World-Class Amenities

• Home of Lincoln Park Zoo (free admission); opened with gift of two mute swans from New York's Central Park Zoo in 1868; now has some 2,300 animals
• Park's Conservatory (free admission) constructed in stages (1890-1895); showcases exotic plants and grows thousands needed for park use; four greenhouses
• Theater on the Lake built in 1920; originally recuperation ward for tuberculosis-infected babies; June through August showcases professional theater companies
• Chicago History Museum is city's oldest cultural institution (1856); destroyed during Great Fire of 1871 and temporarily housed in stone structure in park. Collection includes bed where President Lincoln died
• Chicago Academy of Sciences, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum; has three green rooftops, water conservation systems, solar panels, exhibits using recycled materials

Historic Nature

• Added to National Register of Historic Places in 1994
• South Pond Refectory (Cafe Brauer) designed by Dwight H. Perkins and completed in 1908. Outstanding example of Prairie-style architecture; ground floor cafe open; second floor Great Hall fine example of Arts and Crafts design
• Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool named National Historic Landmark in 2006. Three-acre pool one of city's premier Prairie-style landscapes designed by Caldwell in 1930s
• Carlson Cottage, 120-year-old comfort station, excellent example of Victorian-era design. Now used for zoo's volunteer gardening program following $1 million restoration
• Lion House (1912), designed by Dwight H. Perkins, displays fine craftsmanship and geometric masonry ornamentation, including visually distinctive brick lion mosaics
• Public art is prominent throughout the park. Dozens of strategically placed statues; Abraham Lincoln 1887 bronze at south end of park: Augustus Saint-Gaudens, sculptor, and Stanford White, architect

Planning and Improvements

• Nurseryman Swain Nelson's 1865 design for park features rolling landscape made from dredged sand with three connecting ponds, trees, lawns, and winding paths
• Lincoln Park Board of Commissioners formed in 1869 to expedite transfer of bodies from cemetery so park can be expanded; only one family mausoleum, Couch tomb, remains
• Nelson and partner Olaf Benson created expansion plan for park in 1873
• State legislature granted Lincoln Park Commission right in 1895 to reclaim submerged lands, paving way for park expansion; space nearly doubled in size between 1904 and 1910; park essentially completed by 1957
• Lake Shore Drive extended to Lincoln Park as boulevard link to southern parks (1957)
• Montrose Extension, designed by Ernst Schroeder and Alfred Caldwell, started in 1930s; features dramatically sculptured landforms and naturalistic landscapes
• Lincoln Park Framework Plan developed in 1995; amended in 2008
• Public transit serves Lincoln Park via several buses and three L trains

Engaged and Active Citizens

• In 1858 a physician calls city's only public cemetery a health threat from buried bodies  leaching cholera into city water supply; urges replacement of cemetery with a park
• Lincoln Park Advisory Council formed in mid-1980s following a consent-decree ruling with Chicago Park District that settled a suit pertaining to discrimination in funding; group was instrumental in developing 1995 Framework Plan
• Established in 1984, Friends of Lincoln Park is now Lincoln Park Conservancy; nonprofit group identifies park assets in need, such as Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool, restores them, and commits to long-term care and programming; co-manages assets with Park District

The old Chicago Water Tower, built in 1869, creates a jog in the otherwise linear street; the irregularity generates a center of gravity for the avenue. The water tower is flanked by a park surrounded by a canopy of trees, highlighting this local historic icon.

Characterized by a tremendous diversity of uses and users, North Michigan Avenue accomplishes the rare feat of providing a full array of neighborhood amenities in a dense urban core. It is home to retailers such as Cartier and Burberry, the Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton hotels, as well as residential skyscrapers, museums and corporate offices. People live, work, shop, visit, and recreate in this seven-block area.

