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The Chicago Bears, in conjunction with the Chicago Park District and the City of Chicago, built a dramatic new professional sports stadium within the walls of the historic Soldier Field. As part of the project, a 4,000-space underground parking area replaced the surface parking lot that had surrounded the stadium. The site was transformed from a stadium with 17 acres of asphalt to a stadium encircled by a lush and versatile 32-acre park.
The landscape architect’s responsibilities included the design of the park’s paths, grading and plantings as well as the landscape over the two underground parking garages. Since the ground excavated for the parking garages was "historic" because the original site had been artificially created in the early 1900s, the landscape designers were challenged to create landforms that reflected this history.
The entire park landscape was designed with softly curved paths through landforms that flow through areas of open lawn for large events and densely planted groves of trees for more intimate gatherings. The remarkable landforms create perspectives from which viewers can see the lake, city skyline, stadium and museums. They even extend to the roof of the north parking structure, covering the presence of the 2,500 car parking garage. Because of weight restrictions over the parking garage, the landforms were created with geo-foam and topped with a nine-inch depth of specially designed lightweight soil. The sinuous landforms also echo the dynamic forms of the new stadium.
Immediately south of the stadium, the upper level of the Waldron Deck features tree islands allowing for a "green roof" that is usable for parking. Other important features of North Burnham Park include the Veteran’s Memorial Waterwall, a nautilus-shaped Children’s Garden and a Winter Garden with a thirty-three foot high sledding hill. The new park has been embraced by both the City and Chicagoans and has received numerous prestigious awards.
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