Millennium Park is a public park located in the Loopcommunity area of Chicago. It is a prominent civic center near the city's Lake Michigan shoreline, and covers a 24.5-acre (9.9 ha) section of northwestern Grant Park. The area was previously occupied by parkland, Illinois Central rail yards and parking lots. The park, which is bounded by Michigan Avenue, Randolph Street, Columbus Drive and East Monroe Drive, features a variety of public art. As of 2009, Millennium Park trailed only Navy Pier as a Chicago tourist attraction. Planning for the park began in October 1997. Construction began in October 1998, and Millennium Park was opened in a ceremony on July 16, 2004, four years behind schedule; the three-day opening celebrations were attended by some 300,000 people and included an inaugural concert by the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus. The park has received awards for its accessibility and green design. Millennium Park has free admission, and features the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Cloud Gate, the Crown Fountain, the Lurie Garden, and other attractions. The center is connected by the BP Pedestrian Bridge and the Nichols Bridgeway to other parts of Grant Park. Millennium Park is considered to be the city's most important project since the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, and it far exceeded its originally proposed budget of $150 million. (more...)
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