Dogs And Tots Want Chicago's Emerald Necklace

In Chicago, early gentrifiers face off against newcomers with families who need places to play. Some question the Department of Planning and Development's preliminary proposals to build a tot lot and a dog-run in the open space of Palmer Square. Over the past 25 years, some residents have restored the square to its "status as a jewel in Chicago's historic 28-mile boulevard system, the 'Emerald Necklace' of green space envisioned by 19th Century architectural giants including Frederick Law Olmsted, Daniel Burnham and William Le Baron Jenney." The local Alderman points out that this isn't the 19th century: "As times change, the needs of the community change. I don't think it is an area that has to remain the same forever." Historic preservationists point out that the City recently built a new community playground half a block from the square, and community meetings determined that a skateboard park and dog run beneath the Kennedy Expressway are the recreational priorities.