by Diana Torres
5/26/10

Planning can be abstract, so the “My 2040” blog series aims to connect planning to real people throughout the region.  The following is one in a series of interviews with residents throughout the region.  The views expressed are not necessarily those of CMAP itself. To learn more about this series or to participate, please read more about the program. 

Special thanks to Caron Wenzel for taking the time to share her thoughts and ideas with CMAP staff.   

In 1990, Caron Wenzel founded Blazing Star, Inc. as a nursery for native seeds and plants.  Based in Woodstock in McHenry County, the company now serves individuals, schools, and businesses with progressive and educational opportunities throughout the northeastern Illinois region and Wisconsin.  Wenzel’s services include design, planning, species assessment, and management plans for native planting.  Wenzel has also worked on a variety of sustainable projects and initiatives with the Wildflower Preservation and Propagation Committee, the Land Conservancy, the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County and the McHenry County School Environmental Education Program .  Wenzel also wrote for House and Garden magazine and is co-author of Eco-Yards, a book promoting earth-friendly landscapes.  For more information, Wenzel can be contacted at 815-338-4716 or cwenzel@blazing-star.com.

Q:  What aspect of GO TO 2040 excites you most and why?

A:  Native plants and ecological gardening protect our groundwater, so the most relevant aspect of the GO TO 2040 plan [for my work] is the effort to promote the conservation of water and natural resources.  The challenge is to get people to understand the importance of these natural resources and to help those interested in native plants make decisions about what is appropriate for these people’s lifestyles.  

Native planting is becoming a movement, and in the past five years I have seen the business grow.  People are coming to learn more about native yards and rain gardens.  My role [at Blazing Star] is to make a plan, conduct soil surveys, and create a plant recommendation list that keeps in mind the individual’s comfort levels.  I need to know if people are afraid of insects, spiders, snakes, or other aspects of nature that may come because of native plants that are present.  Half of what I do is make people feel comfortable with the natural environment around them.  But we have a real chance [with GO TO 2040] to make our communities cleaner, greener, and healthier through these kinds of initiatives and efforts.

Q:  How does the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario connect to your community in terms of topics such as enhancing transportation options; increasing housing opportunities; addressing issues related to water, wastewater, storm water, open space, and energy; the importance of density in future development; investment in education and workforce development?

A:  As the GO TO 2040 plan promotes, it’s important that organizations throughout the region continually promote environmental and sustainable issues like resource conservation, and especially water conservation.  Not only does native planting help restore the quality of our water, but we can also promote more wildlife habitats and support threatened birds and other creatures like salamanders and turtles.  GO TO 2040 recognizes that water is a critical natural resource, and we should work to preserve this important resource while promoting our natural ecosystems.

Q:  Identify an issue that is important to you personally, your community or our region and share how you think CMAP is addressing it in the plan.

A:  Both the GO TO 2040 plan and Blazing Star provide the public with educational resources.  We believe in providing educational opportunities to residents interested in pursuing native planting in their homes or businesses, including restoration and design services.  Throughout the region, I have participated in native landscaping seminars, provided lecture services to garden clubs, civic and school groups, and I even designed outdoor classroom programs.  It would be great if people all over the region knew that there is a potential to redesign planting anywhere people live and work, and that our land decisions have an impact on our natural resources, whether in the city, suburbs, or rural areas.  To have a healthy and sustainable region in the year 2040, we need to know that ecosystems are possible anywhere, even in brownfields.

Q: Are there additional recommendations for our region as we continue with the GO TO 2040 plan?

A:  We should promote local parks and make them usable by the communities, like Emricson Park in Woodstock, and secure land and space for local food production.  We should also increase the number of safe bike paths on our local roads throughout the region -- not just in the [major] cities.  We should help to stop the use of chemicals in lawns and yards and recognize that environmental and sustainable initiatives promote a sense of community among residents.  It’s also important for us to understand that native planting can be used strategically to control our environment, like in Walden Oaks in Woodstock, where we use plants to deal with a high goose population.  It’s important to support community projects that restore natural environments, like Ryders Woods in Woodstock.

Q:  Please share any additional thoughts, ideas or comments you may have.

