New Geoffrey Baer special exploring the Chicago River airs tonight on WTTW

Considering its importance in Chicago’s establishment and its increasing role as a catalyst for future growth, it’s little wonder that the Chicago River is getting more attention these days. With a new riverwalk, multiple towers, boathouses, and even entire new neighborhoods clustering around the popular waterway, public television’s Geoffrey Baer will revisit the Windy City’s river in a new program airing tonight at 7:30 p.m. on WTTW11.

Titled The Chicago River Tour with Geoffrey Baer and in production since March, the show will see Baer build off of his previously televised river excursions. A former Chicago Architecture Foundation docent, Baer broadcast his inaugural waterfront tour in 1995 and followed it up with an updated production in 2005.

In addition to reflecting on more than 20 years worth of changes, tonight’s program will also present an in-depth look at the far reaches of the River’s three branches stretching from the Sanitary and Ship Canal to the Skokie Lagoons and Botanic Garden.

An accompanying website will also debut this evening and will include special features such as a mobile audio tour, a pair of virtual reality videos set at Wolf Point and the Michigan Avenue Bridge, and an animation showcasing the engineering behind reversing the Chicago River’s flow.

Encore broadcasts of Baer’s TV tour are scheduled for December 2nd, 7th, and 10th.

• The Chicago River Tour with Geoffrey Baer [WTTW]