Where there is no vision the people perish. This biblical maxim rings as true today as when it was first recorded over 2,000 years ago. But collective visions shared by members of a community evolve and change, as do the economic and social realities of community life. Periods of transition, when an inherited vision no longer seems pertinent, often produce the most stressful chapters in the history of a community or region.
For more than a decade now, residents of the communities that border the historic Illinois and Michigan Canal have been grappling with the challenges of regeneration and redefinition. The vibrant image of a thriving industriaI corridor, where, in Carl Sandburg’s words, “part of the valley is God’s and part is man’s,” had become sadly tarnished by the late 1970s. The quest for a new regional identity surfaced during a grassroots effort to establish the first National Heritage Corridor. Today, this “visioning” process continues, as the heritage corridor philosophy becomes more ingrained as a community development ethic, shaping the thinking and actions of many individuals and institutions throughout the canal region.
The region from Chicago at Lake Michigan to LaSalle-Peru on the Illinois River extends along a 120-mile system of inland waterways and contains one of the highest concentrations of Fortune 500 corporations in the upper Midwest. But as a maturing industrial corridor, it also suffers from many of the traditional problems associated with the “rust belt.” During the Iate 1970s and early 80s, industries which had employed four and five generations of the same family sent shock waves through the community by closing their doors permanently, often with little or no advance warning. Unemployment figures soared to nearly 25 percent. Within such a bleak economic environment, it is no surprise that residents were plagued by self-doubt and growing pessimism. In many ways the physical state of the original hand-dug canal — fragmented, partially abandoned, and badly in need of assistance – mirrored the conditions of the economically troubled region it had spawned l50 years earlier.
Seat of empire for the colonial French and the Native Americans before them, this ancient transportation corridor, the critical connection between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basin, today claims 42 municipalities, 18 Chicago neighborhoods, and sections of five Illinois counties. While the original canal and subsequent transportation improvements united the valley physically and economically, its shared heritage had become, at best, largely forgotten and poorly understood. A remarkable collection of cultural resources, pristine natural areas, and unparalleled recreational opportunities survived, yet most local landmarks suffered from long-term disinvestments and a general lack of public appreciation. Insensitive new development increasingly fragmented the rural landscape, and compromised the region’s unique character.
A multitude of local political jurisdictions balkanized the area, making it virtually impossible to deal with issues and opportunities on a regional basis. It was the grassroots drive for federal recognition of the canal and its surrounding landscape that finally provided a unique focus for local energy and a reason for the residents of the region to convene and explore their collective future. Out of these deliberations, the concept of a partnership park emerged, which allows the landscape to be seen as a whole, an environment where the development of one resource cannot take place without affecting others.
Within this holistic approach, development and conservation are seen as compatible as long as new development builds upon rather than destroys the unique character of a place by respecting older patterns of community and the natural environment. Integrated goals for the corridor encompass preservation and enhancement of cultural, natural, and recreational resources, broad public education, and economic revitalization. When President Reagan came to Chicago on August 24, 1984 to sign the Illinois and Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor legislation, a new vision for the region was officially validated by the federal government.
The defining mantra for the Illinois and Michigan Canal Corridor is “heritage.” Since preservation goals for the project are at a landscape scale, involving multiple owners and political jurisdictions within 450 square miles, it would be impossible to succeed without integrating economic development strategies within the overall program. This is an active transportation and industrial corridor, a living, working landscape, not a living history museum or traditional historical park. By using history as a major economic development resource, however, this philosophy charts fresh ground; while attempting to preserve the defining scenic, cultural and open space resources of the region, it improves the ability of the area to compete for ever more limited investment dollars and new jobs. Tourism, downtown and waterfront revitalization, and the re-use of abandoned and underutilized industrial properties are all strong elements in what is sometimes called “heritage development.” With shrinking federal, state and local budgets, soaring deficits and intense economic competition, capitalizing on the unique history, natural assets, and existing infrastructure of an historical region makes great practical sense.
If heritage development strategies are to work as effective preservation and conservation tools, however, there must be thorough identification and understanding of the region’s critical resources and a corresponding appreciation of their significance by elected officials, developers, community leaders, and residents. To this end, a conceptual framework drawn from the humanities has shaped the basic character of the heritage corridor from its inception. A strong public history component has been incorporated at every stage, including public lecture series, publications, community conferences, traveling exhibitions, oral histories, photographic surveys, and multi-media presentations. In order to “read” the layered landscape of the canal corridor and encourage its further exploration by individuals and institutions, a multi-disciplinary approach to planning and interpretation has been pursued, involving the academic community from diverse fields as part of the public education process.
