Chicago’s Long-Awaited Bloomingdale Trail Project Expected to be Complete by December 2014

Following years of careful planning, construction on Chicago’s Bloomingdale Trail project was initiated on August 27, 2013. The project is part of a network of parks, collectively referred to as the ‘606,’ named for the communities sharing the zipcode prefix 606 that will be linked through several trail access points, with Bloomingdale Park serving as the centerpiece. While the trail access points will be at ground level, the actual park, ‘The Bloomingdale,’ and the trails to the park, will be constructed on the elevated track of land formerly home to the railway system known as the Bloomingdale Line. The Bicycling Accident Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer, P.C., look forward to the much needed safety that this network of trails will provide to the residents of our community, and also note the endless amount of additional benefits the project will offer.

The $54 Million Bloomingdale project and larger 606 project, with an estimated $91 Million first-phase expense, are by no mean small endeavors. In fact, with an anticipated 15 acres of park land, it may be one of Chicago’s largest parks and recreation projects since the construction of Millennium Park nearly ten years ago. Many agree that the cost of the project will prove to be a worthy investment in terms of the anticipated economic growth. As stated by Mayor Emanuel during a groundbreaking ceremony, “[The Bloomingdale Trail] is going to do, in my view, for our neighborhoods what Millennium Park has done for our downtown.”

By far, one of the most highly anticipated benefits of the Bloomindale/ 606 project is the manner in which it will link communities together by providing 2.7 miles of throughway connected by points of access spaced in quarter mile increments. As a result, bicyclists and pedestrians will have a safe means for which to travel between communities. As stated by Mayor Emanuel, “it will bring neighborhoods together in a united, unified way.” The current plan calls for access points at the following locations:

 Western Trailhead (Ridgeway (3750W)/Lawndale (3700W))
 Drake (3532W)
 Kimball (3400W)
 Julia de Burgos Park (Albany (3100W)/Whipple(3050W))
 Humboldt (3000W)
 California (2800W)
 Rockwell (2600W)
 Western (2400W)
 Park 567 (Milwaukee/Leavitt (2200W))
 Churchill Park (Damen (2000W)
 Wood (1800W)
 Walsh Park (Marshfield (1632W)/Ashland (1600W))

During the construction process, Chicago Police Department reminds residents that the trail will remain off-limits, and violators will be ticketed for trespassing. However, this minor and temporary inconvenience is expected to be well worth the wait. For more information on the 606 project, please visit the official project website at www.the606.org.