Projects

Address

300 North Central Park Avenue
Chicago,IL60624
United States

Community Area

East Garfield Park

Project Description

The Garfield Park Conservatory is one of the largest and most stunning conservatories in the nation. Often referred to as “landscape art under glass,” the Garfield Park Conservatory occupies two acres of public greenhouse space and 10 acres of outdoor gardens.  In 2022, the Conservatory welcomed nearly 300,000 visitors. The Conservatory is an attraction that serves the local East Garfield Park community and attracts visitors from around the globe. In a typical year, 30% of visitors are from Chicago’s west side, and 58% are from the City of Chicago.

The warm tropical environment is an attraction for many families to visit and learn about plants and nature – especially in the cold winter months.  The southwest section of the facility features a 6,000 square foot indoor children’s garden.  Our partner, the Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance, has raised funds from private and government sources to completely renovate the room and build the new Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden. The project is designed to use nature to inspire and engage children, creating an immersive space of natural wonder where children can elevate their expectations, explore their possibilities, and discover their future. The new garden and playscape will provide a free, year-round, accessible adventure playground for Garfield Park and Chicago families.

The project scope includes the complete reconstruction of the children’s garden with new planting beds, new family restrooms and a new indoor playground that is designed specifically for the space. Play structures will be built with materials that can withstand the wet environment of an indoor greenhouse. A wheel-chair accessible spiral ramp will make its way up to the top of the Conservatory’s historic glass roof, providing views of the Conservatory grounds and the exhibits below. The playground will feature numerous play elements that provide children with opportunities to explore ways that plants are important for human health and ecosystems, along with opportunities to use both fine and gross motor skills. The centerpiece of the playground is a one-of-a-kind climber that will connect with the accessible ramp at the top of the greenhouse.