The Chicago Tribune’s architecture critic Blair Kamin sounds upbeat about revised plans for the city’s bid to host the 2016 Olympics, which now call for a stadium to be built in Washington Park, but we’re not sure. As you can see from New Homes Magazine’s profile of Washington Park and Woodlawn, the neighborhood has its share of urban problems, but also is well-located with a spectacular, though neglected, park. In the eyes of some, including North Side builders, it’s ripe for an influx of development.
Is the new Olympics proposal, as Kamin suggests, a roadmap for Washington Park’s rebirth, or will it leave the neighborhood with ephemeral cosmetic improvements and a White Elephant stadium? Plans by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill call for a convertible stadium in which tiers of seats would be removed after the Olympics, leaving a more manageable 10,000-square-foot venue, but would other improvements have this sort of long-term vision? What would this do to real estate values, new-home development and affordable housing in Washington Park? Sound off in our Washington Park forum.