Advocates for bird-friendly building construction in Chicago are cautiously optimistic new mitigations at McCormick Place Lakeside Center — including the installation of patterned window film — will prevent the sort of mass casualty event that happened last fall, with 1,000 birds killed in a single day after crashing into the convention center.
But there’s been no huge sigh of relief or celebration among members of Bird Friendly Chicago, a coalition that includes Chicago Ornithological Society, Chicago Bird Alliance and Chicago Bird Collision Monitors.
Because there’s always another dangerous building around the corner.
The latest cause for concern is the recently released “refreshed site plan” for the Bally’s Chicago casino development at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street. The 30-acre property was formerly home to the Chicago Tribune’s printing plant.
“The new design shows a 500-room glass hotel tower directly on the river, and that area has as high a potential for killing birds as McCormick Place Lakeside does,” said Annette Prince, director of Chicago Bird Collision Monitors.
