Millennium Park was an idea of Richard M. Daley and is considered the most ambitious public architectural project for Chicago since the Columbian Exposition of 1893. Pritzker Pavilion by Frank Gehry is the centerpiece of Millennium Park. The McCormick Tribune Ice Skating Rink Night view of the Crown Fountain Chicago skyline view from a Millennium Park garden Day view of the Crown Fountain A corporate sponsor A Chicago Police Officer blocks pedestrian access to Millennium Park during Looptopia 2007 with Pritzker Pavilion visible in the background

Millennium Park is a prominent civic center of the City of Chicago in Illinois and an important landmark of the city's lakefront. A redeveloped section of Grant Park, the 24.5 acre (101,000 m²) landmark is bounded by Michigan Avenue and its Chicago Landmark Historic Michigan Boulevard District, East Randolph Street, Columbus Drive and East Monroe Drive. It was Mayor of Chicago Richard M. Daley's ambitious idea to realize that which was originally designed as part of Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago, a plan for the future of Chicago created in 1909. It is historically the site of the Chicago Cubs' (then known as the White Stockings) first home field in 1871, Union Base-Ball Grounds. This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Download high resolution version (2010x1487, 1367 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (2010x1487, 1367 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Crown Fountain is an interactive public fountain in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois in the United States by Jaume Plensa that opened in July 2004. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1280x1024, 699 KB) Lurie Garden in Millennium Park with Michigan Avenue and the Sears tower in the background. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1280x1024, 699 KB) Lurie Garden in Millennium Park with Michigan Avenue and the Sears tower in the background. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1944x2592, 1127 KB) I had this photo taken in Chicago. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1944x2592, 1127 KB) I had this photo taken in Chicago. ... Crown Fountain is an interactive public fountain in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois in the United States by Jaume Plensa that opened in July 2004. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1632x1232, 701 KB) Summary Self Made Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1632x1232, 701 KB) Summary Self Made Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Chicago Police Department, also known as the CPD, is the principal law enforcement agency of Chicago, Illinois, under the jurisdiction of the mayor of Chicago. ... Looptopia is a unique annual event taking place in the city of Chicago. ... Millennium Park is a prominent new civic center of the City of Chicago in Illinois and an important landmark of the citys lakefront. ... Categories: Stub ... Flag Seal Nickname: The Windy City Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location Location in Chicagoland and northern Illinois Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States Illinois Cook, DuPage Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 606. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (140,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ... Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. ... The Taste of Chicago is held in Grant Park annually around Independence Day. ... This article is about the unit of measurement. ... The Michigan Avenue Bridge across the Chicago River. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Landmarks of Chicago. ... The historic district begins immediately south of the Smurfit-Stone Building. ... Richard M. Daley is the current mayor of Chicago. ... Richard Michael Daley (born April 24, 1942) is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current mayor of Chicago, Illinois. ... Daniel H. Burnham. ... Proposed development in the center of the city The Burnham Plan is an essay, principally authored by Daniel Burnham in 1909, entitled The Plan of Chicago. ... Major league affiliations National League (1876–present) Central Division (1994–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 10, 14, 23, 26, 42 Name Chicago Cubs (1902–present) Chicago Orphans (1898-1901) Chicago Colts (1890-1897) Chicago White Stockings (1870-1871, 1874-1889) (a. ... Union Base-Ball Grounds is a former baseball ground located in Chicago, IL. The ground was home to the Chicago White Stockings baseball club of the American Association for the 1871 season. ...

Planning began in October 1997, construction began in October 1998 and it was finally completed in July 2004. Millennium Park was opened in a ceremony on July 16, 2004 as part of a three-day celebration that included an inaugural concert by the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus. 300,000 people took part in the grand opening festivities. is the 197th day of the year (198th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Since then, Millennium Park has become a major tourist destination for Chicago and the surrounding community has become one of the most fashionable residential addresses in the city with rumors that the Mayor was planning to move there (it was announced later that he had changed his mind). More recently, 60602 was named by Forbes as the hottest zipcode in the country with upscale buildings such as The Heritage at Millennium Park (130 N. Garland) leading the way for other buildings such as Waterview Tower, The Legacy and Momo. The median sale price for residential real estate was $710,000 in 2005 according to Forbes. The curvy exterior of the Heritage The Heritage at Millennium Park is a relatively new mixed use tower in Chicago. ...

Features

Millennium Park is a portion of the larger Grant Park, the "front lawn" of downtown Chicago and one of the larger public parks in metropolitan Chicago and is a showcase for postmodern architecture. It features the McCormick Tribune Ice Skating Rink, Peristyle at Wrigley Square, Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, AT&T Plaza, Lurie Garden, Chase Promenade and Trees in Millennium Park. There are three major artistic highlights: Cloud Gate, Crown Fountain and the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. Millennium Park is often considered the largest roof garden in the world, having been constructed on top of a railroad yard and large parking garages. Of its total 24.5 acres of land, Millennium Park contains 12.04 acres (524,358 square ft) of permeable area. The park's accessibility has won its project director the 2005 Barrier-Free America Award in recognition of individual leadership in making our country more accessible for all Americans.^[1] ... 1000 de La Gauchetière, with ornamented and strongly defined top, middle and bottom. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the current AT&T. For the 1885-2005 company, see American Telephone & Telegraph. ... Look up chase in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2004 Cloud Gate is a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor in Millennium Park, Chicago. ... Crown Fountain is an interactive public fountain in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois in the United States by Jaume Plensa that opened in July 2004. ... Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Pritzker Pavilion, or Pritzker Music Pavilion is a band shell in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. ...