A:  Since moving [to Woodstock] in 1988, we’ve been able to see the importance of collaboration with other organizations and groups, much like the GO TO 2040 plan is promoting.  For example, many of the environmental efforts in this community have included the Wildflower Preservation and Propagation Committee, the Land Conservancy, and McHenry Community College.  And we’ve also seen Blazing Star grow to include clients all over the 150-mile radius around Woodstock, including Kane County, DuPage County, and the City of Chicago.

by Anne Holub
5/25/10

"Chicago marine safety station" by Monika Thorpe from our pool.

This week's photo (by Flickr user Monika Thorpe) features a vital part of recreation, traffic and safety on Lake Michigan, but not something you necessarily see everyday: the Chicago Marine Safety Station near Navy Pier. It has been known by many names over the years, but currently hosts the Chicago Marine Police, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. The buliding (renovated in 2005) is an example of Cape Cod architecture rarely seen outside New England.

by Diana Torres
5/19/10

Human Services team members (left to right) Spencer Teiken, Jennie Mueller, Malik Chappell, Jasmine Omeke, Anna Yoder

On April 20, the 2009-2010 cohort of CMAP’s Future Leaders in Planning (FLIP) youth leadership development program presented their final projects at the National Museum of Mexican Art. CMAP Board members and leadership staff saw great presentations that tackled planning issues from a youth perspective. Students have collaborated on projects that uses their knowledge and information presented to them over the course of the program (since September 2009) to create a project that fulfills a need within our region’s communities.

Each of the five groups of students has a specific project aligned with their area of focus including: transportation, housing/land use, economic development, human services, and environment. This week we present the final presentation for the human services group.

As expressed in the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario, it is importation to “Foster an educated, healthy, safe, and involved populace.” The Human Services group believed that a major issue affecting a wide variety of teens, regardless of location, is stress. This affects our region but preventing high school students to becoming an integrated group and so they created the WOW program, or Working On Wellness. Through this program, schools and organizations can help reduce this stress through physical and social activities while incorporating additional educational enrichment. These after school wellness programs can allow students to participate in multiple activities, incorporating physical and mental wellness. Social and mental benefits will also be available through a sense of community and WOW can help students reduce stress.

Read the human services team’s final project [PDF].

About FLIP: FLIP is offered free of charge for our region’s high school students interested in learning about and contributing to a better future for our region. CMAP is currently seeking applicants for next year's program. To apply for the 2010-2011 cohort, please complete the FLIP application [PDF] by May 28, 2010; you can also forward this information to any potentially interested high schoolers (or their families and teachers). 

by Lindsay Banks
5/18/10

Cornfield, in Homer Glen by Flickr user jimdeane.

Today's Flickr photo comes to us from a cornfield in Homer Glen, just 11 miles southwest of Chicago.  I love the intense range of blues in the sky with the clouds.

Don't forget, you can add your favorite shots from around the region to our Explore Northeastern Illinois photo pool!

ARRA Implementation Spotlight: City of Chicago funds two green workforce training programs with stimulus grants

The City of Chicago is using a variety of stimulus and non-stimulus grants to fund two new green job programs: Community Green Jobs and Green Job Work Experience. Over the next two years, these two programs will provide more than 250 low-to-moderate income, under-employed individuals with community-based green jobs. These individuals will include the formerly incarcerated. "The City of Chicago is committed to improving our local environment and strives to be the greenest city in the nation," explained Sean Wiedel, assistant commissioner at the Chicago Department of Environment. "With these programs, we hope to begin addressing climate change while also creating jobs and boosting the local economy... Providing work experience and job training for hard-to-employ individuals, including the formerly incarcerated, is also a top priority of the City. In these difficult economic times, residents with criminal backgrounds are often among the last to find employment."

Both the Community Green Jobs and the Green Job Work Experience programs are funded with stimulus Community Development Block Grants (CDBG-R) totaling $7.425 million through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. These two programs will support the Chicago Climate Action Plan (CCAP). Released in September 2008, the CCAP sets goals for energy efficient buildings, improved transportation options, clean and renewable energy sources, reduced waste and industrial pollution, and adaptation. "It is DOE's intention to connect green jobs with the CCAP's goals to improve the City of Chicago's environment for all of its residents," Wiedel said. The City partnered with 11 agencies to implement the two programs, and the agencies will be responsible for tracking environmental metrics that relate to CCAP.

