CMAP Meetings. The CMAP Board will meet at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 8. Click here for the agenda and materials. Prior to the Board meeting, both the Programming and Planning Coordinating Committees will meet at 8:00 a.m. Click here for the Programming materials and here for the Planning materials. At 11:00 a.m. or immediately after the Board meeting, the Executive Committee will meet. All three meetings are in the CMAP offices, Suite 800 of Sears Tower, 233 S. Wacker Drive in Chicago.

Annual report. See /documents/20583/c975dc95-e82a-4542-9d67-b27e8c8f7383 for CMAP's FY08 annual report (opens 6.4MB PDF). It includes highlights of the past year's activities by the CMAP Board and staff, including selected details of the agency's work plan.

CMAP's GO TO 2040 Partners Program. Last week I sent a special message to the recipients of this weekly email update. It encouraged you to formally join us by becoming a GO TO 2040 Partner. We've had a great response, and CMAP external relations staff are following up with phone calls. If you haven't already, please take just a moment to complete this simple partnership form. We'll send you a Partnership Kit with materials and a DVD to help you and your organization get involved in the region's first truly comprehensive plan. See our list of partners to date, which already includes 26 members who have made the commitment to planning for a better future.

Biking at Sears Tower. This week the Sun-Times featured Sears Tower and its efforts to encourage tenants to bike rather than take a cab around the loop. The story includes a photo of CMAP's John O'Neal.

PrairieFest reminder. Don't forget that on Saturday, October 4, the fifth annual Prairie Fest will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Elgin. The free all-day event will have speakers, workshops, information booths, children's activities, and food. Its theme is "Greening the City," to educate and inspire people so they'll work toward preservation, restoration, and sustainable living. Jesse Elam will participate in the Green City Panel moderated by Elgin City Council Member Dave Kaptain, with panelists including Elgin Mayor Ed Schock, City Planner Tom Armstrong, and Green Architect Keelan Kaiser. CMAP will also be coordinating an afternoon workshop to discuss the GO TO 2040 campaign and “green” strategies like urban design, parks and open space, and conservation design. For more information, visit http://www.uucePF.com.

Water supply study in the news. Bev Scobell of Illinois Issues magazine wrote a column (opens 35KB PDF) about how State of Illinois budget cuts are hampering our Regional Water Supply Planning Group. And the Business Ledger has a lengthy story about the water supply study.

Planning commissioner workshop. Don't forget to register your planning commissioners, zoning board members, or other elected officials for our Planning Commissioner Workshop in Sugar Grove on October 18 and November 8 at Waubonsee Community College. Contact Jamie Krell (312-386-8658 or jkrell@cmap.illinois.gov) for more information and to register. The $80 fee covers both sessions, workbook materials, and a subscription to APA’s The Commissioner. These are excellent, low-cost opportunities to equip your planning commissioners to make effective and informed land-use deliberations.

ROI tool. Our latest blog entry describes CMAP's collaboration with Fregonese Associates to deploy that consulting firm's "Return on Investment (ROI)" modeling tool. Starting next month, CMAP will hold focus groups with municipal staff and developers to help us “user test” this method of understanding the costs and benefits of specific types of development.

Employer-assisted housing conference. On October 6, 2008, the National Association of Realtors will hold "Employer-Assisted Housing (EAH): Bring Workers Home," a one-day conference at the Intercontinental Hotel, 505 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611. National, state and local housing leaders, local and county government, and business professionals will convene for what is billed as the first national conference on EAH. Registration is limited and costs $100 (or $75 for non-profit organizations). See http://www.realtor.org/government_affairs/employer_assisted_housing for details.

NEIU conference. October 6-7, 2008, Northeastern Illinois University will host the second annual "Ripple Effect" Water and Fire Conference. Admission is free. On October 7, CMAP's Tim Loftus will be part of a panel titled "Threats to Our Water." The conference location is the university's auxiliary gym at 5500 North St. Louis Avenue, Chicago, IL, 60625-4699. For more information, contact the NEIU Academic Development department at (773) 442-5449 or see http://www.neiu.edu/~acdevelo.

Railroad safety education and enforcement grants. The Railroad Safety Section of the Illinois Commerce Commission and the Federal Railroad Administration have announced the availability of Public Education and Enforcement Research Study (PEERS) Phase 5 grants to implement railroad safety education and enforcement programs. Programs must be designed to enhance compliance with applicable motor vehicle laws pertaining to highway-rail grade crossing safety and trespass prevention. Local units of government, registered rail carriers in Illinois, and railroad safety related non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for grants. Applicants are required to complete an application form that is available at http://www.icc.illinois.gov/railroad/PEERS.aspx. Completed applications are due by noon on October 31, 2008. A report summarizing previous grants implemented in Phase 1 and 2 of the PEERS program is available at http://www.icc.illinois.gov/railroad/PEERS.aspx. For more information, contact Steve Laffey at 217-785-9026 (voice), 217-782-7434 (TDD), 217-785-7404 (fax),slaffey@icc.illinois.gov,the Illinois Commerce Commission, 527 E. Capitol Avenue, Springfield, IL 62701.