Public and private realms align within the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association, a nonprofit community advocacy group formed in 1912 (originally named the North Central Association). In the 1940s Arthur Rubloff, a leader in the association, coined the moniker "The Magnificent Mile." According to City of Chicago urban planner Kathy Caisley, the association remains a champion of the street. "They form a crucial link between the business community and residents," she said, "and work closely with the city to ensure that the Magnificent Mile remains magnificent."

The partnership functions because stakeholders understand the value of buying into a collective vision of a better street. The association's activities — from development and signage review to avenue promotion — complement property owners' desire to create a striking street environment. North Michigan Avenue property owners privately fund all the greenery in both the parkway planters in front of their buildings and in the medians that run the length of the Magnificent Mile, creating new displays for the spring, fall, and summer planting seasons. This is an enormous undertaking by private entities that has a substantial positive effect on the city. "Oftentimes, you will find various property owners engaging in a little friendly competition to see who can 'out-beautify' the other in these mini urban gardens," said Sarah Fleming, the association's planning manager. "This overwhelming commitment to both the avenue and to the city of Chicago is part of what makes North Michigan Avenue one of the great avenues of the world."

North Michigan Avenue's legacy of exemplary design is ongoing. Some of the city's most beloved and famous skyscrapers are here, including the Tribune Tower (1925), John Hancock Center (1970), and the contemporary Crate and Barrel flagship store. Revised zoning in the 1980s allowed for the infill of open air building arcades (created with 1970s zoning bonuses) with high-end retail space, and a recent special sign district, established in 1997, ensures high quality signage.

North Michigan Avenue provides an outstanding example of what planning, greening, and positive public-private partnerships can create, making it one of America's leading great streets.

The town was designed to resemble a suburban park, a radical notion for a blue-collar development. A winding carriage path and circular flower beds softened the town's formal street grid. Brick was used extensively for houses, which reflected Queen Anne designs. Contrasts of color and texture, as well as variations in ornamentation of facades, rooflines, chimneys, and finishing materials, were used to create architectural interest and reflect the owner's status.

A train depot separated the residential and industrial districts. The industrial complex, now a state historic site undergoing restoration, included an upscale hotel, market, shopping arcade, library, and other amenities. Several parks provided recreational opportunities. Thirty thousand trees graced the village, which was served by private water and sanitary sewer systems.

The neighborhood flourished — 12,000 people lived there in 1893 — until an 1898 court order resulting from a worker strike forced the Pullman Palace Car Co. to sell its residential assets. Home upkeep and landscaping fell to individual owners. In 1889 Pullman was annexed by the City of Chicago.

Demolition was proposed in 1960 and spurred residents to action. The area was declared a state historic district in 1969 and added to the National Register two years later. Despite setbacks, including a 1998 fire that destroyed the iconic clock tower, the state, city, and neighbors have restored much of the district and continue to make improvements, including reconstruction of the clock tower.

Planning, design

• Town modeled on Essen, Germany, and Saltaire, England; voted world's most perfect town at 1896 Prague International Hygienic and Pharmaceutical Exposition
• Located near Lake Calumet for proximity to major markets, railroad connection, availability of land; Pullman spent $800,000 to buy 4,000 acres from 75 land owners
• Plan guided by garden park ideal, unheard of in blue collar districts; serpentine carriage paths, circular flower beds soften street grid; two parks enhance setting
• Houses constructed from bricks using clay from Lake Calumet; contrasting colors and textures, architectural embellishments circumvent monotony, denote resident status

Sustainability

• Architect Solon Beman included cross ventilation, natural lighting in house designs
• Pioneering sanitary sewer, water systems; water tower fed from intakes in Lake Michigan, far from shore-side pollution. Compost from sewer system fertilizes garden used to raise produce for village's Market Hall. Pullman Urban Gardeners now operate organic community garden — built using reclaimed materials — on site of former factory
• Initial landscape design by Nathan Barrett resulted in planting of 30,000 trees and 100,000 flowering plants; significant canopy remains because of city tree replacement program
• Original town plan includes train depot; now served by Metra commuter rail, buses

