http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1998-05-17/features/9805170231_1_grand-avenue-interstate-highway-downtown-area The Road To Nowhere - Chicago Tribune] The 2 miles , four-lane highway was intended to be a connecting route for the downtown area, but a critical link through the neighboring village of North Chicago was never built, and the factories that the expressway was designed to serve have since closed.