Green Job Work Experience, which is funded with $5.625 million in CDBG-R funds, will support the City's existing Greencorps Chicago green job training program that targets the hard-to-employ, and a new green jobs program at the Safer Foundation. "Prisoner re-entry has taken on new urgency in recent years," Wiedel said. "Helping these individuals become active in the workforce has been shown to reduce recidivism."

City staff and WRD Environmental are administering the Greencorps Chicago program with a team from OAI, Inc., Signature Staffing, and the Safer Foundation. These partners are bringing more than $1 million in leveraged funds through the Wal-Mart Foundation, Fry Foundation, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and tax incentives.

Greencorps Chicago will expand to serve 60 participants in 2010 and 80 in 2011 through Green Job Work Experience, and individuals will be trained in waste reduction, pollution prevention, community horticulture, sustainable landscaping, tree care, local agriculture, home energy efficiency, and other related fields. The Greencorps Chicago program, which began in 1994 and has served 300 hard-to-employ Chicagoans and thousands of community gardeners, will continue on a smaller scale once stimulus funds are expended. For more information, Green for All published an interesting profile of Greencorps Chicago.

In a similar year-round program led by Safer Foundation's Safer Return, Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance, and Christy Webber Landscaping, Green Job Work Experience will support 50 new participants, 25 each year over the next two years. For both this and the Greencorps Chicago programs, participants will work at least 1,500 paid hours per year while receiving technical job skills, academic training, and job placement assistance.

Community Green Jobs, which is funded with $1.8 million in CDBG-R funds, will subsidize job placements in Chicago non-profits that support green initiatives like energy efficiency, recycling, urban agriculture and community greening. The City hopes to place up to 80 individuals through this program. Recipients of funding through this program include Cob Connection/OAI, Inc., Greater Auburn-Gresham Development Corporation, Growing Home, Growing Power, Heartland Human Care Services/WomanCraft, the Inner City Muslim Action Network, the LEED Council, North Lawndale Employment Network, and St. Leonard's House. Participants will work at least 1,500 paid hours and receive technical job skills in a variety of green initiatives.

For more information on these two programs, and the jobs each of these agencies will be providing, view this factsheet or call 312-746-9777. For information on the City of Chicago's overall economic recovery efforts, visit http://recovery.cityofchicago.org.

by Diana Torres
5/13/10

Planning can be abstract, so the “My 2040” blog series aims to connect planning to real people throughout the region.  The following is one in a series of interviews with residents throughout the region.  The views expressed are not necessarily those of CMAP itself. To learn more about this series or to participate, please read more about the program.

Special thanks to Keith Cerk and Barbara Waller for taking the time to share their thoughts and ideas with CMAP staff.

Keith Cerk is senior pastor at the First Baptist Church of Waukegan in Lake County, where Barbara Waller also serves as associate pastor of Family Life Ministry.  Waller is the director of “A Cool Summer Experience,” an outreach ministry for fourth and fifth grade students from low-income families.  Together they serve the Waukegan community to develop and coordinate programs and events for strengthening healthy families.  Both Rev. Cerk and Waller pastor an urban, multi-cultural congregation and have worked with at-risk children, youth, and gang members.  Rev. Cerk also serves on the Chicago Wilderness “Leave No Child Inside” Faith-based Advisory Group and on the Youth Services Board of Kids Hope United.  Waller serves as president of L.I.F.E., Inc., a non-profit organization she founded that is designed to serve and strengthen families.  For additional information, Cerk can be reached at thecerks@aol.com and Waller can be reached at barbarawaller1@comcast.net.

Q:  What aspect of GO TO 2040 excites you most and why?

Cerk:  The GO TO 2040 plan is looking to address many of our region’s needs, like how we’ll address green space and education.  At First Baptist Church, we have created a summer program called “A Cool Summer Experience,” that targets the minds, bodies, souls, and spirits of "indoor-type" children enrolled in the Waukegan School District.  This six-week program teaches children to connect to nature and the environment, something that these kids have never done before.  The program serves as a model for other communities with similar demographics to help low-income and at-risk urban children connect to the outdoors and access their local park districts and forest preserves.  But most importantly, this program serves as an educational model to encourage and support academic success by helping students understand the importance of math, science, technology, and engineering in everyday life as they learn more and connect to the outdoors. 