Interpretation
of the cultural landscape is clearly one of the most important ingredients
in this emerging new regionalism. Once residents in one town begin to
understand their historical connections with other communities in a region
that has a common heritage, a shared sense of history can help bridge
geographical differences and create a willingness to put aside local rivalries
in order to work on collaborative efforts – be they tourism promotion,
development of a recreational trail, or support for a treasured landmark
or natural area threatened with destruction. Interpretation is the “glue”
that provides regional thematic cohesion and establishes a sense of common
ground and collective past.
The Heritage Corridor Commission, created by the federal legislation and appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, has convened representatives of all the public and private entities engaged in interpretation throughout the corridor to explore shared themes and to place these individual stories within the broader context of the entire corridor. The Interpreters Group serves as an invaluable volunteer base for coordinating and improving site interpretation in the corridor. It also advises and assists the Commission regarding needs and opportunities for public education and quality interpretation on a regional basis. Early and continuing efforts to develop comprehensive corridor signage, interpretive brochures, and wayside exhibits have helped move the heritage corridor in the public’s mind from a vague concept to part of their daily lives.
Understanding of the corridor’s landscape in terms of past human endeavor has forged a framework for regional stewardship and advocacy that did not exist previously. A new corridor-wide constituency unites Chicago with “downstate,” creating an unprecedented and extremely powerful unified voice in Springfield and Washington concerning matters of funding and public policy. While traditional competition over turf and age-old rivalries between communities persist, the heritage corridor, by definition, encourages collaborations and partnerships in a number of ways – at the local level within an individual community, between the public and private sectors, and on a regional scale between communities, governmental agencies and others.
A highly successful example of regional cooperation is found in the work of the Heritage Corridor Visitors Bureau. Originally a tourism bureau created to promote only the community of Joliet, the Heritage Corridor Visitors Bureau has now expanded its geographic focus to market the attractions of the corridor region through ad campaigns, publications, and five tourist information offices located in corridor communities.
Another pioneering example of multi-jurisdictional cooperation that demonstrates the power of the federal designations to serve as a catalyst for voluntary collaboration is the Centennial Trail. Extending 26 miles through three counties, the Centennial Trail, when completed, will connect the eastern edge of the City of Chicago with the existing 60-mile Illinois and Michigan Canal State Trail. This scenic trail is being developed for hiking and bicycling on more than one thousand acres of land, previously inaccessible to the public, owned by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. The trail will be managed as a recreational and educational resource by three separate forest preserve districts. Even though these neighboring districts all include holdings along the lower DesPlaines River Valley, which includes the I & M Canal, they had never met to explore the opportunities for joint projects until the heritage corridor initiative was launched.
In order for a long-term vision to survive and remain vital, there must be an initial action plan with highly visible results that demonstrate in tangible ways the philosophy and goals of the program. Since implementation of the heritage corridor’s goals is voluntary and requires the involvement of diverse public and private partners, one must always think strategically about how best to leverage limited resources to achieve the greatest impact. Well-executed demonstration projects provide concrete expression of relatively abstract goals, establish high standards, and also serve as models that inspire others to undertake similar action.
The Gaylord Building in Lockport is a dramatic example in the heritage corridor of a project that has inspired creative thinking about the corridor’s underutilized or abandoned historic structures, and has served as an anchor for regional tourism and a catalyst for the revitalization of downtown Lockport. Without the vision and generosity of Gaylord Donnelley and members of his family the 1838 limestone warehouse would probably not have survived. A meaningful public/ private partnership, this privately-funded $2.5 million rehabilitation required the active participation of various local and state agencies. Today the Gaylord Building houses a gallery of the Illinois State Museum, a state-operated visitors center, and the acclaimed Public Landing Restaurant. When the project won the President’s Award for Historic Preservation in 1988, it generated great pride in the community and throughout the whole corridor. In many ways, the Gaylord Building has become a symbol of the rebirth of the region.
Building the capacity for leadership and encouraging the widest possible participation in the community decision-making process are critical ingredients in any successful community development effort. Active involvement of citizens in the planning and implementation of projects taps local expertise and empowers the community to tackle ever more ambitious programs. Since resource protection within the heritage corridor happens ultimately at the local level, strong local leadership must exist if commitment and momentum are to be sustained.
