Five open space improvement projects on the South and West Sides will be made possible through financial measures approved today by City Council.

Lindblom Park, 6054 S. Damen Ave.
Tax Increment Financing (TIF) assistance in the amount of $2 million will support the construction of a combination soccer and football field at Lindblom Park in West Englewood. The artificial turf field will be used by community residents and students of nearby Lindblom Math & Science Academy High School.  It will replace two existing baseball fields at the north end of the 17-acre park, which is named for Chicago businessman and philanthropist Robert Lindblom.

Union Park, 1501 W. Randolph St.
The field house at Union Park in the Near West Side will be renovated with $2.1 million in TIF.  The two-story facility will receive a new roof, windows, and heating and cooling system, along with masonry repairs. Earlier work to the 13.5-acre park resulted in pool enhancements and ADA-access upgrades.  The park is named in honor of the United States’ federal union.

Mamie Till-Mobley Park, 6410 S. Ellis Ave.
Mamie Till-Mobley Park will receive $92,550 in Open Space Impact Fees for the installation of new fencing, landscaping, lighting and benches. The park will also be expanded onto .08 acres of adjacent land, nearby doubling its size. The park is named for the mother of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old Chicago boy who was accused of whistling at a white woman and subsequently murdered in 1955 in Mississippi. Open Space Impact Fees are collected by the City of Chicago from new residential developments to help expand the amount of open space in each of the city’s community areas.

Beehive Park, 6156 S. Dorchester Ave.
Beehive Park will receive $145,440 in Open Space Impact Fees for new seating, fencing, landscaping, lighting and a drainage system. The .43-acre park will also be expanded onto .14 acres of adjacent land. The park is named in recognition of the old Beehive jazz nightclub in Hyde Park.

Major Taylor Bike Trail
The southernmost segment of the Major Taylor Bike Trail on the Far South Side will receive a new lighting system to increase safety and usability through $400,000 in Open Space Impact Fees.  The funds will be used by the Chicago Park District to light the two-mile section of trail that runs from roughly 107th Street and Racine Avenue to 127th Street and Normal Avenue through the Washington Heights, Morgan Park and West Pullman communities. Opened on a former rail line in 2007, the 6.5-mile trail is named for African American cyclist Marshall “Major” Taylor, who set numerous world speed records near the turn of the last century.

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