Commuting by bicycle is a “green” way to get around, but few people do it for that reason alone. Personally, gliding alongside Lake Michigan on a bicycle is one of my favorite things about Chicago. With few stop lights and no car traffic, Chicago’s 18-mile Lakefront Trail is a cyclist’s scenic expressway.
The mood of the lake, like that of city’s inhabitants, changes with the weather. Under gathering clouds, waves crash into the shore and spray into the air. On a clear day, the serene blue-green expanse dazzles in the sun, …

My commute to Hyde Park passes by the old Michael Reese hospital. Founded in 1881 and later rebuilt and expanded, the hospital’s buildings are being demolished. Harris students worked on a project before classes started that sought uses for the 2929 S. Ellis Ave. site if Chicago lost the 2016 Olympic bid. With the games going to Rio de Janeiro and plans scrapped for an Olympic Village at Reese, the area’s future is murky.
The 37-acre former hospital campus east of Martin Luther King Drive between 26th and 31st Streets is …