Ohio Street Beach
Back to Ohio Street Beach
Back to Ohio Street Beach
Did you know?
The Ohio Street Beach is one of 27 lining Chicago's shore. Although a smaller man-made beach sat here in the early 1900s, the current Ohio Street Beach formed naturally after the Jardine Water Purification Plant was built in the 1960s. The plant, which juts out into Lake Michigan just east of here, created a bay that stops sand from moving along the lakefront. Because it is the only one in the city facing north, Ohio Street Beach is an ideal training site for open water swimming. You could swim in deep water from here to Oak Street Beach roughly half a mile north without ever being more than a few feet from the safety of shallow water.
On a summer day, odds are good that the beach is open and a lot of people are enjoying a day at the lake. Strong currents or high bacteria levels, though, sometimes make the water unsafe, prompting the Chicago Park District to issue swimming advisories or close the beach altogether. But thanks to a network of environmental sensing buoys and weather stations, these warnings and closures are more up-to-date and accurate today than they have ever been.
On a summer day, odds are good that the beach is open and a lot of people are enjoying a day at the lake. Strong currents or high bacteria levels, though, sometimes make the water unsafe, prompting the Chicago Park District to issue swimming advisories or close the beach altogether. But thanks to a network of environmental sensing buoys and weather stations, these warnings and closures are more up-to-date and accurate today than they have ever been.