Chicago riverwalk

Chicago Riverwalk

 Client: Chicago Department of Transportation / C DOT

Chicago, Illinois

• Conceptualization
• Development Strategy
• Master Plan
• Venue Programming
• Execution

MRA worked with the City of Chicago’s Department of Transportation (C-DOT) to formulate a strategic vision, master plan and execution strategy for a program of retail, dining and entertainment amenities along eleven blocks of the Chicago Riverwalk.  As a result of MRA’s six-month engagement with the City, Mayor Daley instructed the Department of Planning and Development to develop and to implement a pilot program of dining and entertainment opportunities on the city-owned property.  The program consisted of five Riverwalk Cafes and ten food carts at locations on the riverbank between Lake Shore Drive and Michigan Avenue.  The Mayor also authorized implementation of a program for outdoor dining and entertainment on the plaza of the Richard J. Daley Civic Center.  Following this pilot, the Riverwalk program was adopted as a staged public-private redevelopment initiative, and has been implemented across a half mile of the riverfront.