Waller:  This program is now entering its third year, and the curriculum is a result of collaboration between the First Baptist Church of Waukegan and several other environmental and faith-based organizations, federal and county-level agencies, public schools and community businesses.  These students get an opportunity to learn more about their community and our region, and it will help them understand the importance of open land and education.
 

Q:  How does the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario connect to your community in terms of topics such as enhancing transportation options; increasing housing opportunities; addressing issues related to water, wastewater, storm water, open space, and energy; the importance of density in future development; investment in education and workforce development?

Cerk:  The GO TO 2040 plan promotes the improvement of our education system and the development of our workforce.  In terms of education, the high school dropout rate in Waukegan is 50 percent.  The school district just announced that a significant number of teachers will be laid off during the next academic school year.  There is a real need to reach children early to educate them about their role in the economy as the future work force and as consumers.  The state of Illinois is broke and we can’t just wait to find out how funding, or the lack thereof, will continue to negatively impact our children.

Waller:  The children with whom we work in Waukegan are often underserved and underrepresented.  Many of the children, if not all, are [living] at or below the federal poverty line.  We hope to show children that they are always to be connected to this community, to inspire them to be more engaged with their natural environment, and to have positive impacts on their education and general well-being.

 

Q:  Identify an issue that is important to you personally, your community or our region and share how you think CMAP is addressing it in the plan.

Cerk:  Like the GO TO 2040 plan, our program is about building relationships and creating community.  One of the most important aspects of the summer program is that we are playing a role in building community here in Waukegan.  This area is very divided, similar to our region, and it’s oftentimes divided along racial lines.  Here in Waukegan, the majority of the population is Latino, about 51 percent.  There are also educational and socioeconomic differences.  We want to help our students appreciate the diverse community here and feel pride in living here.  We want to create a sense of shared space where they not only hang out with friends and family, but also learn about the histories and mutual concerns shared with other residents.  We all want similar things for our families.  This can be a strength which unifies us only if we build relationships and trust.  Otherwise, we compete against each other for space or resources.  We want our kids to learn that, and to learn the relational skills to make positive change together.

Waller:  Children need a safe space, and all children should be able to feel safe, to be outside, to feel loved, and to build special connections with other people in Waukegan.  By helping to create healthier children, we hope to build and support the local families.  Through “A Cool Summer Experience,” students not only learn about important environmental topics like restoration and renovation of our harbors, water conservation, recycling, local food, and gardening, but also come to appreciate the importance of green space and nature in their lives.  We want the children to see there is a relationship between residents and their local and regional environment, like we see in the GO TO 2040 plan.  We believe that everyone in this region should have a relationship with other residents in their communities and also their natural environments.

Q: Are there additional recommendations for our region as we continue with the GO TO 2040 plan?

Waller:  Sometimes it is difficult for kids to access our region’s parks, forest preserves, Lake Michigan, and other natural spaces.  This is especially true of underrepresented groups like low-income families.  Sometimes parents may work more than one job and may not have the time to share these experiences with their children.  Other times it is an issue of personal safety, as gangs are a major issue here.  Some families simply may not know about these places and opportunities in their communities.  We do not know what kind of home a child comes from, but we want these children to form relationships with their natural environments from an early age to appreciate all of the benefits.  In the GO TO 2040 plan, we hope to see innovative solutions to help solve many of the problems in our region, such as reducing the number of dump sites and to have people learn the importance of reducing waste and recycling.  If we can do this as a region, we’ll be able to promote health benefits for our communities.

Q:  Please share any additional thoughts, ideas or comments you may have.

Cerk:  Nowadays it’s difficult to secure funding for [community building] opportunities, as we’ve learned with “A Cool Summer Experience.”  We are lucky to have Barbara volunteer her   time as the director since we usually cannot afford to hire staff.  Fortunately we have many dedicated volunteers and partners from the community.  By working for the community and with the community, we’re seeing some real positive things happening.  Last summer, for example, First Baptist was invited by the Park District and GreenTown to work on restoring Roosevelt Park.  Our children did some native planting and cleaning, giving them both a sense of pride and a sense of ownership as they were helping to co-create a better life here in Waukegan.  

