‘The Bean’ reopens to the public in Millennium Park after nearly a year of renovations

CHICAGO — “The Bean” is open once again.

After nearly a year of work on renovations to Grainger Plaza in Chicago’s Millennium Park, one of the biggest tourist attractions in both the city and the entire Midwest reopened to the public on Sunday.

On its official X account, Millennium Park posted: “We are happy to to share that Grainger Plaza, the area surrounding Cloud Gate (aka ‘The Bean’), has completed construction and is now open to the public. Visitors can once again have full access to Chicago’s iconic Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor.”

The sculpture, designed by Kapoor, is officially known as Cloud Gate but is commonly called “The Bean,” due to its shape. It’s been a fixture at Millennium Park since 2004, drawing thousands of tourists and visitors annually.

It was cordoned off last August so crews could rebuild the plaza podium, replace pavers and make accessibility upgrades, including new stairs and accessible ramps. The plaza also has a new waterproofing system, a spokesperson told WGN News.