Pritzker Pavilion

Main article: Jay Pritzker Pavilion

The principal signature of Millennium Park is the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, a band shell designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry with 4,000 fixed seats plus additional lawn seating for 7,000. A Pritzker Architecture Prize honoree and National Medal of Arts winner, Gehry designed such landmarks as the Guggenheim Museum at Bilbao, Der Neue Zollhof in Düsseldorf and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Characteristic of Gehry, the Pritzker Pavilion consists of curving planes of stainless steel resembling the graceful blooming of a flower or the unfurling sails of a massive ship. Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Pritzker Pavilion, or Pritzker Music Pavilion is a band shell in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. ... Pritzker School of Medicine Jay Pritzker, founder of Hyatt & philanthropist Linda Pritzker Nicholas Pritzker, Ukrainian immigrant and father of the family of Pritzker Robert Pritzker Thomas Pritzker Liesel Pritzer, actress Pritzker Prize Pritzker Architecture Prize This human name article is a disambiguation page — a list of pages that might otherwise... Frank Owen Gehry, CC (born Ephraim Owen Goldberg, February 28, 1929) is a Pritzker Prize winning architect based in Los Angeles, California. ... The Pritzker Architecture Prize is awarded annually to honor a living architect by the Hyatt Foundation, run by the Pritzker family. ... The National Medal of Arts is an award and title bestowed on selected honorees by the National Endowment for the Arts. ... The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, along the Nervión River in downtown Bilbao, with the Maman, a huge spider by Louise Bourgeois The Guggenheim museum in Bilbao, Spain, which is made of glass, titanium, and limestone. ... La Muy Noble y Muy Leal e Invicta (The most noble and most loyal and undefeated) Location Location of Bilbao in Spain and Biscay Coordinates : , Time zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer : CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Bilbao (Basque) Spanish name Bilbao Nickname El Botxo (the hole) Founded 15... Düsseldorf (IPA: ) is the capital city of the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and one of the economic and cultural centres of Germany and western Europe. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ...

The Pritzker Pavilion is the home of the Grant Park Music Festival, the nation's only remaining free, municipally-supported, outdoor, classical music series. The Festival is presented by the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs.[1] Winding eastward from Pritzker Pavilion is the only bridge in the world designed by Frank Gehry. The 925-foot (282 m) pedestrian bridge, clad in the same type of steel sheet as the bandshell with a hardwood deck, winds like a fluttering ribbon across nearby Columbus Drive, from the bandshell to a section of Grant Park along the lakefront. Grant Park Music Festival is an annual classical music concert series held in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Its organizers claim that it is the nations only free, outdoor classical music series. ... The Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park, New York City. ...

Cloud Gate

Main article: Cloud Gate

AT&T Plaza is home to Cloud Gate, a three-story, 110-ton steel sculpture that has been dubbed by residents as "The Bean". The sculpture is the work of world-renowned artist Anish Kapoor and is the first of his public art in the United States. The piece was privately funded and the total cost was $23 million — up from the original estimate of $6 million. Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2004 Cloud Gate is a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor in Millennium Park, Chicago. ... Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2004 Cloud Gate is a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor in Millennium Park, Chicago. ... 1000 Names, 1985 Anish Kapoor (originally Anish Neeraj Sen, born 1954) is a Turner Prize winning sculptor. ...

Cloud Gate is a highly-polished reflective steel sculpture that is meant to resemble a drop of mercury hovering at the point of landing on a plaza of the park. When Millennium Park opened in 2004, the grid of welds around each metal panel was still visible. But in early 2005 workers polished out the seams. The curved, mirror-like surface of the sculpture provides striking reflections of visitors, the city skyline, particularly the historic Michigan Avenue "Streetwall," and the sky; since its installation, it has probably become the most popular sculpture in the city. This article is about the element. ...

Crown Fountain

Main article: Crown Fountain

Crown Fountain, named in honor of Chicago's Crown family, was designed by Catalan conceptual artist Jaume Plensa, and is the first of its kind in the world. Transparent glass block bricks are used to build two 50-foot (15 m) towers standing at either end of a long, black granite plaza submerged under an eighth of an inch layer of water. Behind the glass bricks are high-tech LED video screens that when illuminated, scrolls through videos of the faces of nearly a thousand individual Chicagoans and showcases the vast diversity of the city while a stream of water cascades over the images. Playing on the theme of historical fountains based around gargoyles with water coming through the open mouth of the creature, each video includes specific moments where the person purses his or her lips and the fountain spews water from a point in the video display that makes it appear as though the person is spitting the water out. This phenomenon occurs roughly every five minutes. Crown Fountain is an interactive public fountain in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois in the United States by Jaume Plensa that opened in July 2004. ... Lester Crown (born 1926) is the son of Chicago financier Henry Crown (d. ... This article is about the Spanish Autonomous Community. ... Jaume Plensa (born 1955) is a Catalan artist from Barcelona, Spain. ... High tech refers to technology that is at the cutting-edge—the most advanced technology currently available. ... External links LEd Category: TeX ... For other uses, see Video (disambiguation). ... Gargoyles redirects here. ...

