Biederman Redevelopment Ventures plan new park programming
The Park @ 320 will host events outside of 320 South Canal Street, home of the new BMO Tower
Chicago—Dan Biederman, one of the country’s leading urban redevelopment experts and public space management consultants has partnered with Riverside Investment & Development Company and Convexity Properties to design free programming for The Park @ 320 at the entryway of 320 South Canal Street in downtown Chicago. The building serves as the new US headquarters for BMO Financial Group.
The BMO Tower is a new 50-story commercial office building adjacent to Union Station in Chicago. The building will feature a selection of restaurants, world-class amenities, and a spectacular 1.5-acre urban park with year-round programming. The Park @ 320 will be one of the largest privately-owned public parks in the City of Chicago.
“Riverside and Convexity are seeking to provide their tenants, their employees, visitors, and the citizens of Chicago with an actively programmed public space,” Biederman says. “With their building manager CBRE, they deserve a lot of credit. And we are proud to be part of this team.”
Biederman and his firm Biederman Redevelopment Ventures (BRV) will provide a detailed programming plan for the public park, including a tentative schedule for programs, amenities, events, budgets, and a procurement list related to supplies and equipment.
BRV will also participate in the recruitment, interviewing, and selection of the Program Coordinator for the public space. As programs start running, BRV will train the successful candidate and continue working with them throughout the spring, summer, and fall.
Biederman gained national prominence when he privatized and transformed New York City’s Bryant Park from a neglected, crime-ridden, drug-filled, dangerous midtown Manhattan space into one of America’s grandest urban parks and Manhattan’s “Town Square.” Bryant Park is privately operated and totally supported by private sources of funds.
BRV specializes in creating programming, self-sustaining budgets, and building management teams for urban parks and public spaces in 32 states and six countries. BRV has worked with some of the most successful public spaces in the country, including Klyde Warren Park and Fair Park in Dallas, Titletown District in Green Bay, WI., Levy Park in Houston, and Salesforce Park in San Francisco, Hudson Yards, and Baltimore’s Inner Harbor district.
In addition to overseeing BRV Corp. and serving as the Executive Director of the Bryant Park Corporation, Biederman is also the president of the 34th Street Partnership, an ambitious business improvement district. He was also a co-founder of The Grand Central Partnership, which helped renovate the neighborhood of an NYC landmark from a deteriorating, dreaded, and sometimes dangerous transportation hub to today’s mecca for tourism, food, and a safe destination for commuters.