To help build that local leadership and assist small and mid-sized canal town downtowns, the Association looked to the National Trust’s Main Street program. Main Street’s balanced four-point approach — organization, promotion, design, and economic restructuring — and nationally proven track record made it an ideal program for the heritage corridor. In 1991, the Canal Corridor Association, in partnership with the I&M Canal National Heritage Corridor Commission and the National Trust’s Main Street Center, initiated the first regional Main Street program in the country. It encompassed three demonstration communities — Ottawa, Lockport, and Lemont — and offered special outreach program to other corridor towns. After four years, the results were impressive. The demonstration towns alone saw a net gain of 68 new businesses, 267 full and part-time jobs, 105 private rehabilitation projects valued at $7.4 million and $5.3 million in public improvements.
In Chicago, the Canal Corridor Association, the Chicago Park District, the City of Chicago and a host of other partners are collaborating to create an outdoor interpretive park along the South Branch of the Chicago River where the I&M Canal began. First envisioned in 1985 at a community planning conference, Canal Origins Park will transform a derelict river-edge site into a unique urban park and educational resource. The project has also served as the catalyst for an exciting vision to reclaim an additional 15 acres of river-edge property surrounding the South Branch Turning Basin to create Canalport Nature Park.
As
the centerpiece of Canalport Nature Park, the Canal Origins Park will
pay tribute to the I&M Canal for its role in transforming Chicago from
a swampy outpost to one of America’s greatest cities. The goals of the
park are to celebrate Chicago’s heritage as a canal town, reclaim and
restore the natural environment, create an outdoor educational laboratory
for Chicago youth, provide a green oasis in one of Chicago’s most dense
urban areas, and offer rare river-edge access for passive recreational
use.
Designed by nationally recognized environmental artist Michael Singer, the concept plan for the park intertwines history, nature and art elements to illuminate the stories of the I&M Canal and create a series of vantage points for discovery, learning, rest and reconnecting with nature. Park plantings will have a naturalized look and include native plans, trees and ground cover. The park will be fully accessible and informative for diverse groups including adults and families who fish, canoe, or come to enjoy the outdoors, community groups planning a get-together, and students and youth groups investigating the park for educational purposes.
To help ensure the park’s educational programs are in full swing when the park is completed, in the fall of 1999 the Association launched a two-year pilot program to create educational tools that support use of Canal Origins Park as an outdoor learning laboratory. Today, 31 teachers representing multiple grade levels and disciplines from 18 Chicago schools are involved in the program which includes teacher training, development and testing of lesson plans and field trip experiences. The program will result in a “tool box” of curricula, resource materials, and learning aids that can be disseminated citywide so that many more Chicago educators and youth can benefit from learning experiences at the park.
The Association has also worked with the arts community, Chicago Park District, and youth to devise a public-art model for creating interpretive panels to be installed at the park and a “heritage banner” program that would produce a changing exhibit of streetlight banners adjacent to the park. Youth organizations and cultural institutions are other partners with whom the Association hopes to work to develop the park’s potential as a resource for rich interdisciplinary learning experiences.
From the beginning, the heritage corridor program has been a private-sector initiative, starting in 1980 with the leadership of Openlands Project, a not-for-profit conservation organization that works in Chicago and northeastern Illinois. Openlands led the drive to create the 60-mile-long I & M Canal State Trail in the 1960s and early 70s. Active grassroots participation continues through the Friends of The I & M Canal National Heritage Corridor and other citizen committees and local organizations. The Canal Corridor Association (formerly Upper Illinois Valley Association) is an offshoot of Openlands Project and has provided strong leadership since it was formed in 1982. Due to concerns over increased environmental regulation and governmental control along a heavily industrialized transportation corridor, the initial reaction of industry to the heritage corridor concept ranged from healthy skepticism to total opposition. Several key business and civic leaders got involved in the early planning efforts, however, and reached out to their colleagues. Today the Canal Corridor Association counts among its board members representatives from some of the region’s largest industries, which have provided leadership, financial support and a variety of in-kind and technical assistance.
For preservationists, the heritage corridor concept offers a rare opportunity to extend traditional boundaries, build new coalitions, and broaden public awareness for the importance of cultural landscapes. As the heritage area movement gains popularity, however, many questions remain unanswered. How does a voluntary program guarantee resource protection? What is the appropriate role for the federal government? How can multiple themes and resources be interpreted in an integrated manner? What strategy is best for dealing with a complex management structure that relies on so many partners? The Illinois and Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor is certainly not a panacea. While we have saved many significant cultural and natural resources since designation by Congress in 1984, we have also lost a number of important historic structures. And insensitive development continues to erode the unique character of the landscape.
Since designation, however, more than $ 130 million have been invested by state and local interests, public and private, in capital projects that meet the corridor’s goals. Along with this rebuilding of the infrastructure comes less quantifiable but equally important benefits – an ongoing regional dialogue and the regeneration of community spirit.
This presentation was adapted from an article written previously by Mr. Adelmann.