Budget

The project was known for its notorious delays (it was originally intended to open in 2000 instead of 2004) and tripled costs. Some Chicagoans began to refer to the project deridingly as "next-millennium" park.

During development and construction of the park, many structures were added, redesigned or modified. These changes often resulted in budget increases. For example, the band shell's proposed budget was $10.8 million. When the elaborate, cantilevered Gehry design required extra piling be driven into the bedrock to support the added weight, the cost of the band shell eventually spiraled to $60.3 million. The total cost of the park, as itemized in the following table, amounted to almost $500 million. Much of the fundraising was borne by local business leaders, including the Pritzker family and Crown family. Pritzker is a family name and may refer to: Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago Pritzker Architecture Prize Jay Pritzker, founder of Hyatt & philanthropist Linda Pritzker Abram Nicholas Pritzker, Ukrainian-Jewish immigrant and father of the family of Pritzker Robert Pritzker Thomas Pritzker Liesel Matthews, the stage...

Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2004 Cloud Gate is a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor in Millennium Park, Chicago. ... Exelon Corporation is a giant electricity generating and distributing company headquartered in Chicago. ... Wrigley Square is a northwest section of Millennium Park in Chicago. ...

Criticism and controversy

The Millennium Park project has been the subject of some criticism since its inception. In addition to concerns about the cost overrun, individuals and organizations have complained that the money spent on the park might have gone to other worthy causes, specifically citing ongoing issues with poverty in Chicago and problems within the city's schools. However, others believe that Chicago's potential to become a new type of metropolitan Olympic city could boost investment into the city, helping to fund more social and educational problems in the longer term. Cost overrun is defined as excess of actual cost over budget. ...

Although the park's design and architectural elements have won wide praise, some criticism of the aesthetics of the park has been noted. Other criticism has revolved around the larger issue of corruption and political favoritism in the city; for example a July 2004 New York Times article [2] reported that an inflated contract for park cleanup had gone to a company that made large contributions to Mayor Daley's election campaign. Concerns have also been raised over the use of mixed taxpayer and corporate funding and associated naming rights for sections of the park. While a large monument in the northwest corner of the park honors the many private and corporate donors who contributed to its construction, entire squares and plazas within the park are named for their corporate underwriters, with the sponsors' names prominently indicated with stone markers (Boeing Gallery, Exelon Pavilion, AT&T Plaza, Wrigley Square); some critics have deemed this to be inappropriate for a public space. The park curfew and obvious presence of security guards is also cited in some quarters as working against the idea of a public park. The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ...

A controversy arose when the park enforced a requirement for professional photographers to obtain a paid permit to photograph the artwork in the park for commercial purposes. In doing so, the city cited the copyrights of the artists who created the works (particularly the popular Cloud Gate sculpture), which give the artists sole right to profit from their work. However, enforcement of the permit requirement was inconsistent and sometimes heavy-handed, resulting in some non-commercial photographers and tourists being accosted while taking pictures of the sculpture, and leading to a public perception that they are banned from taking pictures of the park they helped pay for (as noted above, though, copyright applies to images taken, not for personal use, but only for commercial purposes). Not to be confused with copywriting. ... Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2004 Cloud Gate is a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor in Millennium Park, Chicago. ...

• On May 11 through May 12, 2007 Looptopia, a "dusk-to-dawn" event occurred, which encouraged public access to the Chicago Loop area throughout the evening. Public access to the park was completely prevented by police enforcement of the park curfew.

Looptopia is a unique annual event taking place in the city of Chicago. ...

Notes

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Millennium Park

• Chicago architecture
• List of concert halls
• List of contemporary amphitheatres
• Looptopia

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Apo Hsu and the NTNU Symphony Orchestra on stage in the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan A concert hall is a cultural building, which serves as performance venue, chiefly for classical instrumental music. ... This is a list of contemporary amphitheaters, not to be confused with Roman amphitheaters Alpine Valley Music Theater Blossom Music Center Celeste Center Coors Amphitheatre (San Diego) Cricket Pavilion Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Darien Lake Performing Arts Center DTE Energy Music Theatre Greek Theatre (Los Angeles) First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre... Looptopia is a unique annual event taking place in the city of Chicago. ...

External links

• City of Chicago Millennium Park
• Public Building Commission of Chicago Millennium Park Overview
• Chicagoist on the photography "ban"
• Chicago Public Radio special -- audio segments about the park