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Artline Chicago –

Elevated Park as Platform for Art 2007

Artline Chicago proposes the transformation of the extant 2.7-mile Bloomingdale elevated rail line—now The 606—into a programmable, multimedia linear park that integrates cultural resources from regional museums and nonprofits. By embedding artistic and cultural programming within the trail, the project seeks to broaden access to the arts for underserved neighborhoods while strengthening civic identity across Chicago’s Northwest Side.

At the core of the proposal are 37 lightweight bridges designed to replace the existing heavy rail infrastructure. Although occupying only ten percent of the trail’s total area, these new structures fundamentally reshape the corridor by opening spaces below to light, air, and public use. Each bridge operates as both an access point to the trail and a venue for neighborhood-specific programming. The spatial framework organizes the park into three parallel lanes: a slow lane weaving through community parks, a fast lane aligned with Bloomingdale Avenue, and a green lane defined by vertical and horizontal ‘scapes.’ Collectively, the bridges establish an ‘over-canvas’ for global cultural exchange and an ‘under-collection’ of localized spaces for walking, cycling, and community engagement. Through this layered design, Artline Chicago reframes infrastructure as a civic medium for cultural production and social connection.

The proposal was developed as part of Envisioning the Bloomingdale Line, an initiative organized by the Chicago Architectural Club in collaboration with Details Magazine and the Bloomingdale Trail Collaborative. This collective effort solicited projects that demonstrated how community input, political support, and innovative design could generate visionary proposals for the site while elevating the visibility of emerging talent in public architecture. Twenty-five architects were invited to contribute speculative concepts, positioning this project within a select group of works intended to spark public imagination around the future of the trail.

HIGHLIGHTS The Envisioning the Bloomingdale Line Exhibition was held at The Acme Art Works Gallery in Chicago from May 18 – June 3, 2007, showcasing all 25 invited proposals. The venue provided an opportunity to surface emerging themes and common ideas, sparking dialogue about the future potential of the elevated rail line.

The proposals and lessons from the exhibition were later documented in Chicago Architectural Club Journal #11: 5 Concepts: Envisioning the Bloomingdale, edited by Claire Lyster. Artline Chicago was selected as the cover image, underscoring its prominence within the collection. The journal served as a critical record of speculative ideas that reimagined the elevated line as both cultural resource and community asset.

The Chicago Architectural Club Journal was subsequently referenced in the Bloomingdale Trail and Park Framework Plan, published by the Chicago Department of Transportation in 2012. This framework marked a pivotal step in advancing the project under Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s leadership.

Ultimately, the Bloomingdale Trail—realized as The 606 in 2015—reflects the influence of these early conceptual proposals in shaping the trajectory of one of Chicago’s most significant public spaces.