On September 10th, seventy-five community members and friends of the North Branch came together for a relaxing boat tour of the Chicago River hosted by Wendella Boats.

We enjoyed a breathtaking sunset over Goose Island after departing from Wendella's downtown dock at 440 N Michigan. The cruise went through the Main Branch up north to Goose Island.

Then we continued north to Webster Avenue before cruising back to downtown and visiting the confluence of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan prior to docking.

Attendees enjoyed an exciting raffle, delicious bites from The Paramount Group, and expansive views of the river.

It was exciting having many businesses from Goose Island represented on the cruise such as Goose Island Shrimp House, R2 Companies, Undefined x One Way Boxing Gym, and Charlie Baggs Culinary Innovations.

Along the way, the tour passed by the Chicago Avenue Bridge and Halsted Viaduct project, a ongoing infrastructure development that has impacted the area.

During the cruise, we saw the nearly completed construction of Bally's Casino, which is on track to open in the first quarter of 2027.

The route also included the site for Foundry Park, a 31-acre mixed use development planned at the former location of A. Finkl & Sons steel mill.

The Chicago River remains an important working river. Our water taxi went by Praire Materials' concrete yard at Halsted and Chicago, the largest one in the State of Illinois.

Also, we visited Ozinga's riverfront location in the North Branch and Horween Leather Company, the manufacturer of all the leather for NFL footballs and NBA basketballs.

Many manufacturers still operate in this area such as Howe Corporation, Sipi Metals, Sound Specialists, and Sanfran Metal Company.

Catch North Branch Works at our next next boat tour and enjoy one of our uponing events like the Fall Fest on October 8th!

With questions and for more information about our events, please reach out to phoebe@northbranchworks.org.