Like Millennium park before it, the plans for renovating Grant Park (see Feb. 4 Tribune article) read more like a list of tourist and resident amenities than a park (like with, you know, natural things in it). Tney've proposed a skate plaza, dog run, sculpture park, and, possibly, the Children's Museum in the new plans. Where will they put a new apple orchard or a place where you can read a book under a tree without getting hit by a baseball or sniffed by a dog? They didn't say.
Still, I was coping okay with most of it until I read that they also want to add a "Chicago Walk of the Stars." According to the article, a private enterprise, "The Motion Picture Hall of Fame Foundation" wants to do our city this favor. This has absolutely no place in our parks, not to mention I'm sick of the ubiquitous and vacuous, celebrity life that permeates our culture. Put the walk where it belongs -- near the rock-n-roll McDonald's and Rain Forest Cafe -- not in the park.
The park leaders have got to be out of their minds to have floated that idea. Furthermore, why let this commercial enterprise have a door into our park system? This is not Hollywood. I think they must be drunk on Millennium wine. And, let me tell you, a little Millennium Park goes a long way.
And, get this. A quick visit to the Motion Picture Hall of Fame's website shows no signs of their having a "foundation." It's all commercial ventures and "investor relations" without a hint of virtuous park building. Drives. me. nuts. I hope someone has the good sense to veto it. If not, maybe we can Meigs it
right after its built.
Photo by James Iska via AmericanPlaces.org
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