Aurora council gets look at park plans

A riverfront park will do for Aurora what Millennium Park did for Chicago.

At least that's the hope of Aurora aldermen, who took an in-depth look Tuesday at plans for the multimillion dollar project along the Fox River.

In April, Mayor Tom Weisner announced the building of the park, roughly between Illinois Avenue and New York Street, as a key part of the city's overall initiative to redevelop downtown.

Officials hope the site will be a regional attraction and serve as a linchpin for economic development. It'll create jobs, expand the tax base and preserve valuable open space along the riverfront, leaders say.

The 30-acre park will include an outdoor music venue, botanical garden, nature center, public market and a pedestrian bridge linking the east and west river banks.

Weisner on Tuesday likened the project to Millennium Park, reminding people that despite initial criticism and escalating costs, it became a success story.

"There is no one criticizing Millennium Park now," he said.

The tax and tourism dollars it has generated for the city is "phenomenal," he said.

Leaders see River Edge as a smaller-scale version of Millennium -- minus the problems -- with the first phase to be done over the next several years.

That includes building the music venue, which would host the city's annual Downtown Alive concert series.

The facility would feature lawn seating for about 4,000 people and have 2,000 fixed seats.

Both the venue and the bridge would stand out as iconic symbols, leaders say. Eventually, the park could host water and light shows, parades and ceremonies, boat races, kayaking stations and more. It also could host private events like weddings and graduations.

The initial cost estimate for the first phase is $12.5 million, with about half coming from public funds and the rest coming from private donations.

The first phase includes demolition and site work on a roughly 12-acre portion of the park, as well as building the music venue, retaining walls, a playground and interactive water features.

The plan will be unveiled to residents in coming months at neighborhood meetings and other events, Weisner said.

Officials could adopt a revised master plan for both the park and a river walk later this month. Pending approval, the permit process would follow, with construction possibly starting in spring 2009.