Waller:  We hope to continue this effort and having an impact on children physically, spiritually, and mentally.  As we say here, “If you educate a child, you change a nation.”  By sharing this story and showing how a community can come together to make a difference in one municipality, we hope to inspire other groups in other communities to think about how they can work together to create a better 2040 for all our region’s children.

by Diana Torres
5/13/10

(Left to right) Brandon Holland, Nilesh Kavthekar, Melissa Lai, Sarah Morton (O-H Community Partners, Ltd), Diana Torres (staff) (Photo by Lauren Armendariz-Bast, FLIP student)

On April 20, the 2009-2010 cohort of CMAP's Future Leaders in Planning (FLIP) youth leadership development program presented their final projects at the National Museum of Mexican Art . CMAP Board members and leadership staff saw great presentations that tackled planning issues from a youth perspective. Students have collaborated on projects that uses their knowledge and information presented to them over the course of the program (since September 2009) to create a project that fulfills a need within our region’s communities.

Each of the five groups of students has a specific project aligned with their area of focus including: transportation, housing/land use, economic development, human services, and environment. This week we present the final presentation for the economic development group.

As expressed in the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario, "The quality of our labor force will be one of the most important factors influencing future prosperity." The economic development group’s program provides high school students with a guideline to successfully pursue educational enhancement and help develop them into future leaders in the region's workforce. By providing young leaders with a list of steps and programs, we can begin to ensure a strong future workforce capable of positively influencing the region’s growing economy. Student internships are important and can contribute to a better skilled and educated workforce. This is because internships can help students gain necessary and valuable work experience, expose students to different career choices and provide professional networking opportunities.

Read the economic development team’s final project [PDF].

About FLIP: FLIP is offered free of charge for our region’s high school students interested in learning about and contributing to a better future for our region. CMAP is currently seeking applicants for next year's program. To apply for the 2010-2011 cohort, please complete the FLIP application [PDF] by May 28, 2010; you can also forward this information to any potentially interested high schoolers (or their families and teachers).

View the latest regional Economic Recovery Update, produced by CMAP in partnership with the Regional ARRA Coordinating Council (RACC).  Be watching for it every other Wednesday, and click here to sign up for CMAP email updates.

NSP Snapshot Reports

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) added a Snapshot Reports feature to its NSPHELP website.  For all of the 309 NSP1 grantees, the reports feature the amount of the Neighborhood Stabilization Progran (NSP) award, the amount and percentage committed and expended overall, and commitment and expenditure rates for the requirement that 25 percent of funds benefit households with incomes below 50 percent of the area wide median income (AMI).  Check out the snapshot report on DuPage County, whose NSP was featured in the CMAP Economic Recovery Updatefrom March 17, 2010.  We also featured a slideshow from their program on the Recovery blog.

by Anne Holub
5/10/10

"rookery skylight" by Flickr user clarkmaxwell from our pool.

This fantastic fish-eye lens shot of the lobby of The Rookery building plays off of the dramatic architecture of the space. Designed by John Root and Daniel Burnham and completed in 1888, the building is 12 stories tall (quite the skyscraper at the time of its construction). This skylit interior was remodeled by another renowned Chicago architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, in 1905. If you'd like to learn more about the Rookery, you can try one of the Chicago Architecture Foundation's many tours, including a one-hour lunchtime tour dedicated solely to the historic building. This amazing photo was taken by Flickr user clarkmaxwell and added to our Explore Northeastern Illinois pool. What other dramatic architecture do you enjoy in the region?

TIGER II grants announced

A second round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants is now available for highways, bridges, public Transportation, passenger and freight, or port infrastructure investment projects.  The U.S. Department of Transportation will award $600 million in TIGER II discretionary grants to be awarded on a competitive basis for national, metropolitan area, or regional projects.  The first round of TIGER grants were funded with the stimulus, and though this round of funding is not, priority will be given to projects “that are expected to quickly create and preserve jobs and stimulus rapid increases in economic activity, particularly jobs and activity that benefit economically distressed areas.”  Eligible applicants include state and local governments, and multi-State or multi-jurisdictional groups applying through a single proposal.  Pre-applications must be submitted by July 16, 2010, and full applications will be accepted starting July 30.  For more information, see the Interim Notice of Funding Availability.

by Lindsay Banks
5/6/10

Lake Forest Oasis, by Flickr user illinoisoases.

Finally, there’s good news for Chicago area highway commuters!  The Illinois Tollway and US Equities Asset Management (Oases property manager), have partnered with local farmers to bring a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program to Tollway commuters.  Three farms – two from Wisconsin and one outside of Kankakee – will offer commuters the option to buy boxes of local, fresh produce and pick them up at Tollway oases on a weekly basis. 

