CMAP meetings.  At 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 14, 2009, the CMAP Board will meet. Click here for Board meeting materials. Prior to the Board, CMAP's Programming Coordinating Committee will meet at 8:00 a.m. Click here for committee materials. Immediately after the Board meeting, the Executive Committee will meet.

MPO Policy Committee. The Committee met yesterday, approved a number of plans and programs included on their agenda, and heard updates on GO TO 2040, the federal legislative outlook, and various ARRA programs. The Committee elected Richard Rodriguez, CTA President, as the new vice-chair. Additionally, the Committee voted to activate the SAFTEA-LU subcommittee and utilize the CMAQ Project Selection committee to make a recommendation at their next meeting in January on how to address the rescission that took effect October 1.

Transportation in the news. The Sun-Times ran a story by Mary Wisniewski about the future of transit. The Tribune's Rich Wronski wrote about the new Cambridge Systematics report about the planned Illiana expressway. Today I was interviewed about the Illiana by Eddie Arruza of WTTW for a Chicago Tonight segment that will air next Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. Crain's had a story about the latest CREATE project to reduce freight rail-related bottlenecks.

Also in the Trib was a letter to the editor by George Ranney of Chicago Metropolis 2020, about how the region needs to move forward and build on the 2016 Olympics effort. As I said last week, many of our goals remain unchanged, and CMAP is eager to lead with the GO TO 2040 comprehensive regional plan. I hope, as George suggests, the 2016 energy can flow into implementation of the region's plan.

Recovery blog. Be sure to visit our regularly updated Recovery blog. This week’s posts included stimulus in the news and information on an upcoming event to examine and recognize regional collaboration on the stimulus.

CBA talk.  Today I participated in a panel about the stimulus at the Chicago Bar Association's "Breaking Barriers" conference.  It was chaired by Lela Johnson (Assistant U.S. Attorney), with my fellow panelists Gordon Wright (CEO and founder of Grant Park Capital Partners LLC) and Gloria Friedman (Director of Development for the Legal Assistance Foundation).  Attendees heard from Gordon, who manages significant hedge funds and other market assets, just how close our economy came to a meltdown.  Gloria gave a grantee's perspective, sharing how stimulus funds had helped her organization avoid layoffs and furloughs, but also how the state budget situation has them nervous about 2010.  And I described our lessons learned from regional successes and some missed opportunities, including the need for greater coordination of local, state, and federal programs.

FLIP at APA.  CMAP's Erin Aleman will make a presentation about our Future Leaders in Planning program at the American Planning Association "Tuesday’s at APA" series. The session is called "Effective Youth Engagement in the Planning Process," to be held on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at 5:00 p.m. Click here for details.

Water supply event. Illinois water supplies are finite, fragile, and under pressure. Join the Metropolitan Planning Council and Openlands on October 13, 2009, for a discussion of the forthcoming "Before the Wells Run Dry," which recommends a series of strategies to protect our shared water resources. The forum takes place at 191 North Wacker Drive, Suite 3700, Chicago (the offices of Drinker Biddle) from 7:30 a.m. to noon. Cost for MPC and Openlands donors is $15 and for non-donors is $20. Details and registration are online.

Conservation Congress reminder. Help create a better future at the Conservation Congress, hosted in Springfield by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources on Saturday, October 24 (registration 8:15 a.m., program 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) and Sunday, October 25 (check-in 8:30 a.m., program 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.). Click here to register, or visit the Conservation Congress website. Participants will review, propose and vote on recommendations to elected and appointed Illinois officials in three issue areas: Public Access, Youth Recruitment and Retention, and Conservation Funding.

Stimulus event reminder. Don't forget the reception on October 27, 2009, hosted by Mercy Housing in coordination with CMAP and the Regional ARRA Coordinating Council to recognize public and private collaboration in the Chicago region for leveraging economic stimulus funding. View the invitation here.

No Impact Man.  Catch possibly one of the last local screenings of new indie documentary No Impact Man at the Highland Park Library, on Wednesday, October 14 at 7:00 p.m.  The film follows a year in the life of the Beavan family in New York City as they attempt to live without taking cabs, the subway, elevators, using plastic bags or washing machines, watching television or using electricity. Certainly no small feat!  Watch the trailer online.