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Mission Statement:
Lincoln Park Conservancy's mission is to preserve, restore and enhance the natural, historical and cultural assets of Lincoln Park, Chicago, through advocacy and the implementation of special projects.
A Word About Us·
Lincoln Park Conservancy is a not-for-profit, volunteer organization founded in 1984 in Chicago, by local resident Emese Wood. Lincoln Park Conservancy (LPC) helped spearhead the creation of the Lincoln Park Framework Plan by releasing a document entitled "Lincoln Park - Preparing for the Twenty-First Century." The 30-page document outlined the need for a long-range plan for Lincoln Park and was the catalyst that began a 4-year park planning process. LPC members took the initiative to raise funds to design and print the 50 page framework plan and produce a companion video entitled, "Lincoln Park: A Plan for the Future."
During the past 10 years, LPC has successfully completed a number of park improvement projects.
Adopt-A-Monument Program
LPC found sponsors for the Shakespeare and Lincoln Monuments and the Bates Fountain. Sponsors fund restoration work and provide endowment funds for the monuments.
The Lincoln Monument and Adjacent Gardens
In 1989 the Sara Lee Corporation adopted the Lincoln Monument and provided funds for its restoration. The Lincoln Monument is in a prominent location, lying just east of the Chicago Historical Society between LaSalle Drive and North Avenue. At the time of the monument restoration this landscape was completely degraded. LPC felt that the landscape in front of the monument should be as significant as the monument itself. LPC made plans to create and maintain an extensive perennial garden in this location. LPC approached the French bank, Credit Agricole, which provided funds for installation of the garden as a gift to the citizens of Chicago during the bicentennial celebration of the French Revolution.
Since 1989, LPC's Garden Committee has taken on the responsibility of recruiting, educating and coordinating volunteers to maintain the Lincoln Garden. Annually, 40 volunteers donate about 576 hours over 18 weeks to plant annuals and perennials and do other maintenance chores at the garden. In 1990, LPC received a public recognition award from the Illinois Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects for its work on the Lincoln Monument and Garden. In 1992 the same project received a Gold Award from the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association. During 1985 LPC received donations from neighborhood residents for benches surrounding the Lincoln Garden. Twelve benches have been installed.
Diversey Point
LPC also managed the Diversey Point building by operating a park visitor center and concession during the interim between the facility's use as a private gun club and the Lakeshore Athletic Club facility.
Bates Fountain Renovation
In the spring of 1999, LPC completed the restoration of the Bates Fountain which is located just outside of the Lincoln Park Zoo. This was a 112-year-old fountain and its restoration was a cooperative effort of LPC, the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District.
Our Current Project-The Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool Restoration.
The one and a half acre Lily Pool is a landscape of national historic importance. Alfred Caldwell, who served as a landscape architect for the Chicago Park District during the 1930's, designed it. During his lifetime, Caldwell made important contributions to the Prairie School of architecture and design, a movement led by Frank Lloyd Wright. Caldwell collaborated on significant projects with luminaries such as Jens Jensen, Ludwig Hilberseimer and Mies van der Rohe.
Caldwell wrote in 1942, "[The Lily Pool] was planned as a hidden garden of the people of Megalopolis." More than half a century later, there are few other public spots in Chicago that offer the same sense of natural respite from the harshness of city life.
The Lily Pool is located south of Fullerton Drive and north of the Elephant house in Lincoln Park Zoo. Because of the Zoo's proximity to the Lily Pool, the Zoo began to manage the site for breeding birds in the 1950's and changed the Lily Pool's name to the "Rookery," as it is sometimes known today. To respect the past and reflect the future, the site was renamed the "Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool" in May 2000.
Though the scenic glade still possesses the power to surprise and delight visitors, the decline of the landscape is painfully apparent. Naked tree roots rope their way across desolate stretches of bare dirt. The pond has grown stagnant, and its green surface is tangled with fallen trees. Graffiti and rot mar the handsome wooden pavilion.
Since Caldwell's day, rock has been laid on grassy, planted areas to counteract erosion. Weedy trees like white poplar and European buckthorn have invaded and grown to maturity, shading out and killing the undergrowth Caldwell envisioned. Songbirds that stop at the Lily Pool to recuperate during their arduous migration find little to eat, for native trees and shrubs with berries have long since died.
In 1997, the Lincoln Park Conservancy began an effort in cooperation with the Chicago Park District to create a concept plan for repairing and reviving the Lily Pool. The plan remains faithful to Caldwell's original ideas while accommodating modern concerns. Now with the support of public agencies and private citizens, there's an opportunity for this plan to be completed.
The rededication ceremony took place on Friday, October 26th, and was open to the public. Despite the chilly weather, close to 200 invited guests and residents joined Mayor Daley, Chicago Park District General Superintendent David Doig, Lincoln Park Conservancy, Alderman Vi Daley, State Representative Judy Erwin and State Senator John Cullerton at this joyful rededication ceremony that signaled the rebirth of Caldwell's dream.
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