Preservation

• Proposed demolition of residences (1960) spurred neighborhood action; Pullman Civic Organization reactivated, led efforts to obtain historic designations conferred by state (1969), U.S. Department of the Interior (1971), City of Chicago (1972)
• Historic Pullman Foundation (1973) saved Hotel Florence; opened visitor center (1993) on site of former arcade; created self-guided walking tour and leads First Sunday Walking Tour
• First restoration projects used Federal Community Development Block Grant funds (1976)
• City restored Arcade Park, town's original central garden
• Illinois Historic Preservation Agency purchased (1991) Hotel Florence, factory, and clock tower. Reconstructed signature clock tower (2005) and restored factory administration building exterior (2007) following devastating fire in 1998
• In 2008, the City of Chicago streetscape program reconstructed Market Square sidewalks, streets, utilities, and lighting to reflect historic origins; previous city and state funds helped stabilize for phased restoration the Classical-Romanesque style Market Hall
• Pullman Civic Organization published extensive homeowner guide in 2011; documented design specifications for facade elements original to each Pullman residence.

Civic involvement

• Numerous volunteer-driven events: candlelight house tour, garden walk, Labor Day bike ride, Victorian tea, Mexican Independence Day festival, Black History Month programs
• Neighborhood groups develop around specific interests; include The Pullman Beekeepers, Pullman Urban Gardeners, Pullman Juniors and Seniors Group, Pullman Morris Dance Team, Lady's Luncheon Group
• Historic Pullman Garden Club maintains flower beds in Arcade and Pullman Parks, local gateways, and church; club, other organizations, and city worked to develop new park on former two-acre industrial site at 114th Street and Langley Avenue

Union Station, Chicago, Illinois

Designated area

First envisioned by renowned architect Daniel Burnham, the station provides a grand stage where Chicago's history and energy come together for millions to enjoy. Beaux-Arts facades, soaring columns, marble floors, brass lamps, and the striking Great Hall create a setting, featured in films such as The Untouchables, that invites commuters and tourists alike to stop and take it all in.

Following a public meeting in December 2011 with more than 200 people in attendance, the May 2012 Master Plan Study balances the improvements in bus connections demanded by suburban commuters with the broader goal of accommodating an expected 40 percent increase in ridership by 2040. Currently handling 32 million passengers a year, Union Station is not just a historic and beautiful space, but also an aesthetically pleasing interchange for 120,000 daily passengers and passersby.

History

• Plan of Chicago by architects Daniel Burnham and Edward H. Bennett includes vision for consolidated passenger and express freight rail hub at Union Station (1909)
• Architecture firm Graham, Anderson, Probst and White manages construction costing $75 million; work takes 10 years (1925) because of World War I delays
• Chicago Daily News (1929), Post Office (1932) buildings use station air rights north and south of the Concourse Building
• "L" train station removed (1958); Concourse Building demolished (1969)
• Amtrak assumes full ownership of station in 1984; five-year, $32 million renovation including new escalators and redesigned food court completed 1992
• Three-year, $40 million renovation includes doubling of seating capacity for Amtrak passengers, new restrooms, replacing exterior concrete barriers with bollards (begun 2010)
• Air-conditioning restored to Great Hall in 2011 for the first time since 1960, leading to increases in public use of the Great Hall and additional revenue to Amtrak from private events held at station

Station design and features

• Beaux-Arts building design, by Chicago city planner and architect David Burnham, features elegant facades made from Bedford limestone
• Great Hall incorporates Corinthian columns, Tennessee marble floors, brass lamps, 219-foot barrel-vaulted skylight
• As first and only double stub-end station in U.S., trains enter and exit from separate sides, delivering Burnham's vision of station as a national hub
• Name of former railroad company owners, Chicago Union Station Co., etched on windows to the Canal Street colonnade
• Sculptor Henry Hering's opposing figural statues, one holding a rooster and the other an owl, signify station's 24-hour activity
• $25 million infrastructure improvements update Great Hall's mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems (completed 2012)

Commitment to sustainability

• Lighting upgraded with energy efficient bulbs and motion sensors, saving station $336,402 and reducing carbon footprint by 4 million tons each year (2011)
• Reduced-voltage starters installed on all 12 escalators in station, reducing energy consumption by more than 20 percent while improving escalator service
• Clear bags used for all waste; garbage collection staff separates all recyclable materials from bags for on-site compacting and daily collection by city

Chicago Botanic Garden. Glencoe, Illinois

Designated area

Located at 1000 Lake Cook Road, 20 miles north of Chicago near the Edens Expressway.

