Why have Centennial Fountain and Chicago River arc been dry for 3 years?
CHICAGO (CBS) -- If you've spent time on the Chicago River or Riverwalk, chances are you recognize a water arc that is seen every hour on the hour – or at least it was.
The arc and the attached Centennial Fountain are a Chicago landmark and a favorite Streeterville gathering place. A sign now proclaims them "temporarily closed" – but "temporary" has now come to mean three whole years.
As CBS 2's Tara Molina reported Thursday, people who live nearby and love the area aren't happy.
But they are also being forced to get used to it – because it will be years before the fountain is back.
The Nicholas J. Melas Centennial Fountain was built in 1989 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District – which was to credit for reversing the flow of the Chicago River.
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's grandson, Dirk Lohan, was commissioned to design the fountain at the river at McClurg Court. In the documentary "The History of South Streeterville!" by Gail Spreen and Dennis Downes, Lohan explains the geographic significance:
"When you talk about continental divides, you think of mountains – but right a little west of her is a continental divide. All the water flows into the Great Lakes Basin, or away from here into the Mississippi Valley. That's a continental divide. But it's not visible because there are no mountains. It's just very flat and subtle.
"And now, by doing what we did here – by putting the lock at the end of the river on Lake Michigan – this area here has become, so to say, a continental divide – because this water (in the Chicago River) flows into the Mississippi, while that water out there (in Lake Michigan) flows down the St. Lawrence River into the Atlantic Ocean.
"The fountain symbolizes that, in that on top of the circle is where the water when it rains comes down, then it flows over into four levels on the west side, and into four levels on the east side. That's the continental divide. The water flows this way and that way over the Great Lakes, and then into the ocean and the Atlantic – and on the west side, the water flows through certain rivers – the Chicago River, Des Plaines River, Illinois River, and Mississippi River – into the Gulf of Mexico, which then is co-joined with the Atlantic Ocean again. So that's the inspiration behind this design."
But the beloved fountain representing all those majestic bodies of water and feats of engineering is now bone dry. So is the arc across the river - flowing and avoided by kayakers since back around the time Richard M. Daley first became mayor.
They came to a sudden halt in 2020, and haven't been seen since. It turns out the mechanics broke down - leaving the entire area empty.
"They just don't feel this is important," said Streeterville resident Gary Kolesar. "It is important to a city, like art."
So three years later, why hasn't it been fixed?
Kolesar and Spreen – president of the Cityfront Center East Maintenance Association – have a real problem with the state of the fountain – and the delay in fixing it.
"It's just totally unacceptable that it's been off this long," Spreen said. "This should've been fixed within a year or two. It should've been working last year."
Spreen and Kolesar are among the number of residents behind a letter sent by Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District a full year ago - asking why repairs weren't completed last year, as promised.
We reached out to the MWRD to ask about the holdup - and learned they don't plan to have a fix in place for two more years to come. And that is just the latest timeline.
The MWRD blames "supply chain issues." This is the full statement from MWRD Public and Intergovernmental Affairs Officer Allison Fore:
"While the world was in the midst of the pandemic in 2020, a record rainfall combined with high lake levels caused catastrophic flooding of the equipment at Centennial Fountain.
"To maintain critical services during the pandemic, the MWRD dedicated all available staff and resources to keeping its seven water reclamation plants, outlying pump stations, Tunnel and Reservoir Plan infrastructure, stormwater reservoirs, etc. in full operation to protect the citizens of Cook County.
"Once it became apparent that a full replacement of the fountain equipment was necessary, the MWRD retained the services of a design consultant for the fountain rehabilitation. The design is now complete, and we expect construction to begin later this year.
"It is anticipated that Centennial Fountain will continue to be out of service for the next 24 months as the facility is fully rehabilitated. Unfortunately, supply chain issues have created very long lead times for the needed equipment.
"While this fountain has no impact on actual MWRD operations, we understand that the public receives great enjoyment from it, and we all look forward to seeing it placed back into service."
"I lost it," Kolesar said.
"That could be five years of it not running - and it's like some pumps and some electrical," Spreen said.
Kolesar and Spreen say the lengthy shutdown is unacceptable.
"How much effort does it take to get two pumps?" Kolesar said.
The hope is that continued pressure from those who love the area, and the fountain will expedite the fix.
