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New Year’s Eve fireworks return to Chicago’s riverfront, Navy Pier

By Miriam Di Nunzio
Published  December 20, 2023 10:26am CST
Holidays
Sun-Times Media Wire

New Year’s Eve fireworks will return to Chicago’s Navy Pier

The City of Chicago will ring in the New Year with a fireworks display at Navy Pier.

CHICAGO - Chicago will ring in 2024 in grand style, with the announcement Wednesday heralding the return of a New Year’s Eve fireworks spectacular along the Chicago River at Wacker Drive.

The event will be held in partnership with Art on the Mart projections on the Merchandise Mart’s facade (222 W. Merchandise Mart Plaza), featuring highlights of artists’ works from the past five years.

The fun starts at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 31 with the Mart showcase, followed by a countdown to the new year at 11:55 p.m. and midnight fireworks displays from six bridges along the river.

A fireworks display/countdown at Navy Pier will take place at the lakefront as well, starting at 11:59 p.m.

"Chicagoans have the unique ability to find hope and resilience in each day and New Year’s Eve is the foundation of beginning a new year with the same unbridled optimism," said Mayor Brandon Johnson, via the official announcement in conjunction with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.

CHICAGO, UNITED STATES - DECEMBER 31: Fireworks light up the sky during the new year celebrations at the Navy Pier, Chicago, United States on December 31, 2017. (Photo by Bilgin S. Sasmaz/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

To accommodate the riverfront extravaganza, bridge closures will be in effect at Franklin, LaSalle, Clark, Dearborn and State streets as well as Columbus Drive, from 11:45 p.m. to 12:15 a.m. (The Wabash and Michigan Avenue bridges will remain open for the duration of the event.)

For optimum viewing, visitors are encouraged to gather along the river on Upper Wacker Drive from McClurg Court to Franklin Street. Riverwalk access will be closed starting at 11 p.m.

The Mart projections will feature the following artists and works, according to Wednesday’s announcement:

  • Jonas Denzel: "explore"
  • Nick Cave: "Ba Boom Boom Pa Pop Pop"
  • Derrick Adams: "Funtime Unicorn: Ruby Rides Through Four Seasons"
  • Charles Atlas: "The Geometry of Thought"
  • Wills Glasspiegel and Brandon Calhoun: "Footnotes"
  • Jan Tichy: "Artes in Horto — Seven Gardens for Chicago"
  • Jason Salavon: "Homage in Between (Chicago Art, 20th Century)"
  • Spectralina: "Woven"
  • Yuge Zhou: "Love Letters"
  • Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project: "The Big Bang: Movement Theory + the Black Dancing Body"

For more info, visit Chicago.gov/NYE.

At Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave., a 10-minute fireworks celebration takes place at midnight following a countdown to the new year. Arrive early (crowd capacity may be reached as the evening goes on); admission to the pier is free, but there is a fee for parking. Visit navypier.org for more details.