Summary

An integral part of the local community, the garden's community gardening program — called Windy City Harvest — distributed fresh food to an estimated 65,000 families, reaching a population of nearly 400,000 people. In 2011, the garden's 500 classes served kindergarteners through PhD students.

The garden is more than just a local treasure, but also a global trendsetter with Chinese, English, Italian, and Japanese design influences. It has collaborated with the United Nations World Environment Programme, Botanic Garden Conservation International (BGCI), England's Royal Botanic Gardens, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Bureau of Land Management.

First developed by John Simonds and Geoffrey Rausch in 1963, the garden's Master Site Plan is still being realized through the "Keep Growing" 10-year strategic plan that envisions further education and outreach programs. A new Horticulture Center is being planned to house the more than 250,000 plants that cycle through the garden's current production facilities each year.

History

• After first two plans rejected by Illinois court for poor planning, creation of Forest Preserve District of Cook County establishes largest forest preserve district in the U.S.
• Inspired by Beijing's Imperial Gardens, landscape architects John O. Simonds and Geoffrey Rausch create first "green blueprint" (1963) and master plan (1968); garden opens in 1972
• Noted architect Edward Larrabee Barnes' Education Center opens (1976), creating first space for botanical collection, education and research
• Chicago Horticultural Society creates 1981 Master Site Plan, ambitiously expanding Simonds's original commitment to public education and research
• TV-ratings heiress Gertrude Nielsen funds architect Geoffrey Rausch's Heritage Gardens (1983); plantings classified by family to honor botanist Carolus Linnaeus
• One of only 17 public gardens accredited by the American Association of Museums, recognized for its living collection of 2.5 million plants, as well as for   its professionalism, public service, and planning excellence (2008)

Design excellence

• Landscape designer Koichi Kawana designs Sansho-En garden to reflect tranquil Japanese feudal gardens (1982)
• Architect Geoffrey Rausch models 1983 Heritage Garden after world's oldest botanic gardens in Padua, Italy
• Landscape designer Dan Kiley's Esplanade (2005) bridges Italian Heritage Garden with 1993 Visitor Center by fusing classic European and modern architectural styles
• Four preserved natural areas blend seamlessly into the gardens: 100-acre McDonald Woods, Dixon Prairie, Lakes and Shores area, Skokie River corridor
• Krasberg Rose Garden (1985) displays nearly 5,000 roses, including one bed chronologically ordered from oldest wild rose to newest hybrid
• Architect James van Sweden's New American Garden-style Evening Island features sweeping, naturalistic views and Dutch-crafted Butz Memorial carillon

Education and outreach

• Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School offers 500 classes for more than 116,000 people; serves 80,000 children, two master's programs, and one PhD program offered in conjunction with Northwestern University
• Lenhardt Library stores 110,000 historic documents and scholarly journals
• College First program offers paid field ecology internships, college preparation, and career mentorship for 20 Chicago Public Schools high school students each year
• Garden programs distributed 45,138 pounds of fresh food reaching 398,000 people, totaling 70 percent of all community market sales to low-income Chicago families

Sustainability

• Chosen by United Nations Environment Programme as North American host of the 2008 World Environment Day celebration.
• Collecting 10,000 seeds from each of 1,500 native tallgrass prairie plants as part of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Millennium Seed Bank Project; Plants of Concern project monitors rare species in northeast Illinois
• Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center, designed by architecture firm Booth Hansen, awarded LEED Gold certification (2010)