Marquette Park

This review is meant specifically for the pavilion section of the park.
A few weeks ago, we attended a beautiful wedding at the pavilion. The building that it was held in were old baths re-​vamped into a mid-​sized event venue. The architecture was beautiful stone with full columns, a courtyard garden, and a beautiful view of the beach.
There were a ton of bathrooms downstairs, adequate food storage, and more than enough space for a decent sized party. The beach-​view area was also used as a dance floor and a DJ had enough space to set-​up in the corner.
I really enjoyed this little gem of a place quite a bit. It was a fabulous choice for the two most awesome lesbians in the world to get married. We wish them all of the best.

This is one of the parks I played in growing up, so it will always have a special place in my heart. Some of my favorite childhood memories were coming here and going on nature walks, spending time at the beach, and watching fireworks on the balcony of the Aquatorium. I even imagined having my wedding here at the pavilion… it reminded me of a Victorian mansion. Over the past five years, the park has seen major improvements. The Aquatorium has been restored, and has been seen frequent usage, from weddings to small jazz concerts. They have gondola rides in the lagoon during the summer, as well as movies in the park (they were showing Casablanca tonight). The most popular thing is still the beach, especially during 4^th of July and the weekend of the Gary Air Show. It’s so great to see great things happening in this park, and the area surrounding it, considering that the rest of the City of Gary is falling apart. I definitely recommend coming through here on a chill summer day and checking it out! You won’t regret it!

Possibly the most beautiful urban park I have ever seen (and I’ve seen plenty). Jens Jensen landscaped this park so that the natural dunes cut into Lake Michigan in a crescent — the visual effect is indescribably, painfully beautiful. Around the lagoon are dotted pretty little pieces of architecture from various periods — different types of pavilions and bridges. There’s a nice big beach on Lake Michigan which draws a racially diverse crowd. The beachhouse, which they call the Aquatorium now, is a George Maher work in process of restoration. In and around it there are various statues and plaques you can look at which explain the spot’s surprising significance in the histories of aviation, architecture and exploration. The park appears small, but my girlfriend and I were able to walk uninterrupted in the wild, beautiful natural sand dunes for an hour without crossing our own path, or anyone else’s. Just keep in mind that this is GI, so you have to watch out for, as a friend who grew up going to this park described them, «people who try to cause disturbances».