If you’re new to the concept of CSAs, Local Harvest.org has a good list of tips to prepare you for the experience.  Don’t expect to find farmer’s markets at your nearby Tollway oasis– this is strictly a member-based program.  A CSA allows people to buy produce directly from a farmer by purchasing shares – which usually involves a box of seasonal vegetables, but can include other items.  This set-up allows the farmers to spend time marketing earlier in the year before back-breaking full days in the field, and gives the farmer a reliable source of income.  In return, the consumer gets to eat healthy, delicious, and more sustainably-produced goods than most conventional products.  It usually costs slightly more than your typical vegetables from the grocery store, but you pay for the value, your money stays local, and reduces your carbon footprint. 

With CSA locations at Tollway Oases, the produce can be picked up as part of your trip home from work, saving you the time and hassle of going to the store.  If you would like to participate in the Tollway CSA, you can sign up now through mid-May (so hurry!). 

I made a map of the pick-up locations (Belvidere, Des Plaines, Hinsdale, Lake Forest, O’Hare, and South Holland) and approximate locations of the three participating farms – Triple A Farms, Scotch Hill Farm, and Harvest Moon Organics.  Click on the image to the left to see it.

To read more about the program, visit Local First Chicago.org

For more information, contact:
Catherine Patterson, Kurman Communications
312.651.9000 x 23
Catherine@kurman.com

This spotlight originaly ran in the October 14, 2009 CMAP Economic Recovery Update.  Catch up on what Schaumburg has been doing since then on their Green Initiatives website.

ARRA Implementation Spotlight: EECBG plans in Schaumburg

The Village of Schaumburg was awarded $776,500 through the formula portion of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program. This provides a tremendous opportunity for the Village to implement many of the strategies and programs identified in their Comprehensive Green Action Plan, which uses the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement as a framework. Schaumburg has been actively engaged in existing energy efficiency programs and taking advantage of other resources described below, which are now leveraging EECBG funds. Several projects selected for the EECBG will have a long term impact and help the Village become more energy efficient beyond the lifetime of the Recovery Act:

• The Village plans on launching a residential energy audit and retrofit program for homes built before 1990; the Village will use the existing federal tax incentive list of eligible retrofits for their residential program. Click here for a description of this and other state and federal incentives for renewables and efficiency. The audit will be provided at no cost as long as residents implement a minimum of one of the recommended permanent improvements in the audit. The village is also offering a similar program for smaller commercial and industrial users.
• The village is receiving assistance from the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus to adopt and train inspectors for the new 2009 energy code. Materials developed through this grant will be made available to all municipalities.
• A portion of EECBG funds will be used as the Village's required portion for a planned bike path expansion and improvement, funded in part by CMAQ funds.
• Village planners will use EECBG funds to develop a renewable energy code and zoning guidelines.
• The Village will be contracting with Visible Strategies to measure progress of their Comprehensive Green Action Plan with SEE-IT software. A timeline and progress on goals will be made available on the village's website.
• Schaumburg also plans to use their funding, as well as matching funding from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation, to retrofit many of their facilities including their fire stations, police station, the municipal center, and the village-owned and operated Prairie Center for the Arts. Leveraging the matching funds are critical in order to be able to retrofit as many facilities as possible.

For more information about the Village of Schaumburg's EECBG program, contact Jennifer Maltas at jmaltas@ci.schaumburg.il.us.

by Tom Garritano
5/5/10

True to its name, high-speed rail (HSR) has moved quickly from a dream to a strong likelihood, thanks to billions in federal support that began last year with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (better known as the economic stimulus bill).

The Metropolitan Planning Council has posted their analysis of anticipated economic benefits from the advent of high-speed rail between Chicago and St. Louis.  MPC projects that, over the first ten years, HSR would result in $320 million of direct spending by about 800,000 new tourists, with $510 million in total direct and indirect spending.  State and local tax revenue for the same period would be $120 million, according to the report.

When the draft GO TO 2040 plan is posted for comment next month, its high-priority capital projects are expected to include a proposed West Loop Transportation Center under Clinton Street between the Eisenhower Expressway and Lake Street in Chicago. In addition to serving commuters within the region, this terminal will be central to the seven-county region's future as the Midwest hub of HSR. 

