In class we discussed James Howard Kunstler’s book The Geography of Nowhere where he warns of the rise of a suburban pattern and the socioeconomic costs associated. After reading the excerpts from his book it is clear that this suburban pattern is not a sustainable habit but Kunstler’s work leaves more questions as to the state of large cities, where higher populations are concentrated in much smaller areas. Blair Kamin, an architecture critic and Pulitzer Prize winning writer for the Chicago Tribune, looks at the condition of parks in Chicago in his October 9, 2011 article “Cramped Chicago: Half of city’s 2.7 million people live in park-poor areas.”
Kamin raises some alarming statistics about Chicago parks. As part of then Mayor Richard M. Daley’s 1998 CitySpace plan, designed to expand open space in Chicago, the city set a standard that for every 1,000 people there should be two acres of open space. Chicago has not lived up to these modest standards, leaving Kamin to find it more appropriate to call Chicago’s parkland “park deserts.” Chicago today ranks 14th among 19 densely populated U.S. cities in parkland per 1,000 residents according to a survey by The Trust for Public Land, a San Francisco-based advocacy group. Currently, 32 of Chicago’s 77 community areas do not meet the city’s 2-acres-per-1,000-people open space standard. This accounts for nearly 1.35 million people, half the city’s total.
The benefits of community parks are numerous; from playgrounds, sports fields and bicycle trails promoting exercising to picnic areas to encourage socializing with friends and neighbors and overall just providing a respite from the noise and clutter of the city. So how do we fix this problem?
The parks problem in Chicago may appear daunting but the Chicago Park District’s 2011-2015 capital improvement plan already foresees more than $306 million in projects to improve and add parks. In addition, many of Chicago’s communities fall into a tax-increment financing districts, which use anticipated gains in tax revenue to finance improvements to parks, amongst other things, and have already supported more than $75 million in park districts projects. However, as the article points out, communities not in these districts do not have these resources to improve. The biggest tool that has yet to be utilized is state grants and private contributions for parklands. Despite the economic situation currently facing Chicago, an increase in capital, whether it be financial or human ingenuity, would be essential to increasing the use and availability of Chicago parks, which truly are a social good to be utilized by all.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-openspace-problems-20111009,0,6802036.story
I know I may have a biased opinion but I feel that Chicago does do a decent job with its public parks. They are constantly trying to update and renovated or increase the amounts of parks that are accessible to Chicagoans. You can tell that Chicago attempts, and is trying to impress its people with the parks such as Millennium, Grant, and Lincoln. Chicago devotes 8.2% of its total acreage to parkland and many people of Chicago see this when they attend the numerous different festivals the city has year round. The main parks in the city, I feel, draw a lot of attention and are always filled with people on a nice summer day, or even a cool day in fall. These parks are places for people to relax, hangout, and enjoy the day. I don’t feel there is much people can complain about when Chicago is known for some of the biggest festivals in the nation, which are held year-round. The parks are extremely accessible and hopefully, they will continue to grow. Just this past summer, Chicago attempted to restore the Old U.S. Steel Works site on the South Side of Chicago’s lakefront for the infamous Dave Mathews Caravan. Chicago is constantly trying to improve, and not counting all the public beaches the city has the offer, I feel the parks do a great job of offering public access.
ReplyDeleteThere can only be so many parks, and with everything this city has to offer; restaurants, baseball parks, basketball stadiums/gyms, football fields, music venues, and beaches, I feel the parks are doing a great job trying to expand. Keep it up Chicago, I feel you a doing a great job to improve, and have done a great job to maintain.
while there are numerous parks throughout the great city of chicago, i think that the article is more of a poor reflection on the derth of parks in the outlying neighborhoods that are not primary tourist attractions (downtown in particular). by improving upon our city parks, especially in poor neighborhoods, we are helping to realize kunstler's vision. however, i feel he was taking more of a jab at suburbia as oppose to large cities. for all of chicago's faults, it has a personality. philly, la, and numerous other big cities have that similar personality. suburbs do not feel like communities. they often are just places we live, and commute from to reach the city. very few people take pride in their suburb.
ReplyDeleteSo true Bryan and Bryan--and now city parks, especially private public parks as Zuccatti Park aka Liberty Plaza--people can occupy them -- voice opposition to income disparity, etc....
ReplyDeleteI think that it is essential that Chicago tries to keep expanding their park system. Having a place to go is essential for having a strong community. The state of Illinois should help them pay for this if that is what it takes. I know that the state is pretty much broke right now, but it needs to look into this situation.
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