Among the highlights from CMAP executive director Randy Blankenhorn, the extension of the U.S. EPA comment period on the region's air quality attainment status, upcoming LTA meetings in Fairmont and Carpentersville and news on the Village of Campton Hills comprehensive plan, the debut of CMAP's multimedia page, new local food tools, and business data from the January's Illinois Innovation Index. Subscribe to get Weekly Updates by e-mail.
First Off...
U.S. EPA comment deadline extended. The U.S. EPA comment period for the region's air quality attainment status has been extended to
February 3. This week
Crain's Chicago Business covers the potential harm that our region faces regarding air quality and lost federal transportation funding if the U.S. EPA follows through on its intention to ignore current, certified 2011 data and rule that northeastern Illinois is "in attainment" with the agency's 2008 air quality guidelines. We urge you to
contact U.S. EPA and members of Congress, calling on the federal regulators to consider the up-to-date 2011 data, which clearly indicate our region has actually not attained the 2008 air standards. See the
notice in the Federal Register (marked as "40 CFR Part 81"), which includes details of how to make your views known. Read more in a CMAP
Policy Update.
Policy Updates. We published the
third installment of a four-part series of new CMAP research on public-private partnerships (PPPs); this entry focuses on PPPs and transit. We also wrote about the stability, or lack thereof, of major
tax revenue sources in Illinois.
Other News and Announcements
Upcoming LTA meetings. CMAP is working with Will County through the
Local Technical Assistance (LTA) program to develop a neighborhood plan for the
Fairmont community. This Wednesday, the Fairmont Steering Committee voted unanimously to move the neighborhood plan forward. The County and CMAP will host a public open house to review the draft plan on January 30 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Shiloh Baptist Church. CMAP is also working with the
Village of Carpentersville to create an Old Town Area plan. The Village and County will host an open house on February 7 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Village Hall (1200 LW Besinger Drive, Carpentersville).
LTA in the news. The
Daily Herald wrote about an upcoming presentation of land use plans to the
Village of Campton Hills board and plan commission as part of the Village’s efforts on its first comprehensive plan.
CMAP multimedia. Learn more about that Campton Hills project and other LTA-supported local comprehensive planning in a recent video posted at our new
multimedia page. There you can also find TV interviews dating from the dawn of CMAP through to the present.
Tollway trends. The
Chicago Tribune wrote about the impact of the Illinois Tollway's toll increases, which went into effect at the start of the year. As the Tollway has predicted will be the case, some drivers are using arterials rather than pay the increased tolls. This is to be expected, and as I told the Trib's Rich Wronski, people will decide on a trip-by-trip basis which route makes sense for them. The increased toll revenues are essential to keep the system in a state of good repair and help fund improvements as recommended by
GO TO 2040.
Grand Station reopening. At a Tuesday press conference, the City of Chicago debuted its remodeled
CTA Red Line station at Grand Avenue and State Street. This project was funded in part by our
Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) program.
New local food tools. The guidebook “
Building Successful Food Hubs: A Business Planning Guide for Aggregating and Processing Local Food in Illinois” is now available as a resource for communities, business, not-for-profits, and others interested in establishing food hubs. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity partnered with the Illinois Department of Agriculture,
FamilyFarmed.org, and the University of Illinois Business Innovation Services to create the guidebook. A new
website will also help connect producers with potential buyers in larger market channels and resources on regulatory requirements.
Water audit webinar. From 10:00 a.m. to noon central on January 26, U.S. EPA will host a
webinar to introduce water loss control. It will focus on water audits and the tools and methods to conduct water audits including a demonstration on free on-line water audit software from the American Water Works Association.
Data Depot
New business in Illinois. The January edition of the
Illinois Innovation Index newsletter features analysis of recent data on company growth, business relocations to and from the state, and the establishment of new businesses. This data on business
moves and
starts, all of which is available on MetroPulse, provides important perspective on efforts and policies to support innovation and economic development. See yesterday's story from
Crain's Chicago Business. Along with the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition, and World Business Chicago, CMAP is a partner in the
Illinois Innovation Network.
MetroPulse or American Fact Finder II? As mentioned last week, the original U.S. Census Bureau American Fact Finder website is no longer on-line. Those who need raw census data will need to visit the
new American Fact Finder. We encourage you to take this opportunity also (or instead) to try
MetroPulse for your regional data needs. To help, we created a
short video about how to find simple information on both websites.
Fact of the Week. Based on CMAP's 2010
survey -- with responses from 211 municipalities that represent 94 percent of the region's population -- eighty-six percent of respondents indicated that their municipality has an approved comprehensive plan. But 38 percent of those had not adopted a comprehensive plan in the past 10 years.
CMAP Blogs
Soles and Spokes. CMAP’s bike-ped planning blog noted awards announced in third round of U.S. DOT TIGER funding and the program’s commitment to bicycle and pedestrian projects, including two funded in our region. We also highlighted a new FHWA report on emerging and innovative technologies to address the needs of pedestrians and other travelers with visual impairments or other mobility disabilities.
Reminders
CDOT Streets for Cycling Plan 2020 public meetings. The Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) is holding
a series of meetings and webinars throughout Chicago to receive input on the Streets for Cycling Plan 2020. The meetings flyer is also available in
Spanish. Meetings/webinars include:
- January 25, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Woodson Regional Library, Auditorium, 9525 S. Halsted Street.
- February 1, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Sulzer Regional Library, 4455 N. Lincoln Avenue.
- February 3 webinar, noon to 1:00 p.m. Reserve a webinar seat.
- February 6 webinar, 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Reserve a webinar seat.
Events
Joliet community reception
January 24, 2012
5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Joliet Historical Museum: 204 N. Ottawa Street, Joliet
Hosted by the City of Joliet, CMAP, and the Chicago Chapter of the Urban Land Institute
January 28, 2012
9:00 a.m. to noon
AKARAMA Foundation Community Service Center: 6220 S. Ingleside Avenue, Chicago
Hosted by the City of Chicago, CMAP, and LISC Chicago
January 30, 2012
9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
ComEd Commercial Center: 1919 Swift Drive, Oak Brook
January 30, 2012
5:00 to 7:00 p.m.
Shiloh Baptist Church: 18101 Oak Avenue, Lockport
Hosted by Will County and CMAP
February 2, 2012
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Westchester Community Church: 1840 Westchester Boulevard, Westchester
Hosted by the Village of Westchester and CMAP
Blogs (Weekly Updates) 
