Table of Contents

• First Off . . .
• Events
• Other News and Announcements
• CMAP Blogs
• Reminders

First Off...

CMAP meetings.  The CMAP Board will meet on Wednesday, December 8, 2010, at 9:30 a.m.  Board meeting materials are available on our website.

MetroPulse: Land Use.  One of the GO TO 2040 plan's primary goals is to redevelop more than 100,000 acres of currently vacant or under-used land in our region.  This land is ripe for a mix of residential and commercial uses that would help strengthen our existing communities.  Visit MetroPulse and select the top-level "Land Use" button to view details, including estimates by municipality within each of the seven counties of metropolitan Chicago.  MetroPulse is the new regional data resource created through the Regional Indicators Project, a collaboration of CMAP and The Chicago Community Trust.

Events

Illinois Urban Forest grants and workshops.  Grant funds are now available to help communities minimize future loss of tree canopy, replant trees, slow the spread of emerald ash borer (EAB), and generally encourage sustainable urban forest management.  Visit the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus or Morton Arboretum websites for the full RFP.  Three grant workshops will be offered on December 3, 9, and 15.  Contact Eve Pytel for more information at epytel@mayorscaucus.org.

Telework conference.  On December 7, the Women's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor will host Telework:  The Triple Bottlom Line at CMAP's offices from 8:30 a.m. to noon.  Attendees will explore telework as both a commuting alternative and business strategy that can reduce pollution and commuter trips in the metro Chicago region.  Register online.

Other News and Announcements

Transportation data on-line.  The State of Illinois has launched "Getting Around Illinois," an interactive mapping site that displays winter road conditions, construction, and other transportation variables.

New traffic tool in Lake County.  The new Lake County PASSAGE Email Notification program allows users to receive real-time traffic alerts for designated roadways.  Users can create their own personal profiles to learn about traffic accidents, construction, and other incidents before leaving home in their cars.

Peters Fellowship.  It's the 10th anniversary of the Phillip D. Peters Regional Planning Fellowship Program, which each year provides a graduate student with a paid summer work and enrichment experience at CMAP.  The program's organizers have begun a capital campaign to ensure that the endowment can support 20 more years of this nationally-recognized, one-of-a-kind fellowship.  Individual contributions fund 50 percent of the program’s annual expenses.  Anyone interested in honoring Phil’s legacy, helping a student, and supporting our region can learn more by visiting the program website.  

EDA funding announcement.  The U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration released its FY 2011 Federal Funding Opportunity announcement for the Planning and Local Technical Assistance Programs.  These programs allow communities that are economically distressed to "develop the planning and technical expertise to support communities and regions in their comprehensive, entrepreneurial, and innovation-based economic efforts," according to the Federal Register notice.

Food deserts.  Mari Gallagher talks about Chicago food deserts and related data as a featured speaker for TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design), a global speaking platform that uses internet and videos of speeches to share “ideas worth spreading.”  Read more about GO TO 2040’s approach to local food systems in the plan's Livable Communities chapter.

Groupon.  Speculation is rampant that Google is about to purchase Groupon, one of the best recent examples of business innovation in our region.  Crain's Lisa Leiter has a video segment about the potential deal's local implications.

CMAP Blogs

Soles and Spokes.  This week, CMAP’s bike-ped planning blog alerted readers to a new FHWA/FTA report, Livability in Transportation Guidebook: Planning Approaches that Promote Livability.  We also linked to a new TRB/NCHRP report that offers guidance on the design and application of rumble strips along roadways and methods to avoid negative impacts on cyclists.  Finally, we highlighted the upcoming APBP webinar on “bike boxes.

Reminders

Economic Summit.  On December 8, the Brookings Institution, London School of Economics, and Alfred Herrhausen Society will host Global Metro Summit: Delivering the Next Economy on the University of Illinois at Chicago campus.  The daylong program is designed to "articulate a vision for a post-recession economy that is export-oriented, low carbon, innovation-fueled, opportunity rich, and ultimately led by metropolitan areas."  View the agenda and register online.

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