It's an okay park but it is pretty big but Brainerd park is still better but smaller but foster…read morepark is the best place to throw like a party

I grew up participating in the yearly gym shows. We did gymnastics, modern and tap dance and…read moreballet. Costumes were always in mint condition each year. All neighborhood kids were involved. It was always done in excellence. Mr. Tommy was over the boys and Ms. Chapel (check spelling) was over the girls performances. They were done in excellence each year.

Wasn't feeling my best, but determined to push through. I said three days and I meant that…read more The beauty of the walk is that the fresh air did me good. There were so many different types of birds and no chirp was the same. Squirrels playing in the trees, butterflies, bumblebees and more ducks than I have seen at one time. Nice to just put one foot in front of the other and follow wherever the trail went. This trail is located behind the Marianos in Oak Lawn.

I am extremely disappointed in how their branch of Special Olympics handled a serious concern--and…read moreeven more disappointed that it appears to have been ignored entirely. On March 3, 2026, I was involved in an incident during practice where a coach directed vulgar language toward me ("get the f'n ball"). When I later responded in frustration, I was suspended for violating rules around language and conduct. So to be clear: athletes are disciplined for language, while similar behavior from coaches is not held to the same standard. I was told by leadership above the team level, including an individual from within Special Olympics named Amie Dugan, that someone would follow up with me within a week to discuss both the incident and my concerns about how athletes are treated. That follow-up never happened. It has now been almost a half a year. Because of this situation, I missed out on participating in state championships for basketball and the following softball season. That is a significant loss of opportunity over an issue I made a good-faith effort to address. This is not just about one incident. There have been multiple documented complaints regarding coaching conduct and professionalism. In those cases, the outcome has been minimal accountability, often limited to informal or insufficient apologies. In contrast, when athletes respond in similar ways, the consequences are significantly more severe, including suspension and loss of participation opportunities. Many of the athletes on these teams are adults with jobs and responsibilities, yet are sometimes spoken to in ways that feel disrespectful and infantilizing. When concerns are raised, they do not appear to be taken seriously or followed up on. I attempted to resolve this privately and respectfully. Being told I would be contacted and then hearing nothing for almost half a year shows a lack of accountability and professionalism. If leadership cannot follow through on something as basic as a promised response, it raises serious concerns about how complaints are handled overall and whether standards are being applied fairly. I hope this organization takes a closer look at consistency, communication, and respect--because based on my experience, those standards are not being upheld equally.

My kids really enjoyed the playground. The grounds were well kept and the surrounding area was…read morenice, too. Super easy to get to and parking was very close to the play equipment.

Nice huge park next to the library and train station. Multiple fields for sports. Large playground…read morefor ages 5-12. This is not a good playground for small children as most of it is tailored toward Kids not toddlers and the slides that are there are too quick and somewhat dangerous for small little ones. The park is decorated "freedom" style as the name suggests and has real sized piece of a train and tank for decoration along with everything being red white and blue. A big downside is it was littered with trash- water bottles, fast food cups, fast food bags, straws- it was a mess all over especially around the playground

This is a very nice nature center, which features a really nice exhibit space with animal displays,…read moreincluding turtles, snakes, and toads, and information about the region. The space opens up into a beautiful garden area with some log cabins, and there are a few more animals set up outside - a hawk, turkey, and a very talkative Great Horned Owl. We took a nice walk along the Lost Beach Trail, though part of it is gated off. It was still fun to explore the marshy area and see all of the plants and animals. There is a boardwalk that lets you get further out into the area. There is a parking lot available.

Sand Ridge is a part of the Forest Preserves of Cook County system. You almost miss it when you…read morepass by! As a nature center, it has an interpretive center in addition to the trails, gardens, and prairies. When I was there there was an exhibit about Lake Chicago, which may or may not be a permanent exhibit. I attended the night sky walk they hosted inert and it's a good location for such a program. It's a heavily wooded area, and whilst it's very near the city, it's a better place from where to stargaze. We went on a short hike, in part to help adjust our night vision, and followed with using the large telescopes that the nature center has. There are many trials here for a leisurely walk or a more advanced hike. I am not opposed to the concept of a night hike (I actually think it's pretty cool); what concerns me more is not being able to see the trail and whether there's a lot, root, or other obstruction on the trial. The trail we used here was pretty level and had few trip hazards, though they don't generally allow evening hikes--that was specifically a feature of this program. Some of the attendees at the program I attended were fairly inconsiderate. Some were loud and constantly talking (had they not been talking as much and kept the volume much lower, we might have seen other creatures, or those like bats might have swooped down closer to us). The guide did remind folks of that, but I don't think it helped. I think what annoyed me more was that for a night hike and a 35 minute walk to develop some night vision, there were people taking photos with full flash. Rude. You don't have to document ever moment of a kid/persons life! I'm not sure I'll return to Sand Ridge for a program unless it's something I REALLY want to attend. It's pretty far from me--I live in the north side and this place is a good 55 minutes from me when traffic is reasonable. Also, I got here about 15 minutes before the start... but they didn't actually begin the program until 20 minutes after the stated start time. I totally understand waiting a few minutes, maybe as much as 10, for latecomers; oftentimes that would mean they were waiting for me! But 20 minutes is really excessive, especially for a program that was billed as 1.5 hours. The guide said something about another hike (I couldn't hear since I was near the back), which I may have been able to join if it had started promptly, and they said that though the program had an end time of 9 they could go as late as 9:39. I needed to leave at the original time since I have an hour long drive to get home, so I ended up leaving about half hour early. I took a look in one of the telescopes but it didn't look any more magnified than what I could see with the naked eye (i overheard someone else make the same comment). They did mention sky tracker apps which help one view and learn what is in the night sky, so that was helpful. The trail we walked was not accessible. There were some areas that where wooden planks were laid down, ostensibly because there was marshy area it was providing a path over. They may have an accessible trail here (just inside the entrance I saw something that could have been), but I'm not sure. I do wish the FPDCC would list more information in their events--particularly basic information like whether it's accessible or not.

