice Organization will explore public health implications of the Chicago waterways with a focus on Little Village and Southeast Chicago.
- MPC, in partnership with the South Branch Advisory Council, Friends of the Chicago River and Active Transportation Alliance will develop a framework plan for the South Branch parks, build community capacity to improve current riverfront access and examine the potential for a connected riverfront trail.
Calumet River
- Great Cities Institute and Alliance for the Great Lakes will lead a process to identify sustainable economic and recreational opportunities along the Calumet River.
- Wildlife Habitat Council will promote conservation and activate natural recreation at five locations along the heavily industrialized shoreline of the Calumet River.
Des Plaines River
- Active Transportation Alliance will advance multi-jurisdictional planning, development, and management of the Des Plaines River Trail between Touhy and North Avenues.