Navy Pier is commemorating the final spin of the current Ferris Wheel!

Before construction begins on Navy Pier’s new 200 ft. wheel for the Centennial Celebration in 2016, guests are invited to say #FerrWell to the current Ferris wheel throughout The Last Ride, First Bite Weekend, September 26-27.
Beginning at 10pm Saturday, September 26, the Ferris wheel will operate free of charge overnight, offering guests FREE rides until 9:45am Sunday, September 27. From 1pm – 4 pm each day, new and existing restaurants on Navy Pier will also offer guests free ‘bites’ of some of their favorite dishes. The final rides on Sunday will feature a special fireworks show, Chicago celebrities and iconic personalities participating in the historic #FerrWell rides.
Since the first-ever Ferris wheel was unveiled at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, the Ferris wheel has been a hallmark of Chicago. The wheel symbolizes how Chicago has remained true to Daniel Burnham’s vision for the “People’s Pier,” as articulated in his famous 1909 Plan of Chicago.
The current Ferris wheel will be replaced with a new 196-foot wheel, with state-of-the-art features and amenities, including accommodations for up to 180 more passengers per ride and temperature controlled gondolas allowing guests to enjoy rides year-round. Ferris wheel and Pier Park operations will be closed to prepare for the new wheel beginning on September 28, 2015 and will re-open in summer of 2016.
For more information regarding Navy Pier’s new wheel and the Last Ride, First Bite weekend please visit www.navypier.com.

Roar into the 20’s with a Great Gatsby Casino Night, presented by Erie-LaSalle Body Shop. Enjoy an evening of live music, dinner by Gibsons, premium cocktails, casino tables and raffle.

Thank you to the thousands of residents who attended RNRA’s 10th Annual Movies in Ward Park this summer. We hosted a record seven movies beginning in May and concluding Tuesday night with our Back to School event. Look for our 2016 MIP film survey in January. Make sure you subscribe to our newsletters. Want to help us next year greeting and handing out programs? Contact us at info@rnrachicago.org.  Thanks to our following sponsors: Erie LaSalle Body Shop, Jeff Stogsdill State Farm, Pranzi, Chicago Children’s House, Webpass, Gino’s East River North.

We are continuing our 10th Anniversary of Movies In Ward Park, we have 1 movie left this summer. Please join us:

• “Frozen – Sing Along” – August 25th Back to School Event

All our movies are shown on Tuesday nights in Ward Park and begin around dusk or when it gets dark (7:30pm). Movies are sponsored by your River North Residents Association (RNRA) and the Chicago Park District.

Just a friendly reminder, no dogs are ever allowed in the south end of Ward Park. Fines up to $300 may be given out this summer to pet owners. Movies have been cancelled or cut back in area parks due to the increase of dog waste. RNRA pays the Chicago Park District $6,000 each summer to show six movies in our neighborhood park. Also, the property is owned by the Park District and governed by them. Please do not abuse our volunteers when they remind dog owners that dogs are not allowed in this area of Ward park.

Please join us for our annual end of summer bash, August 25th at 5:30pm. Face painter, caricaturist, temporary tattoos and fun activities for our River North kids. Stay for the last movie in Ward park for the season, Disney’s “Frozen – Sing Along” edition.

Please RSVP. Event is FREE and open to all River North families. Sponsored by the River North Residents Association, Jeff Stogsdill State Farm Insurance Agency, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Chicago Children’s House Child Care. Stay tuned for more details. If you would like to be a sponsor, shoot us an email at info@rnrachicago.org

Thank you River North residents and all our attendees to this year’s 14th Annual Taste of River North.

Join Chicago Police 18th District on August 4, 2015, 18th District, 1160 N. Larrabee, south parking lot.  All are welcome!   Paper Tiger Shredding Services:   4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.  Identity Theft Guest Speakers:   5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.   Family Style Barbeque and Networking:  6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

National Night Out 2015 and the 18th District, in partnership with Target, will be focusing on Identity Theft Prevention.  Programming will include guest speakers, literature, resources, give-a-ways and a family style barbeque where you can meet and network with neighbors and community stakeholders.

Identity Theft is the fastest growing crime nation-wide.  Hacking is the primary source of data breaches, followed  by lost storage, mobile, tablet and lap top devices. Insider theft and accidental exposure come in third, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center, 2014.  Learn identity theft safety tips and how you can avoid becoming a victim.

The grand finale will include professional shredding destruction services provided by Paper Tiger Shredding Document Solutions.  Paper Tiger will provide a mobile shred truck to shred your sensitive documents on site.  Participants can bring up to (3) three boxes of personal documents for shredding. Paper Tiger is NAID AAA Certified-National Association of Information Destruction.

RNRA Introduces “Green Streets Initiative”

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The River North Residents Association and Alderman Brendan Reilly are cohosting  a community presentation for a development proposal for the property located at 353 West Grand Avenue on Monday, June 22nd at East Bank Club.

Representatives of the ONNI Group and its development team will present their plans and answer questions you may have about this proposal. Alderman Reilly will co-host the meeting with RNRA to monitor the discussion, take notes and record your feedback.

The applicant has submitted a proposal for the development of a 32-story mixed-use building. The proposed building will include ground floor retail, a total of 330 residential units located within the 2nd – 32nd floors, 65 onsite interior parking spaces for retail users and 206 onsite interior parking spaces for residents. The proposed building will also include a podium on the 5th floor, which will include an outdoor pool and accessory amenities.

WHAT:           353 West Grand Avenue

WHO:            Hosted by Alderman Brendan Reilly and

                        River North Residents Association (RNRA)                  

WHEN:         Monday, June 22, 2015 at 6:00 pm

WHERE:      East Bank Club

                        Riverview Room, 1st Floor

                        500 North Kingsbury Street

                        Chicago, IL 60654