Winter 2005 Regional Connection

A PUBLICATION OF THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING COUNCIL VOLUME 10 • NUMBER 2 regional connection WINTER2005 Putting policy into practice BY SCOTT GOLDSTEIN grounds. Within 24 hours, volunteer union laborers transformed one VICE PRESIDENT OF POLICY & PLANNING The Metropolitan of the shacks into a livable home, complete with electricity, indoor Planning Council plumbing and other amenities, as a means of showing how the city’s In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the first reaction of was born out of many people was outrage at the slow response and lack of substandard housing could be greatly transformed with just a little preparedness of the federal, state and local governments. effort. The hope was then, and remains today, to provide opportunity concern about the It appeared that no one was in charge, resources were to all of the region’s citizens, no matter where they happened to live. deplorable slum sparse or nonexistent, and New Orleans, with a hefty concen- In the past seven decades there has been tremendous progress, as conditions in tration of poverty and limited local resources, needed tremen- well as some setbacks along the way. Chicago during dous help from the federal government that was very slow in coming. A couple of weeks into the mass evacuation “The Council continues to work on improving public policies in the the Depression. and clean-up, attention began turning to how should the city rebuild? region and state,” said Karen Butler, senior development director for The Council’s new General Growth Properties, and a member of MPC’s Board of How could citizens be protected in the future? How could neighbor- Community hoods — in locations appropriate for building and consistent with the Governors. “However, if we’re not doing everything we can as an I organization — and as thousands of individuals involved with MPC — Building Initiative character of New Orleans — be restored without trivializing the past? And, perhaps most importantly, how could the entrenched poverty of to help communities implement these policies on the ground, we are is helping to New Orleans and other areas of Louisiana and Mississippi be not doing our job.” revitalize today’s addressed directly? From First Lady Laura Bush to U.S. Sen. Barack “While we had been doing important projects in local communities communities. Obama (D-Ill.), attention focused on the problems of concentrated since 2000, we realized these efforts could have greater impact if poverty more pointedly perhaps than at any other nationally defining they were better coordinated around a series of priorities,” explained moment in the past couple of decades. Todd Brown, vice chairman of Shorebank, and an MPC Board member. As we dig into our pockets to help those in need down the In 2005, MPC created a new, coordinated strategy – the Community Mississippi River from Illinois, and reflect on these issues in the Building Initiative – to bring together, under one roof, all of the organi- Chicago region, we should be asking if we are doing everything we zation’s resources to help communities envision and execute at the can to ensure a brighter future for our own communities. local level. Butler and Brown agreed to co-chair a new Advisory Board to guide the community building work. They are complemented by In this issue A continuing tradition seven other board members and volunteers, who have expertise in The Metropolitan Planning Council was born out of concern about the housing, transportation and other infrastructure, finance, and mixed- 2•Program Updates deplorable slum conditions in Chicago during the Depression. While use development. 3•From the President Chicago hosted the 1934 World’s Fair to great acclaim, noted reform- ers, business and civic leaders came together to form the With initial lead funding from the MacArthur Foundation, Grand 8•Region in Focus Metropolitan Housing Council (MPC’s forerunner). Victoria Foundation, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, www.metroplanning.org Chicago Community Trust, Steans Family Foundation, Harris Bank, To bring attention to the plight of the living conditions just blocks from the fair, the Council moved two dilapidated shacks to the fair- CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 FROM PAGE 1 MPC helps plot course of Woods Fund, Dreihaus Foundation, Chase, and community part- Putting policy ners like the City of St. Charles, MPC was able to pool more than two local watersheds into practice $150,000 from targeted grants to step up its efforts and extend BY ELLEN SHUBART its reach in the Chicago region. CAMPAIGN FOR SENSIBLE GROWTH MANAGER hat does it take to change development practices on the ground? A hallmark of More than good ideas W Often, it takes initiative from a local official asking for objective MPC’s new While Hurricane Katrina has shone light on the plight of the urban advice. Recently, the Beecher village manager phoned MPC for counsel Community poor, the truth is that metropolitan regions are far more complex on how to work with developers of a site that included 27 acres of wet- than the inner city alone. Recognizing this, in 2003, MPC began Building lands running along the Trim Creek through existing farmland in Will working with two communities – Riverdale and St. Charles – that County. In response, MPC and the Campaign for Sensible Growth present- Initiative is to were emblematic of housing challenges being experienced through- ed the Beecher Village Board and Plan Commission with ways to improve provide more out the region (see Regional Connection, Summer 2003). With developments by minimizing curbs and gutters to reduce stormwater than good sustained community assistance, both communities have accom- runoff, using natural techniques to promote water infiltration, and allow- plished a great deal – moving from solid plans to implementation. ideas. We ing native plantings. Both the board and plan commission have given deliver train- “A hallmark of MPC’s new Community Building Initiative is to pro- their unanimous support for best practices, and this development is vide more than good ideas,” said MPC President MarySue Barrett. anticipated to be a major example of conservation planning in the south- ing, capacity “We deliver training, capacity building, and long-term relationships ern area of the region. building, and that are needed to implement comprehensive strategies.” This development was also a first, major step in putting the work of the long-term In Riverdale, a 2002 Urban Land Institute Chicago – Campaign for Water Resources and Sustainable Growth project into practice in the Trim relationships Sensible Growth technical assistance panel (TAP) recommended Creek watershed, where MPC, Openlands and the Campaign are working that are rebuilding – instead of razing – the troubled 300-plus-unit together with the villages of Beecher and Grant Park, Will and Kankakee needed to Pacesetter development. Located in the northeast section of the counties, the local drainage district, and Washington Township. village, the development was plagued by absentee landlords, who Watershed planning evolved from 2004 research featured in the highly implement were neglecting the maintenance of their properties and, in some regarded Changing Course report. Among other findings, the study showed comprehensive cases, gouging residents on basic services – including charging that while many jurisdictions paid lip service to sensible growth planning, strategies. extra rent for the use of appliances. few had ordinances on the books to back up those claims. Even with a strong mayor, Zenovia Evans, and a committed staff, it The Trim Creek watershed is one of two where the Campaign and its part- was clear to local leadership they would need outside resources ners are working with municipalities, counties and other governments. and help to transform the neighborhood into a place where people The other is the Greater Marengo-Union Project, focusing on a portion would want to live, with access to jobs, a quality park, and human around the Kishwaukee River in McHenry County. In both watersheds, it services. With the assistance of the volunteer panelists who con- has become obvious that it is not enough to publish good materials. tinued to advise the village for a year following the TAP, and of Communities need practical, technical MPC staff on an ongoing basis over the past three years, advice on how to adopt smart planning Riverdale brought in one of the most experienced affordable hous- and development practices. With the ing developers in the region, Holsten Development, and nonprofit help of the partnership, local leaders in partner Turnstone Development, to lead the redevelopment effort. both watersheds have refined and adopted goals and objectives, and are Said Mayor Evans, “MPC’s role has been so important. They have entering the second year of work to helped us fundraise for the project, connected us with resources, implement specific actions – ranging and advised the development team on the site plan.” from cleaning out Trim Creek in down- Three years after the panel, over $7 million has been secured for town Beecher to developing infiltration land acquisition for the first phase of the redevelopment effort and opportunities to avoid polluting either over 70 of the first 96 units that need to be acquired are under waterway. The partners are also working contract. The first phase will include 133 completely rehabilitated with the communities to plan for clus- rental units and two mixed-use buildings with commercial space tered development, open space

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