Plans for ''Burnham's Island'' Presented

Daniel Burnham's and Edward Bennett's 1909 Plan of Chicago called for a landfilled peninsula jutting out into Lake Michigan. The eastern end of the island is today home to the Adler Planetarium (top left). The island has evolved from a busy one-strip airport to mostly parkland. Landscape architects at a public meeting recently presented further plans for the island.

Chicago's Northerly Island, situated just east of Soldier Field, is the only lakefront landscape structure built based on Daniel Burnham's and Edward Bennett's 1909 Plan of Chicago. Construction of the Lake Michigan landfill peninsula did not begin until 1922 (Burnham died in 1912). That same year, Chicago Mayor William Thompson suggested the land was perfect for a downtown airport. That airport became a reality when the single-strip Meigs Field Airport opened for operation in December 1948. It remained in use until March 2003.

Northerly Island is owned by the Chicago Park District, which had granted a 50-year lease for Meigs Field. That expired September 30, 1996. The city, park district and civic organizations agreed the airport should revert to parkland. Today, Burnham's vision is seen in the island's prairie grasses, strolling paths, play areas and a great view of the Chicago skyline.

The island is also host to an outdoor show venue called the Charter One Pavilion, with seating for 7,500 people. This is a temporary structure, which is assembled each spring and disassembled each fall.

When Chicago was still in the running to host the 2016 Olympic Games, planners envisioned a canoe and kayaking facility on the peninsula.

The Chicago Tribune reports the landscape architects from JJR presented plans for Northerly Island at a Nov. 10, 2009 public hearing.