WRD Environmental Results Gallery, Community Spaces

Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, IL

Client Profile

Lincoln Park Zoo connects people with nature by providing a free, family-oriented wildlife experience in the heart of Chicago and by advancing the highest quality of animal care, education, science and conservation. Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure, the lead on this project and a subsidiary of The Shaw Group, specializes in industrial and municipal construction and environmental services involving infrastructure and remediation.

Goals

• Create a “slice of prairie in the big city” by transforming the much-loved yet degraded South Pond area into an urban wildlife habitat
• Enhance the visitor experience with expanded educational opportunities
• Improve the water quality of the South Pond

Sample Results

• A 14-acre landscape that re-creates a native Midwestern, self-sustaining ecosystem, featuring an array of prairie plants and 100 new trees
• A living classroom that engages families, schoolchildren and teachers in environmental learning
• A re-engineered pond with naturalized shorelines and depths that welcome wildlife
• A City of Chicago GreenWorks Award, a Design Excellence Award from AIA Chicago, a Conservation & Native Landscaping Award from the US EPA and Chicago Wilderness, and far-reaching media attention