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MPC is thrilled to announce our newest initiatve: Change Lab.

Change Lab equips advocates, the public sector, and private entities with the knowledge, skills and tools to affect structural change and institutionalize equity.

Learn more about Change Lab here.


  • NEW PROJECT & WEBPAGE: Zoning and Land Use Assessment

    Zoning and land use are central to many of the issues we care about most. And yet our understanding of these practices, particularly their effects at the city and neighborhood level, remains incomplete. In partnership with the Urban Institute and a committee of valued stakeholders, MPC is leading a project to close this knowledge gap. The goal is a transparent, community-informed assessment of Chicago’s zoning and land use practices, one that will shed light on the health, equity, and sustainability implications for its residents. Learn more here.

  • Our Equitable Future Retrospective

    In 2017, MPC released The Cost of Segregation, a landmark study quantifying the impacts that decades of racist policies and practices have had on our region’s people and built environment. In the wake of these findings, MPC brought together a diverse group of stakeholders to develop a comprehensive agenda around economic development, housing, education, and criminal justice. We called this collaborative effort Our Equitable Future (OEF). It’s been five years since the release of OEF, and much has happened in that timeframe. In light of significant shifts accelerated by COVID-19 and a refocusing on racial justice, MPC is looking back to see what has been accomplished, what learnings we can take from these recommendations, and how we should look to the future to build a more equitable region.

  • MPC Announces Paul Carlisle as Board Chair

    Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is pleased to announce that Paul Carlisle is the organization’s new Board Chair. He joined MPC’s Board in 2006. Paul is Chief Operating Officer and Market Head of Wintrust Commercial Banking, where he is responsible for leading and coordinating middle market banking across all of the Wintrust Banks. Paul has spent his entire career serving middle market organizations in the greater Chicago area. He joined Wintrust in 2010 and prior to that spent over 25 years with JPMorgan Chase and its predecessor banks, American National and Bank One.

  • MPC Mayoral Briefing Book (2023)

    In March, MPC produced a 2023 Mayoral Briefing Book to share with the two mayoral runoff candidates and their teams. The publication provides a wide-ranging outline of priorities that include specific action items for the next administration to consider. Outlined priorities relate to the built environment, including affordable housing, safe drinking water, protection from flooding, resilience to a changing climate, and equitable land use and zoning. These priorities impact all city residents.

  • Blue map of Chicago on white background. White, Red, and Black text state: Who will lead the future of Chicago? We Will
    We Will Chicago Website

    MPC Testimony in Support of We Will Chicago

    MPC urges Commissioners to adopt the We Will Chicago framework plan, which is the first citywide plan the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) has undertaken since the 1960s. For too long, Chicago has lacked a unifying vision of what we want this city to be, and the values we want to drive public decisions. We Will Chicago captures this vision through its guiding principles, themes, goals, and objectives.

  • A Great Resignation Not Due to Latinos: Report by MPC & LPF

    Building on our work with the State of Illinois' Future of Work Taskforce, MPC and the Latino Policy Forum collaborated to release a policy brief with recommendations for how the State of Illinois can ensure a bright future for Latino workers.

  • Taking Climate Action by Prioritizing Walking, Biking, and Transit

    A new series on supporting Chicago area communities in transit and mobility implementation.


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Metropolitan Planning Council 140 S. Dearborn St.
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Chicago, Ill. 60603
312 922 5616 info@metroplanning.org

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Shaping a better, bolder, more equitable future for everyone

For more than 85 years, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) has partnered with communities, businesses, and governments to unleash the greatness of the Chicago region. We believe that every neighborhood has promise, every community should be heard, and every person can thrive. To tackle the toughest urban planning and development challenges, we create collaborations that change perceptions, conversations—and the status quo. Read more about our work »

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