Image courtesy U.S. Department of Transportation

by Diana Torres
5/5/10

On April 20, the 2009-2010 cohort of CMAP’s Future Leaders in Planning (FLIP) youth leadership development program presented their final projects at the National Museum of Mexican Art . CMAP Board members and leadership staff saw great presentations that tackled planning issues from a youth perspective. Students have collaborated on projects that uses their knowledge and information presented to them over the course of the program (since September 2009) to create a project that fulfills a need within our region’s communities.

Each of the five groups of students has a specific project aligned with their area of focus including: transportation, housing/land use, economic development, human services, and environment. This week we present the final presentation for the housing/land use group.

The Housing and Land Use group: (L to R) Chris Gladfelter (staff), Nicole Mitchell, Kristen McCloskey, Elaine Rodriguez, Sophia Irizarry, Cooper Zajac

The Housing and Land Use group highlighted the increasing instances of foreclosures and vacant buildings in many communities. These areas can become aesthetically unpleasing and can foster undesirable social environments. As a possible the solution, the students created a program called “C.E.P.,” or Community Enrichment Program, where the goal is to turn foreclosed properties and vacant lots and turn them into multi-functional facilities that will be benefit the entire surrounding community. To make their idea a reality, the students offer the following steps:

• Step 1: Identify a unused area in the community– vacant or foreclosed lots are ideal. Check for any problems with property: Zoning requirements, Property history.
• Step 2: Secure funding donations, fundraising, etc.
• Step 3: Identify community needs.
• Step 4: Contact local businesses about participating in the program (owning the building, offering internships etc.)
• Step 5: Lease building to local schools and organizations.
• Step 6: Watch area flourish!

As expressed in the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario, one goal is to “create more compact, livable communities to serve as the building blocks of our region’s future development.” This project will accomplish this by transforming undesirable space into viable commercial areas.

Read the Housing and Land Use team’s final project [PDF]. 

About FLIP: FLIP is offered free of charge for our region’s high school students interested in learning about and contributing to a better future for our region. CMAP is currently seeking applicants for next year's program. To apply for the 2010-2011 cohort, please complete the FLIP application [PDF] by May 28, 2010; you can also forward this information to any potentially interested high schoolers (or their families and teachers). 

by Anne Holub
5/3/10

This week's photo comes from the border of Lake and McHenry Counties from the shores of Pistakee Lake, which is a part of the Chain O' Lakes State Park in Illinois. I'm sure these boaters can't wait to get out on the water this summer! Remember you can upload photos from your adventures in the region to our Explore Northeastern Illinois pool on Flickr.

Photo "On Pistakee Lake" by Flickr user phototravel1 from our pool.

ARRA Implementation Spotlight: Will County Center for Community Concerns provides holistic case management with CSBG, Weatherization grants

The Will County Center for Community Concerns (WCCCC) received Weatherization and Community Service Block Grant (CSBG) stimulus funds, with which the agency hired new staff, expanded capacity, and centralized their client intake procedures for more holistic case management.

The WCCCC received approximately $905,000 in CSBG funds to address programming needs. A portion of the funding went towards emergency services, such as providing financial assistance for individuals on utility bills, mortgage payments, and prescription drug assistance. "We had such a huge increase in people coming to see us [with the economic downturn]," said Kris White, WCCCC executive director. "[With CSBG funds] we were able to centralize our intake, which means if someone comes to see us, we can provide holistic case management all at one time, rather than a client needing to come back and forth for all of our services."

During the past few months, the City of Joliet faced budget constraints and was forced to eliminate funding to its social service agencies, according White. The WCCCC partnered with three local agencies to fill in the City's gaps -- the agency provided CSBG stimulus funding to Catholic Charities Daybreak Center for providing homeless and shelter services, and to Lamb's Fold Center for Women and Children and the Senior Services Center of Will County for providing meals. The WCCCC has allocated and spent all of its CSBG stimulus funds.

The WCCCC also received over $1.5 million in weatherization funding through the stimulus bill. In a typical year, the agency has capacity to weatherize 120 homes. By June 30, 2010, the WCCC will have weatherized 453 homes, 253 of which will be funded by the stimulus grant, a 300 percent increase over the previous year's capacity. Next year, the agency will increase capacity by an additional 11 percent, according to White. The agency hired seven full-time, permanentstaff with stimulus funds as well. To date,230 homes have been weatherized this year, 80 of which were funded with stimulus dollars, according to White.

