A bicyclist pedals along the southern end of Northerly Island on Wednesday. (Michael Tercha, Chicago Tribune)
Two years ago, city planners unveiled an ambitious plan to turn the flat grassy turf of Northerly Island into an urban park designed for adventure and discovery in the natural world.
Now ecologists at the Army Corps of Engineers have the green light to begin the first phase: reshaping the southern end of the 91-acre man-made peninsula into an ecologically diverse habitat for land and water critters native to Chicago.
"To me it's like a picture of what the city was like before the city was built," said Jeanne Gang, an architect of the Park District's long-term plan for the peninsula. "As the city sprawls bigger and bigger … it's going to be really important for inner-city people and youth to be able to access a natural place."
On that note, the Park District also plans to announce Thursday an expansion of camping opportunities at the park for kids and families starting in 2013.
The Park District will expand its Nature Oasis Family Camping program to allow 100 people to camp at Northerly Island six times a year. Additionally, the agency will offer youths 12 to 15 wilderness classes during breaks from public school. The programs will start in 2013 and expand to full capacity in 2014 when the Corps of Engineers construction is scheduled to be finished.
Meanwhile, the corps plans to turn 40 acres on the island's southern end into six interdependent ecosystems in hopes of attracting wildlife native to the area in greater numbers.
The corps estimates that first phase will cost about $7 million. The Park District agreed to chip in at least $1.5 million, said Bob Foster, the Park District's senior project manger. The Corps of Engineers will use its own funds and money from the Environmental Protection Agency to pay the balance.
The project is expected to take five years — two for construction and three for monitoring growth and development. Construction could begin as early as this fall, said Kirston Buczak, a Corps of Engineers project manager. The southern end of the peninsula will be closed for about a year, Foster said.
Under the plan, the lacustrine, a sandy soil mix located in the inner harbor, can grow plants such as eel grass and pond weeds, providing structure and habitat for small fish.
Toward the eastern end, engineers will construct a 4.1-acre pond. While it will be connected to Lake Michigan, it will have a small fence to block invasive species such as common carp while giving smaller critters such as mudpuppies — a type of salamander — a safe refuge, said Frank Veraldi, a fish and restoration ecologist with the Corps of Engineers.
Project organizers hope to eventually install underwater cameras in the pond so observers can get a glimpse of the action. Outside the pond, small creatures like crawfish can burrow their nests in the emergent marsh, while aquatic turtles can use the space to eat insects and animals.
The peninsula's mesic and wet prairies can be a natural habitat for native mice, garter snakes and small birds, such as the sedge and marsh wrens. But environmentalists say it's the savanna that offers a unique opportunity.
Close to 300 species of birds have been observed in the Chicago area, many of them passing through on their way to places as far away as South America.
Environmentalists hope the trees and shrubbery in the savanna will lure birds to nest and feed on the peninsula and prevent them from crashing into buildings by giving them a place to reorient themselves.
This phase is part of a larger plan for Northerly Island that includes importing a sunken ship for divers to explore, building a new concert venue that could hold 12,000 to 14,000 people and installing a chain of reefs around the peninsula.
The Park District is a long way off from fulfilling some of the glitzier goals, but for now officials say they are pondering the possibilities.
In years past, development of Northerly Island has faced intense scrutiny. The peninsula was built in 1925 and became the home of Meigs Field in 1947.
At the start of the Iraq War, former Mayor Richard Daley authorized the airport to be bulldozed, arguing that terrorists could use it to crash small planes in the Loop.
Even when the Park District unveiled its long-term vision for the peninsula in 2010, objectors said they hoped city planners would reopen Meigs.
Supporters of the project say the island's proximity to the Museum Campus makes it especially rich for tourism and educational programming.
"We have been talking with folks at the Army Corps and the Park District about what our involvement may be," said Roger Germann, executive vice president of the Shedd Aquarium. "We definitely see it as a huge opportunity."
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