Project Statement

Initially conceived as a framework vision in conjunction with the modernization of the City of Chicago’s North Branch Industrial Corridor, the Wild Mile has proven a valuable model for revitalizing urban rivers throughout the world. Urban Rivers’ first phase of modular floating walkways and native plant beds are an accessible extension of public space. East of Goose Island, they provide wildlife habitat, educational programming, and a strong community atmosphere at the water’s edge. The guiding principles of the Wild Mile Framework Vision will provide the structure, tools, and regulatory direction for the incremental implementation of the 17-acre floating eco-park along the mile long North Branch Canal of the Chicago River and beyond. 

Project Narrative

Wild Mile is a 17-acre floating eco-park designed to transform an industrialized stretch of the north branch of the Chicago River into a thriving wildlife corridor.

In 2016, a team of collaborators were tasked with creating the Wild Mile Framework Vision. The framework advances a community-led vision of renewed urban ecology to help strengthen neighborhood connectivity, generate clean water, and support vibrant native ecosystems. The new park will foster a strong community based on education, art, and recreation opportunities while also providing an economic draw for businesses, property owners, and tourism.

The framework provides standards for urban waterfront design that put sustainability at the forefront and identifies innovative ways of reintroducing nature to industrial waterways while connecting the community with their local environment. The team skillfully navigated many municipalities and government agencies to ensure the proposed vision would adhere to waterway policies. The components and principles used to develop the framework are highly transferable to other urban waterways.

The North Branch Canal’s man-made edges use various construction techniques including sheet pile, timber, rip rap, concrete, and naturalized/eroded shoreline. Most of these structural conditions result in a division between the upland and aquatic zones. Each also poses unique challenges and possibilities for incorporating access points, anchoring systems, and habitat.

The design retrofits the waterway edges into green archipelago buffers that help re-establish the “natural” form and processes of the river while creating continuous public access. Reintroducing the riparian and emergent zones completes the ecosystem's food web, strengthens environmental health, and alleviates previous human disturbances. The Wild Mile seeks to transform the area into a wildlife sanctuary, prioritizing the creation and expansion of habitat. Most importantly, the framework offers a resilient, wildlife-first, sustainable solution that provides stormwater mitigation and filters water.

The first of three planned phases has been implemented by volunteers from the Shedd Aquarium, British International School of Chicago, and National Geographic Society. Modular floating habitats, kayak docks, and sustainable pine boardwalks meander like connected puzzle pieces creating more diverse edge conditions. The modular design allows for gradual implementation of the phases as funding is secured.

Wild Mile has over 10,000 native plants representing 50 wetland species in 11,716 square feet of floating habitat. Native plants were chosen for their value to wildlife in the various habitats present. The plants will provide year-round food, nest sites, spawning areas, and shelter to animals in the water and on land. Research teams have catalogued more indigenous fish species and higher quantities of zooplankton near the floating installation than in other parts of the river.

The multitude of community events, research, volunteers, diverse plants, and charismatic megafauna that have gravitated to the Wild Mile since its inception is incredible. The concept has been implemented in another area of the Chicago River, Bubbly Creek, and is an exceptional model for urban waterway design internationally. These constantly evolving floating eco-parks provide ample improved community health, environmental wellness, and natural beauty to Chicago’s urban residents on land and in water.