The agency also helps administer Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) funding for Will County and has hired on one new full-time staff member to supervise the program. Will County received $5.2 million as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008. The WCCCC now has 11 contractors working on the program, seven of whom are new. The County's goal is to purchase, rehab, and resell 40 foreclosed homes by the end of 2010. To date, 26 homes have been purchased, work is in progress on seven homes, and 14 homes have been purchased, rehabbed, and resold, according to White. The City of Joliet also received NSP funding, though the WCCCC is only providing housing counseling for the City. The WCCCC works with the County and realtors to decide which homes to purchase and rehab and also provides housing counseling.

"The stimulus funds definitely helped us build our capacity," White said. "Part of the stimulus money included training dollars, which helped us increase our capacity with contractors and staff training we could provide. It certainly helped us centralize our client intake process, which we'd long talked about doing. Now we are up to the challenge of a more holistic case management process, which we love."

By Diana Torres
4/28/10

FLIP Transportation Group: (from L to R) Shawn Jain, Christian Hunter, and Martin Downs (not pictured: Vincent Desmond)

On April 20, the 2009-2010 cohort of CMAP’s Future Leaders in Planning (FLIP) youth leadership development program presented their final projects at the National Museum of Mexican Art. CMAP Board members and leadership staff saw great presentations that tackled planning issues from a youth perspective. Students have collaborated on projects that uses their knowledge and information presented to them over the course of the program (since September 2009) to create a project that fulfills a need within our region’s communities.

Each of the five groups of students has a specific project aligned with their area of focus including: transportation, housing/land use, economic development, human services, and environment. This week we present the final presentation for the transportation group. 

The transportation group presented a solution to enable teenagers to create interactive maps for their communities and local areas (through Google maps). These maps allow users to include user comments on each destination and also additional information, such as how they got there. Users will be able to insert new destinations and comments and be able to promote the use of public transportation and other methods like walking and biking, to create routes to specific destinations. In short, this project promotes the following:

• Allow teenagers to become more comfortable with public transit,
• Increase public transit ridership,
• Possibly establish a "good habit" of using public transit earlier, so that they will be more willing to use it throughout their adult lives,
• Decrease dependency of teenagers on their parents,
• Promote a much more user-friendly site for teenagers to use, and
• Build better relationships with businesses to encourage teenagers to use different modes of transport and increase usage of businesses and other services.

As expressed in the GO TO 2040 preferred Regional Scenario, "In the transportation area, this involves maximizing the use of infrastructure and preserving its capacity through technological and operational solutions." The transportation group hopes to address this need by offering an easy way to maximize the usage of our region’s vast transportation structure is to increase the ridership of our transit agencies and use of our sidewalks and bike lanes. By focusing on teenagers, the transportation group hopes to not only solve mobility problems now, but also influence a dedicated pool of alternative-transit users in the future.

Read the transportation group's final project [PDF]. 


About FLIP: FLIP is offered free of charge for our region’s high school students interested in learning about and contributing to a better future for our region. CMAP is currently seeking applicants for next year's program. To apply for the 2010-2011 cohort, please complete the FLIP application by May 28, 2010; you can also forward this information to any potentially interested high schoolers (or their families and teachers).

View the latest regional Economic Recovery Update, produced by CMAP in partnership with the Regional ARRA Coordinating Council (RACC).  Be watching for it every other Wednesday, and click here to sign up for CMAP email updates.

Want to learn more about the $25 million recently awarded to CMAP -- in partnership with the City of Chicago and the City of Rockford, with support from suburban and regional stakeholders -- to transform the market for carrying out energy-efficiency retrofits to commercial and residential buildings in northeastern Illinois?  The grant, which will leverage at least $500 million in private capital, will fund the Chicago Retrofit Ramp-Up (CR3) program.  We’ve put together a list of frequently asked questions that will be updated periodically as the project moves forward.  Check our Recovery blog and the CMAP website for more information on CR3 as it becomes available, and sign up for CMAP’s weekly email and bi-weekly Economic Recovery Update newsletter.  To stay informed on requests for proposals (RFPs) related to CR3, subscribe to the RFP mailing list at www.cmap.illinois.gov/rfp/email.aspx.