Now that a small flotilla of barges has largely retreated, the main branch of the Chicago River no longer resembles a rush-hour jam on Lake Shore Drive. However, crews still have plenty to do on land to propel the second phase of Chicago's Riverwalk—a $43-million, 900-ft-long walkway along its south bank—to a Memorial Day opening. In mid-December, crews were pouring substructural and structural concrete for River Theater, one of three 300-ft-long themed "rooms" bracketed by bascule draw bridges spanning the river. As with the adjacent Cove and Marina Plaza, crews also were completing cap work and formwork for walls, stair footings and planters, in addition to the installation of granite pavers.
Come spring, they will regroup to begin work on the third and final phase of the $98.6-million, 0.7-mile project, a commercial and recreational venue that upon completion in 2016 will extend nine city blocks, from Lake Michigan through the heart of downtown. As with phase two, the Chicago Dept. of Transportation (CDOT) and a project team including Chicago-based contractor Walsh Construction will orchestrate the activities of up to 12 barges in efforts to extend existing frontage 25 ft into the 200-ft-wide channel and construct underbridge connections to join each of the block-long rooms. They will deploy divers to investigate existing conditions and round-the-clock crews to negotiate the narrow time frames provided to drive 75-ft-long caissons through water and soil to bedrock. And, as before, builders will have only half the width of the river to "build land on water," says CDOT project manager Oswaldo Chaves.