Good park for athletics located in Bridgeport. It conveniently is across 35th from the Sox stadium…read more Armour Square Park is pretty okay for the area. Has a few baseball and softball diamonds. There's also a pretty big fieldhouse. A park located in a neighborhood of the same name, known for athletics. It's well known for being across from the Sox stadium of course. The park is named after Philip D. Armour, who was considered Chicago's "captain of industry," and owned the largest meatpacking company in the world. A lot of athletics are here. The fieldhouse was completed in 1905 and has an auditorium, a fitness center, two gymnasiums, and meeting rooms. Among the athletic fields are baseball, football, soccer, and tennis courts. There's also a pool and a playground. For sure it's a place to play sports, outside or inside. It's got a pretty impressive fieldhouse with lots of character and charm to be sure. This is also a convenient option for those going to Sox games or whatever.

"Armour Square Park" is a neighborhood park located between W. 33rd. and W. 35th. St (north-south),…read moreand between S. Wentworth and S. Wells (east-west). It's also adjacent to U.S. Cellular Field, the Home of Chicago White Sox. It has the basic amenities: children's playground, a large field that is often used for high school football practice, concrete paths good for exercising and walking the dog. However, I think the park is need of an update. Most benches, chairs, and tables were certainly functional, yet I noticed the screws have come out from some of them. Whenever the park office isn't open, users can utilize the porta-potty by the stadium. It's accessible via the red line. Just get off at the CTA-Sox/35th. stop. I know, I know. Why do I review so many Chicago parks? My followers knew the answer already (hint, hint...I play Pokemon Go). Bridgeport is one of my favorite neighborhoods in the city. It's close to downtown, Chinatown, and has a few must-visit local flavors.

Park recently updated. People come from other suburbs…read more (Look at the cars). Very disappointed. We live in walking distance and can't enjoy the park because children dropped off, nobody watches them, some parents sit at tables and don't watch their kids. My kids were "shooed" away by bigger kids. Come on, this is a park for kids. Older kids should use the aparratas that is their size.

Hey I need to know how long was the park was hear for and how long was the brown climbing rock…read morethere for because I'm haven't flash back to the rock and I'm trying to put the peiceds to get her and online isn't helping so far so if you have any history of this park please share Also I love this park as a kid I played at the park all the time it great place to be kids or even teens

This is a great little village! Walkable, quiet, safe, small town feel, commuting downtown is a…read morebreeze, extremely low taxes, great businesses, great nightlife, and for the most part the cops leave residents alone when it comes to tickets (New Lenox loves to ticket everything they see). I'm not one who likes public transportation, I love my premium gas guzzling, luxury car! But when it snows 6" overnight, taking the CTA from down the block to downtown to work for a mere $5.75 unlimited pass beats avoiding everyone sliding down the expressway or going 5 MPH on the side streets. It's almost like living in the City, but without the corruption, crime, BS laws, red light cameras, taxes, and gun registration/fees. The village borders Chicago's beautiful Mt. Greenwood neighborhood. It's one of the few "walkable" suburbs. We walk to the grocery store, restaurants, O'Reilly's auto parts, GNC, Dollar Tree, Bourbon Street, etc. There's a great shopping center right at 115th & Kedzie with none of Chicago's taxes! We love being able to walk to almost whatever we need, and not fire up the car just to get a loaf of bread. The bad part is they have taxes (stickers) for cars. I know, everywhere around here does, and $15 for a village sticker isn't outrageous, but it's the principle.

Good place to launch kayaks or canoes, this place used to be unkempt and dangerous. Near the…read morehistorically important Altgeld Gardens housing project, this end of the river has other important African American historic sites. It's the start to the African American Heritage Water Trail. https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/33c3120579f9471e84e51f8684ced943

It's a great place to relax and fish and I suggest it to who ever enjoy being outdoorsread more