The Village of Richton Park is a community of just under 14,000 residents located on the southern border of Cook County, 28 miles from downtown Chicago. Due to its location and extensive transportation network, the Village boasts considerable assets for future investment. Richton Park features a station on the Metra Electric District rail line and major roads including I-57, Cicero Avenue, Sauk Trail Road, and Governors Highway. The Village is also located adjacent to Governors State University and a large amount of undeveloped agricultural land. Despite these assets, Richton Park faces several challenges. Some residential developments have not yet been completed, leaving gaps of vacant land and incomplete sidewalks, areas of the business districts are underutilized, and the area around the Metra station requires infrastructure investment to initiate development of the desired Town Center redevelopment plan.
With support from the CMAP Local Technical Assistance program, the Village of Richton Park has been actively planning for its future. In October 2014, the Village adopted a new comprehensive plan, which outlines key goals and objectives around land use and development, transportation and mobility, the environment and open space, community facilities and infrastructure, and image and identity. The plan also provides implementation steps, which include the recommendation to create a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). Additionally, the Village has completed a master plan (2007) and a stormwater management plan (2014) for its Town Center Redevelopment Area centered at the Richton Park Metra Station.
As part of its implementation efforts and activities, the Village of Richton Park worked with CMAP to create and adopt a CIP—the first for the Village— in March 2017. The CIP will help guide and prioritize large-scale capital and infrastructure improvement projects over a five year period. The CIP also establishes a direct link between the comprehensive plan's strategies and annual appropriations, and will help ensure that the Village is programming its public dollars in a strategic manner.
In addition to serving the Village's needs, this project also aligns with CMAP's interest in advancing GO TO 2040. GO TO 2040 calls for careful prioritization of infrastructure investments at all levels of government, and CMAP views the development of a CIP for Richton Park as an opportunity to implement this principle at the local level.