Watch CBS News

Post-Lollapalooza Cleanup Under Way

CHICAGO (CBS) – For the second year in a row, Grant Park got trashed.

Heavy rain plus thousands of Lollapalooza concert-goers stripped away much of the grass and left mud behind over the weekend.

CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez tried to find out: How bad is the damage?

Bob O'Neill, of the Grant Park Conservancy watched the aftermath of Saturdays' storm live and in the fray at Grant Park.

"When the people are running and dancing in the mud, it's like little rototillers, they just tear up and they actually kill the turf," he says. "Hutchinson Field is pretty destroyed."

CBS 2 tried repeatedly to get a look at the post-Lollapalooza terrain, to little success. Organizers did not return phone calls and emails.

Finally, Tellez got a look at Hutchinson Field, where workers were raking the grounds, until she was told to leave.

From the air, the view indicated there is a lot of work ahead. Grant Park Conservancy representatives say Lollapalooza producers are once again contracted to pay for the cleanup. Last year, the expense was nearly $1 million.

"I can assure you Grant Park will look better this year after the restoration than how they found it," O'Neill says.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.