Skinner Park: A Model For All Chicago Parks

By Alicia Dorr in News on Feb 20, 2006 8:52PM

One nice thing about Chicago is the parks, even if the Chicago Park District isn't a city department void of gratuitous corruption. Communities sort of rally around their parks in Chicago—sometimes a whole lot. And the West Loop's Skinner Park on Adams Street has just such a tight-knit community.

For example, the Skinner Park Advisory Council got a $3,000 pledge for the multi-level drinking fountain it has been raising money for. Multi-tier meaning there's a fountain for you, for neighbors with wheelchairs, for the children and for your dog—sort of like this, only with yet another tier. The council has already raised $2,000 of its own from the proceeds of its 2006 Skinner Park Dog Calendar, so now the park is well on its way to quenching its water needs.

The council's Dog Advocacy Committee would probably be happy to hear that, after years of stalling, the park district has finally—officially—signed off on the Grant Park dog park.

If you've yet to get into the park mood, check out the events calendar for the district. Flower shows, "skull skills" day—beats sitting in your shoveled parking space and looking at the dirty snow all day.