Rails to Trails - 606
The Bloomingdale Line was a 2.7-mile elevated railroad that ran east-west on the northwest side of Chicago; that has now been converted to a pedestrian friendly trail.
I’m sure we’ve all been dreading this extended winter weather, but today it was actually nice outside (70° to be exact) This was the perfect opportunity was to spend some time in nature, get exercise, and to de-stress from finals and job hunting.
I entered the trail from the west end at Ridgeway Ave, and I spent about 1 hr and 40 min casually walking through the entire trail. The trail was pretty active; there were people jogging, riding their bikes, couples enjoying a stroll, people walking their dogs and parents even brought their kids. Along the path, there were plenty of opportunities for a separate path, green break out spaces, as well and benches and collaborative spaces along the boulevard. I noticed many people taking sometime to meditate and enjoy the nice weather while they can. I also noticed that in the design of the benches and break out spaces on the trail, fostered private conversations. It’s nice that the path had several entrances, and many of the entrances were partnered with a playground.
My favorite part of the path was the trail of trees, while the trees didn’t have leaves on them at this time of the year, I could only imagine how beautiful that experience is at the peak of the summer time.
There were some concerns of gentrification in that area, and I did witness a lot of new construction happening on the streets that coincided with the trail. There were a ton of newly constructed apartment buildings and there was even a YMCA under construction near the Ridgeway entrance. As I drove through the surrounding area, I could see the difference between what was existing and what is new. Overall the purpose and goals of the trail were very successful, but slowly overtime, it has pushed a few of the current residents out of the neighborhood do to rising cost in rent.
This is an excerpt from an article in USA Today posted July 31, 2017
In the six years prior to the 606 opening, between 15% and 19% of single-family home sales went to investors and developers. In 2015, the year the trail opened, the figure reached 21%, and in the first quarter of 2016, it was almost 31%, the study found.
“It’s much more difficult to take action retroactively now that the market forces have already started to take force and gain momentum,” said Geoff Smith, the lead author of the DePaul study. “It’s a lot more expensive and complicated to intervene after the fact.”
Aides to Mayor Rahm Emanuel say that his administration has worked to maintain affordable housing along the 606 corridor and help keep longtime residents in the neighborhood.
The city in 2016 created a $1 million forgivable loan program for lower-income home-owners on the western edge of the 606 to help them pay for needed exterior repairs as well as electrical, plumbing heating fixes on their homes. The city has also created 33 affordable housing units near the 606 through an ordinance that requires new developments with 10 or more units to include affordable units on site.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/06/25/high-lines-green-space-spur-gentrification-displacement/103140856/
There have been discussions in the city about creating a similar proposal on the southside ot the City in Englewood.
Here is a link to the proposal of the Rails to Trails project on the southside of Chicago:
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