The West Loop has a lot of things going for it – proximity to the city, interesting old buildings, great restaurant and bar scene – but what it doesn’t have much of are parks. Yes, there’s Skinner Park, but that’s about all. The West Loop Community Organization is lobbying hard for a piece of land on Adams Street between Sangamon and Peoria streets to be converted into a park.
The land is owned by the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the university has been negotiating to sell it to the city for years. We heard a rumor this week that the sale was pending but haven’t heard back from the Chicago Park District to confirm that.
We hope the ‘hood gets its park, which the residents plan to call Adams Street Park. But then there is the issue of whether the city has the money to convert the space into a park. It currently houses a building that was once an ear and eye infirmary.