The Great Urban Theme Park

How does Chicago's new Millenium Park compare with the great urban parks of the 19th and 20th centuries?

1 minute read

May 17, 2005, 2:00 PM PDT

"On a recent visit, it struck me that in many ways Millennium Park is a theme park. In one corner is Burnham's World, which includes a Classical peristyle of fluted Doric columns, a formal lawn, lots of urns and formal planting beds, and light standards designed by the great Chicago architect Daniel Burnham. Nearby is the Not-So-Enchanted Forest...In its first six months, the downtown park has attracted more than 1.5 million visitors. This is an impressive number considering the park is only 24.5 acresCentral Park gets 20 million visitors annually, but it covers more than 800 acres. On a visitor-per-acre scale, Millennium Park must be the most popular park in the country."

Thanks to David Gest

Read the full story: Chicago's Magic Kingdom

Wednesday, May 11, 2005 in Slate

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