First Section Of Wild Mile Floating Park Opens In Goose Island

View of phase one of Wild Mile finishing build-out by FWM Docks/EZ-Docks

The first section of the Wild Mile intervention of the North Branch of the Chicago River has been completed. Located behind the REI store at 905 W Eastman Street near Goose Island, and surrounded by multiple geometric-shaped floating green islands that host 12,000 native plants including pink hibiscus, milkweed, and Queen of the Prairie, the 1,500-SF floating park is now open to recreational foot and water traffic.

This ambitious Framework Plan advances a community-led vision of renewed urban ecology that helps strengthen neighborhood connectivity, generate cleaner water, and support more vibrant ecosystems - transforming an industrialized, human-made stretch of the North Branch Canal and Turning Basin into a corridor that serves people, wildlife, and the environment.

While the river on the west side of Goose Island can remain navigable by industrial traffic, the Wild Mile will transform into a more recreationally focused reach of the river. Designed as a 17-acre floating eco-park—the world’s first— the Wild Mile features a series of floating gardens, ecosystems, public walkways, kayak launches, and other amenities. The project is designed to restore the river as a public trust.

Omni recently received an Honor Award from the Illinois Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ILASLA) for its work on the project, and is proud to partner with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Urban Rivers, O-H Community Partners, Near North Unity Program, Tetra Tech, and d’Escoto in bringing this vision to life.

Read more about the completion of this phase of the Wild Mile here.