Promontory Point limestone seawall can be saved, study says

The historic limestones protecting the shoreline at lakefront oasis Promontory Point are “structurally sound” and could be saved, according to a new study.

The findings of the survey, conducted by McLaren Technical Services and commissioned by the Promontory Point Conservancy, contradict the position of the Chicago division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Chicago Park District and Chicago Department of Transportation, which have said the limestone blocks facing the lake have failed and need to be replaced.

The man-made lakefront park, which is owned by the park district, near 55th Street and DuSable Lake Shore Drive has been at the center of a decades-long debate over the barriers. The city has historically sought to replace the limestone with concrete slabs, but community members have opposed such a move, favoring the limestone to concrete for its aesthetic appeal and historical significance.

The limestone seawall includes the last original limestone revetments standing in the city.

“The iconic limestone blocks currently in place along the point’s shoreline are structurally sound, provide critical shoreline protection for the inland park and south lakefront, and may be easily rehabilitated,” said Michael Scott, a board member of the Promontory Point Conservancy, in a statement from the group at a news conference Thursday announcing the study’s findings.

Ezra Maille/For The Sun-Times

The study states that “in-kind repair and restoration would be the most cost-effective means of repair” and would preserve the historic limestone. The study did not provide specifics on costs, but a rehabilitation plan may be done later, which would include costs, the group said. Though the city declared Promontory Point a historic landmark last April, conservancy members say they fear it might not be enough to protect the limestone from demolition.

The man-made peninsula was built with landfill in the 1930s and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018.

“We don’t have any plans to replace what’s out there with concrete,” Mike Padilla, senior project manager for the Army Corps of Engineers, told the Sun-Times. “It would be a process to determine what’s the best thing to do from a historic standpoint and an engineering standpoint to balance those two factors.”

Padilla said he has not yet read the results of the conservancy study, but the Army Corps intends to create a plan for the barrier “very soon.”

Ezra Maille/For The Sun-Times

Jack Spicer, director of the Promontory Point Conservancy, spoke of his love for the point as a beautiful area for community members to enjoy. He said that if the barrier were replaced by concrete, the point could be closed for a few years.

Under the rehabilitation strategy, which the study advocates for, the point would stay open while repairs are conducted on specific sections of the limestone.

Ald. Desmon Yancy (5th), who voiced support for the protection of the limestone, read an email from the Chicago Department of Transportation, stating that CDOT, the park district and Army Corps look forward to reviewing the McLaren study, and have “‘no intention of replacing the limestone with a continuous concrete revetment.’”

The study cost more than $200,000 and was funded entirely by donations, Spicer said.

“These are all small donations by people in the community,” Spicer said. “It really, really matters. This isn’t about just saving the stones at Promontory Point; it’s about saving the community that loves Promontory Point.”

Ezra Maille is a graduate student studying social justice and solutions reporting at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism.