CMAP Meetings. At this week's Programming Coordinating Committee, the focus was on how to establish CMAP's Developments of Regional Importance (DRI) process. A subcommittee has met several times, and staff prepared and presented a document on potential criteria and thresholds. The committee decided to defer the discussion back to the subcommittee, which will make a recommendation on how to proceed at the next Programming Coordinating Committee in April.

The Board met following the Programming Coordinating Committee. Highlights included:

• Partnership with Chicago Community Trust. The Board voted to enter into a partnership with the Chicago Community Trust on the regional comprehensive plan, particularly in the areas of public engagement, development of indicators, and the treatment of issues such as public health and education in the plan. At its January 29 meeting, the Board of the Trust approved a Memorandum of Understanding and a financial commitment to CMAP. In addition, the President and CEO of the Chicago Community Trust, Terry Mazany, was present to discuss the Trust’s interest in a partnership with CMAP. We look forward very much to working with the Trust on these important regional matters.
• GO TO 2040. The Board endorsed a new branding and the logo for the regional comprehensive plan that CMAP is developing. We view this as a campaign that will continue far beyond developing the plan, the implementation of which will begin immediately after it is finalized in 2010. Look for the new brand and its website to be launched in the next couple of weeks.

State capital program. Last year, the Board adopted a set of principles (opens 25KB PDF) to support a new capital program for infrastructure investments for the state and the region. The Board this week reaffirmed its commitment in support for a new capital program, and that it is our top legislative priority this year.

AMPO submissions. This year’s AMPO Annual Conference will be held from October 28 to 31 in Seattle, Washington at the Grand Hyatt Seattle. They are now accepting abstracts for consideration as part of the 2008 Program. All abstracts are due by March 14, 2008 and should be submitted online (the submission form can be found at the bottom of the web page).

Senator Adeline Geo-Karis, 1918-2008. This week we lost former state Sen. Adeline Geo-Karis, who passed away at age 89. Sen. Geo-Karis was a force of nature who left her mark on the entire State of Illinois. Just by serving when she did, "Geo" would be remembered as a pioneering female legislator from Lake County. But her impact was even broader than that during more than four decades of public service, over 30 years of which were spent in Springfield. On a personal basis, I'm grateful for the chance to have known this remarkable woman.

Rain Garden applications for schools. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has provided $10,000 to support rain garden projects throughout Illinois, and Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn is accepting applications for 2008 Rain Garden Initiative Grants. Each grant recipient will receive a $500 grant to plant a rain garden. These grants will assist schools and public organizations across Illinois in learning about the benefits of rain gardens. Rain gardens are blossoming across Illinois as a low-cost method of improving water quality while preventing flooding and drainage problems. They help control rainwater runoff, foster the growth of native perennial flowers and grasses, and create habitat for wildlife such as native birds and butterflies. This program is a great tool for educating adults and children throughout the community about the importance of caring for the environment and promoting local ecology. See www.raingarden.il.gov for more information, including application instructions, a step-by-step overview of how to create a rain garden, a list of native plant species, and more. The application should be postmarked or faxed by Friday, February 29, 2008, to Jamie Caston, Office of Lt. Governor Pat Quinn, Re: IL Rain Garden Initiative, JRTC - 100 West Randolph St., Ste 15-200, Chicago, IL 60601 (fax: 312-814-4862). Call Ms. Caston at 312-814-6671 with any questions.

ITS Architecture training. CMAP is sponsoring Turbo ITS (Intelligent Transportation Systems) Architecture training on February 20 and 21. Provided by FHWA, this version 4.0 class is the first to be offered anywhere in the nation. The students are from counties, municipalities, transit agencies, the MPO, highway agencies, and consulting firms -- even a few from Indiana. Turbo Architecture 4.0 offers improved ability to develop ITS projects. Some places have used the tool with the regional ITS architecture to reduce ITS project costs by identifying potential project implementation partners. This session is full, but we might offer it again if there's sufficient demand. Contact CMAP's Claire Bozic (312-386-8744 or cbozic@cmap.illinois.gov). See the CMAP ITS page to learn more about these technologies.

CMAP RFP/RFQ alerts. If you know an organization that would be interested, please let them know we have created a simple web form where they can sign up for notices whenever CMAP issues a new Request for Proposals (or Qualifications). Note that this is an "all or none" list, so people who sign up will receive every posting. But they're infrequent enough that it shouldn't pose an inconvenience. People can also see /requests-for-proposals for the latest RFP's and RFQ's.

Reminder: Transport Chicago submissions. The call for papers is available for Transport Chicago, to be held Friday, June 6, 2008 at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Until Monday, March 17, 2008, the conference steering committee will accept abstracts up to 250 words for review. Submitters will be notified by Thursday, April 3, as to the status of their proposed papers. For more information, contact Andrew Parker (847-228-2366 or andrew.parker@pacebus.com).