(Above) The Chicago Riverwalk west of Michigan Avenue early last Saturday. (Click on image to view larger version.)

June 14, 2013 – The city has been approved for a $99 million loan to keep building the Chicago Riverwalk. The mayor’s office made the announcement on Thursday. Rahm Emanual says the loan will help “turn the Chicago River from an industrial highway into the city’s new transportation destination.”

In March, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was in River North to announce that Chicago would be invited to apply for the loan. The money will come from the Transportation Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act, a program that provides federal assistance for infrastructure projects across the nation. The Riverwalk is the program’s first project.

While the Chicago Department of Transportation has been working on the Riverwalk since the 1990s, there has not been enough money to build beyond State Street. With the loan, plans now are to finish the Riverwalk by extending it another six blocks to Lake Street.

Previous stories:

• No funding yet but city has plans to expand Riverwalk past State Street
• City’s steep dock fees will benefit Riverwalk
• City to seek fed money to finish Riverwalk