BRONZEVILLE TRAIL TASK FORCE PUSHING FOR ELEVATED PARK TRAIL

Kenwood Embankment, Elevated Trail Park Gets Green Lighted, Bronzeville Trail Would Be Similar to Bloomingdale Trail
Kenwood Embankment, Elevated Trail Park Gets Green Lighted, Bronzeville Trail Would Be Similar to Bloomingdale Trail. Photo provided by Wyn-Win Communications
Kenwood Embankment, Elevated Trail Park Gets Green Lighted, Bronzeville Trail Would Be Similar to Bloomingdale Trail. Photo provided by Wyn-Win Communications

 

BRONZEVILLE TRAIL TASK FORCE PUSHING FOR ELEVATED PARK TRAIL

Kenwood Embankment, Elevated Trail Park Gets Green Lighted, Bronzeville Trail 

Would Be Similar to Bloomingdale Trail

Within Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s recently announced vision for a connected city-wide network of trails and corridors is a plan to include the Kenwood embankment in Bronzeville, the site of an abandoned railway and “L” line.  The sizable parcel of land, roughly two miles long, would be an impressive addition as an outdoor linear park trail for walking, biking, and jogging.

The project speaks to the city’s past and future.  The rail line has ties to the Great Black Migration, the employment of thousands of African American butchers, and the establishment of Chicago’s thriving meat packing industry. As to the community’s future, the trail will improve the quality of life for residents and impact economic development, housing, physical fitness, and mental health, for starters.

The announcement is long awaited news for the Bronzeville Trail Task Force (BTTF), a non-profit group founded in 2020 and whose mission is to serve as the community stewards of the Bronzeville Trail, offering an independent voice while working closely with all stakeholders to ensure that the Trail is a vibrant, inclusive part of the Bronzeville Trail Community corridor. For decades, there has been talk of building an elevated park and hiking trail in Bronzeville to commemorate a historic but long-gone “L” train route that ran on the historic Stock Yard Line.  Now, that talk has taken a big step towards becoming a reality.  The much-anticipated project includes an elevated biking and hiking trail that would start at about 40th and Dearborn St. on the west end and proceed about 2 miles to the east to 41st and Lake Park Ave. The east end access point would be located one block from the 41st St. Pedestrian Bridge, providing access to the lakefront biking/walking path. 

“The construction of a bike and walking trail on the abandoned Kenwood Line is something the underserved South Side deserves,” said John Adams, Bronzeville Trail Task Force Founder. “This project has been attempted and rebuffed since 2005 and has been met with indifference for years. Much of Bronzeville’s history is associated with the Bronzeville trail itself, the neighboring property and the role those areas played in the daily lives of Bronzeville residents.”

The embankment of the old Kenwood CTA line, where the new trail will be built, was built in 1907, but remains largely intact. The land is all that is left of an 1860s freight rail line that ran from the Union Stockyards to Lake Michigan and later carried ‘L’ trains to the old station at 42nd and Oakenwald.  The service ended in the late 1950s. Sections between Drexel and Cottage Grove were demolished years ago to make way for residential development.  But most of the almost two-mile-long embankment still exists.

“Parts of the southside are missing many of the health and wellness benefits that are prevalent in other parts of the city,” said BTTF Board Chair Walter A. Freeman. “Walkers, joggers and bikers could enter the trail at several locations, making pursuing healthier activities easier.  There is also a great deal of unused land nearby that a state-of-the-art biking and hiking trail would make more attractive to potential developers.”

“This is our history,” said Adams. “The Kenwood ‘L’ was more than just a rail line.  It represented cultural and social progress and was a part of the daily lives of Bronzeville residents for almost a century.  That history deserves to be preserved and celebrated.”

The BTTF has an ambitious fund-raising goal to raise the millions needed to complete the trail.  Government funding and private grants may be announced soon. To learn more or to support and work with the organization in the promotion and development of this historic project for the benefit of the Bronzeville community, call 773-425-2480 or email: bronzevilletrail@gmail.com.

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