GO TO 2040 is not CMAP's plan; it is the region's plan. CMAP recognizes that public participation is a key component of effective planning. It is essential that residents of the region have a voice in how the region's plans are formulated. Because of this, at key intersections throughout the development of GO TO 2040, CMAP reached out to residents of the region for input.

Integral to this process has been CMAP's Public Participation Plan. The Public Participation Plan sets forth three key components of public engagement:

1. Outreach – the task of identifying and providing notice to participants across multiple demographic sectors;
2. Engage – the task of informing, educating, listening and sharing in the planning process;
3. Sustain – maintaining the relationships with residents to keep them interested in participating.

CMAP staff developed public participation activities that embraced these principals and used them as guidance throughout the planning process.

Public participation has been a consistent emphasis of GO TO 2040. At two points where input was especially needed, CMAP made a significant investment of resources and staff effort to engage the public at large. The first was for the development of the Regional Vision, and the second key phase of public engagement was for the development of the Preferred Regional Scenario. Finally, extensive public input shaped the draft GO TO 2040 plan before its final adoption on October 13, 2010.

The following briefly describes the purpose of each effort, and provides a link to access the published documents and all of the public comments and feedback CMAP received during each effort.

The draft GO TO 2040 plan document was open for public comment from June 11, 2010 through August 6, 2010. Comments were left via webpage, email, and by U.S. mail. Feedback was also accepted at a number of open houses around the region. Each comment received was carefully considered and included as an appendix to the plan, which was approved unanimously by the CMAP Board and MPO Policy Committee on October 13, 2010. View a compilation of comments received and CMAP's responses to the comments.

Throughout summer and fall of 2009 CMAP went back out to the public to involve them in developing a preferred future scenario. This effort was called "Invent the Future." From May to September, "Invent the Future" participants answered questions about how they think the region should plan to accommodate an additional 2.8 million new residents projected by 2040. Their responses covered a wide range of quality-of-life issues that will be addressed in the GO TO 2040 regional plan, including jobs, transportation, land use, energy, housing, education, natural resources, human services, and more.

In total nearly 20,000 participants were engaged though public workshops, online tools, free-standing kiosks, and at fairs and festivals across the region. This input, combined with the agency's research has shaped the draft "preferred Regional Scenario" which was unanimously approved by the CMAP Board in January 2010.

The following are a few of the Preferred Regional Scenario's recommendations:

• Creating more livable communities with compact, mixed-use development to serve as building blocks of the region's future.
• Investing more effectively in education and workforce development, while fostering a business climate that encourages job growth and innovation by the private sector.
• Improving the region's high-quality system of parks and open space, while reducing consumption of energy and water.
• Planning multi-modally for transportation and target transportation investments to achieve outcomes such as economic growth, environmental protection, or congestion reduction, while finding more sustainable ways to finance infrastructure improvements.
• Tracking the region's performance to assess where to make improvements to reach the desired future.

The preferred Regional Scenario is the last precursor to the GO TO 2040 comprehensive regional plan which is now available in draft form (http://cmap.illinois.gov/invent). Based on two years of research, analysis, and public input, the scenario tackles pressing issues that require coordinated solutions at the local and regional levels. CMAP is combining this input with the agency's extensive strategy research to begin finalizing GO TO 2040, the official comprehensive plan that will guide development and infrastructure decisions across the region for decades to come. Read more in a CMAP news release, fact sheet, and report summarizing feedback via interactive web tools, workshops, kiosks, and booths at community festivals.

GO TO 2040 Invent the Future

• GO TO 2040 Invent the Future report (opens 9 MB)

1. Introduction and overview
2. Promotion, Media, and Other Outreach methods
3. Participation, Results, and Feedback
4. How this work informs the GO TO 2040 preferred scenario
5. Lessons Learned
6. Appendices
   1. Public workshops: dates, location, attendance, and keypad polling data
   2. Participant Worksheets
   3. Sticky note priorities
   4. Workshop "Tweets"
   5. Other comments received
   6. MetroQuest Invent 2040 Online Results
   7. Fairs and Festivals "GO TO 2040 On the Road"
   8. Media Coverage
   9. Kiosks
   10. Kiosk Locations
   11. Community Conversations

GO TO 2040 Regional Scenario

• GO TO 2040 Regional Scenario (opens 4.6 MB)

From fall 2007 through spring 2008, residents helped to develop the Regional Vision through surveys and by participating in public meetings. The vision describes our desired future environment, economy, social systems, and governance structures, and it guides the recommendations of the plan. Approved in June 2008 by the CMAP Board, the vision describes how our region should look in 2040.

Building on prior regional plans, the initial vision statements were drafted by participants at a visioning workshop in September 2007. The statements were then refined after broader public feedback via surveys and public meetings.

The Regional Vision describes our desired future in terms of the region's quality of life, natural environment, social systems, economy, infrastructure, and governance. Throughout all of these vision themes, three other cross-cutting issues recur: sustainability, equity, and innovation. Each is critical to CMAP's work on the GO TO 2040 plan.

Technical documents

For more information as to how the GO TO 2040 Regional Vision was developed, please read the following documents:

• GO TO 2040 Regional Vision document (opens 3.2 MB)
• Vision Development description
• Appendices
  • Appendix 1: Description of Common Ground Process
  • Appendix 2: Identification of Relevant Common Ground Goals by Working Committees
  • Appendix 3: Development of Themes and Main Ideas for Inclusion in Regional Vision
  • Appendix 4: September 12th, 2007 Visioning Event
  • Appendix 5: October 2007 Draft Vision Statements
  • Appendix 6: Comments on Draft Vision Statements
  • Appendix 7: Results of Community Conversation Meetings
  • Appendix 8: Results of General Public Survey

For more information on the Vision Development process, click here.