The Boardwalk | Riverwalk

The Chicago Riverwalk is a one-and-a-quarter-mile pedestrian promenade that stretches along the south bank of the Chicago River, identifiable by its series of distinct, water-level rooms that drop down from the street-level bustle of downtown. Designed to reclaim the river as a public space, this path fulfills a vision first outlined in Daniel Burnham’s nineteen oh nine Plan of Chicago. Before its transformation into a recreation area, the riverbank served primarily as an industrial and commercial shipping channel, often treated as a polluted barrier rather than a destination.