“On a sunny morning in May, Connie Lowery rested against Promontory Point’s limestone rocks and gazed out at the twinkling blue water of Lake Michigan.
“‘This is my place where I come to get all four elements,’ said Lowery.
“A Hyde Park resident, Lowery has been visiting Promontory Point regularly for decades and considers it essential for her well-being. The lapping waves, cool green grass, crisp spring breeze, and scattered bonfire pits envelop her in water, fire, air and earth. Promontory Point’s fifth element is the energy of human connection that radiates throughout the park.
“Designated a Chicago landmark in 2023, Promontory Point has long been a beloved community space. Multiple gatherings happen simultaneously: a wedding in the fieldhouse, a family reunion by the bench tables, and a first date picnic can all happen within a few feet of each other. Meanwhile, dozens of bikers, runners, baby strollers and rambunctious dogs travel up and down the park trails.
“The beloved limestone rocks that serve as stair-step revetment to Lake Michigan are a signature part of what makes the space special. They have also been the subject of intense debate and controversy over the past two decades, since the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) first proposed that the limestone be replaced with concrete in order to buttress the shoreline against rising lake levels. Those proposals faced pushback from community members, who have organized to preserve the park’s limestone and mobilize park goers toward civic engagement, in part through the advocacy of the Promontory Point Conservancy.
“In recent years, USACE and CDOT have said they are no longer considering plans to replace the limestone with concrete and want to ‘preserve as much of the limestone as possible.’
“But absent specific construction plans that commit to these values, community members are wary of what might happen. Whatever the future brings, South Siders’ fierce love for Promontory Point proves it’s more than a recreational space, but a sanctuary offering respite from the relentless pace and demands of modern city living.
“Debra Hammond, the Promontory Point Conservancy’s treasurer, has spent years advocating for the protection of Promontory Point’s limestone rocks and speaks of them tenderly.
“‘When you walk down the rocks and you sit, you feel cocooned a little bit, which is really special. They fit human bodies,’ said Hammond.
“This human connection with the ancient power of nature grounded Hammond when she moved from Los Angeles to Chicago in 1982 to attend the University of Chicago. She credits Promontory Point as the space that helped her get through graduate school, giving her access to a large body of water that reminded her of the beaches she grew up frequenting in California.
“Jack Spicer, the conservancy’s co-founder and president, also remembers first visiting Promontory Point for the first time in 1965 for a friend’s prom. Hammond and Spicer remember it as the place they shared their first kiss, a little over a decade ago—what Hammond calls the beginning of a “late-life romance.”
“Hammond and Spicer both know the importance of Promontory Point from a preservationist standpoint, but also understand it as the setting for some of the most profound moments we have in life: to grieve, rejoice, and love.” (Barnes, South Side Weekly, 7/17/25)