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Working together with our partners to protect the region's transit system
Happy official start of summer. I hope you can explore all our region has to offer during this spectacular time of year and don’t forget to take transit when possible. Need help getting around? Use RTA’s Trip Planner.
On the topic of transit — whether it’s bus or train, city or suburbs — transit service is critical to our region. It drives our economy, providing access to jobs, education, social services, healthcare, and more. It benefits both riders and non-riders because without transit options, gridlock only grows. It is the anchor to vibrant downtowns and at the center of development, and it’s key to addressing climate change.
Our transit system is facing a funding crisis that has the potential to decimate service, cripple our regional and local economies, and diminish quality of life. With the help of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), our Board MPO Policy Committee, along with a steering committee and working groups, are developing a legislative report with recommendations to strengthen and secure our transit system.
The Plan of Action for Regional Transit (PART) is due at the end of the year to the Governor and General Assembly.
The CMAP team and I have been out in the region meeting and talking with partners and diverse groups about PART. On Friday, we met with mayors from across northeastern Illinois at the Metropolitan Mayor’s Caucus. Thursday, we were in Will and McHenry counties.
Everything we do at CMAP is rooted in partnerships. We collaborate, coordinate, and convene. We prioritize and plan for a resilient and thriving northeastern Illinois. I hope to connect with you as we continue to engage our regional partners these coming weeks and months.
Erin Aleman, executive director
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Recognizing Jim Healy for service on the CMAP Board
We were honored to recognize Jim Healy for his service as a CMAP Board at his final board meeting this month.
Jim was appointed in 2019 to represent DuPage County. He has been a valuable member of the board, bringing DuPage County’s perspective to our work and serving through the challenges faced over the last few years.
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Master plan for Illinois International Port District earns honor from NARC
The master plan to create a thriving future for the Illinois International Port District (IIPD) — created through CMAP’s technical assistance program — is earning accolades.
The National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) recognized the port district master plan at its Achievement and Leadership Awards in June. The honor notes the master plan is “the result of years of effort and collaboration.”
NARC awards are presented annually to recognize excellence in programs and services of regional councils, metropolitan planning organizations, and other regional organizations across the country.
The CMAP team includes:
- Sema Abulhab, engagement specialist
- Dustin Calliari, senior planner
- Gilton Cross, planner
- Tony Manno, planning principal
- Jason Navota, director, regional policy and implementation
- Elizabeth Scott, principal, regional policy and implementation
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Fabulous Fox! Water Trail joins National Trails System
The Fabulous Fox! Water Trail has been added to America's National Trails System. It is one of the new national recreation trails designated by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. It runs through McHenry, Lake, Kane, and Kendall counties.
CMAP supported the designation for a water trail that offers outstanding recreational activities in northeastern Illinois and beyond. CMAP has completed three corridor plans — managed by our own Kate Evasic, Kelsey Pudlock, and Brian Daly — for sections of the Fox River, and each of the plans has touched on the water trail planning initiative.
Karen Ann Miller, Illinois co-chair of the team developing the Fabulous Fox! Water Trail and executive planner with the Kane County Development Department, said “our team is thrilled to become part of the National Park Service. This effort could not have been achieved without all of the partners along the Fox River, who for decades have developed and maintained public access and stewarded the river."
The 158-mile Fabulous Fox! Water Trail runs from southeast Wisconsin to northeastern Illinois.
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Our Great Rivers grantees bring local plans to life
The Chicago Community Trust recently announced Our Great Rivers funding recipients.
Four grantees are building on plans created through CMAP's technical assistance program, bringing local plans to life: Illinois International Port District and Chicago's Albany Park, Hegewisch, and McKinley Park neighborhoods.
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Local leaders talk about safety of long trains with federal committee
Mayors from across the state and region, including Mayor Karen Darch of Barrington (a CMAP Board member) and CMAP Executive Director Erin Aleman, recently gave insights to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's Transportation Research Board (TRB) on the impacts of trains longer than 7,500 feet.
TRB is studying potential safety risks from the operation of these trains relative to the operation of shorter trains. The federal Surface Transportation Board (STB), which is an independent federal agency charged with the economic regulation of various modes of surface transportation, primarily freight rail, asked the National Academies to look at this issue in response to Congress.
Learn more about this study.
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Learn why Transit is the Answer in final episode of RTA's Transportation Tuesday series
The Regional Transportation Authority’s (RTA) Transportation Tuesday series comes to an end on June 27 with the final installment of the four-part webinar event. The topic will be “Advancing a Regional Capital Strategy.”
Transit is the Answer, the RTA’s regional transit strategic plan, outlines 15 new evaluation metrics for capital projects to track how these investments will advance major goals like equity, accessibility, climate, and more.
Participation is free, but registration is required.
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Experience the ON TO 2050 plan at Waubonsee Community College's downtown Aurora campus
Take a walk through our long-range plan, ON TO 2050, in the main lobby of the downtown Aurora campus of Waubonsee Community College.
Learn about transportation, walkable communities, climate change, and more at the exhibit, which runs through the summer. ON TO 2050 is designed to help the 7 counties and 284 communities in northeastern Illinois achieve an inclusive and thriving region.
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Help measure which areas of Chicago are hotter and cooler
Volunteers are needed for Heat Watch 2023. Chicago is seeking participants for a study to discover which areas of the community are hotter and cooler during an extreme heat event.
On one designated campaign day, over three shifts (morning, midday, and evening) volunteers will travel routes with heat sensors on their own cars. Each sensor records temperature, humidity, time, and location. The contributions will reveal the distribution of heat across Chicago, helping officials plan for the future.
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Great American Main Street Award seeking applicants to reward community revitalization
Each year, the Great American Main Street Award recognizes communities whose successes serve as a model for comprehensive, preservation-based commercial district revitalization. The application process is underway for the 2024 awards. The deadline is August 4.
The application includes questions designed to provide opportunities to share information about the programs, including organizational budget information and revitalization impact statistics, and to demonstrate excellence in inclusive community transformation, historic preservation, and innovation.
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Celebrating Pride Month
Happy Pride Month! While we celebrate LGBTQ+ communities and commemorate the fight for equity, we also recognize ongoing struggles against injustice.
We envision and work toward a stronger, more inclusive region for people of all genders, orientations, and identities.
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