November 2002 Media Tips: MPC Endorses 1000 South Michigan Development, Riverdale Rolls Out Employer-Assisted Housing Program, Illinois State Legislators Pledge Support for Education Funding Reform, MPC Assesses CHA Plan for Redevelopment
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MPC endorses 1000 South Michigan development
Since its designation as an historic landmark
district, the downtown street wall of Michigan Avenue has been the subject of
intense discussion. A newly proposed mixed-use project for 1000 South
Michigan is the first to satisfy the stringent development guidelines imposed by
landmark designation. The Metropolitan Planning Council recommends speedy
approval of the project, which will be a valuable addition to the corridor.
The thoughtful planning and design of 1000 S.
Michigan conform to a number of recommendations found in the City’s zoning bonus
system. Features include a green roof system to lessen the energy needs of
the building and upper-level setbacks to ensure more sunlight at street
level. The plan also reduces traffic impact by guiding vehicles exiting
the building to bordering streets, while simultaneously ensuring that loading
docks are out of view from surrounding sidewalks. Additionally, the use of terra
cotta in the design of the building wall complements the architectural history
of Michigan Avenue.
The project will also help promote economic
development by creating jobs, during development and construction and with the
37,000 square feet of ground floor retail space.
Contact: Peter Skosey
Vice President, External
Relations
312.863.6004 or pskosey@metroplanning.org
Riverdale rolls out employer-assisted housing
program
Employer-assisted housing (EAH) is gaining
momentum in the Chicago metropolitan area. Riverdale, a community of
nearly 20,000 people just 23 miles south of the Loop, is the latest to offer EAH
to its employees. Riverdale Mayor Zenovia Evans, co-chair of the
Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Housing Task Force, has been a leader in the effort
to promote EAH. Riverdale will partner with the Regional Redevelopment
Corporation, a local nonprofit organization with experience in homeownership
counseling and home rehabilitation. The Riverdale EAH program aims to help
five employees buy homes in the Village by offering $5,000 toward down payment
and closing costs. Eligible employees may access up to an additional
$5,000 of state matching funds. All participating employees will benefit
from credit counseling and homeownership education provided by the Regional
Redevelopment Corporation.
According to Mayor Evans, EAH is a way to encourage
investment in the community. “Our village does not have a residency requirement
for employees,” she said, “so we hope the program will encourage municipal
employees to live in Riverdale. EAH is a positive incentive; a win-win situation
for everyone.” The Village hopes its EAH program will serve as an example
for other south suburban employers.
Contact: Samantha
DeKoven
Housing Associate
312.863.6021 or sdekoven@metroplanning.org
Illinois
state legislators pledge support for education funding reform
A bipartisan group of 58 state representatives and senators
-- including Senators Bill Peterson (R-26, Long Grove), Kirk Dillard (R-41,
Hinsdale) and Senate minority leader Emil Jones (D-14, Chicago) and
Representatives Susan Garrett (D-59, Lake Forest) and Jerry Mitchell (R-73,
Sterling) -- added their names to the Network 21: Quality Schools for Stronger
Communities pledge. Signers commit to implement quality and accountability
reforms, and increase state resources to provide a $5,500 foundation level in
order to ensure that every Illinois child receives an adequate education.
Network 21 is a broad-based coalition of more than
45 education, business, labor, civic and civil rights organizations, founded on
the premise that there must be adequate resources to provide a high quality
education for every student in the state. This means increasing the state’s
share of the education-funding burden and reducing the over-reliance on local
property taxes to fund K-12 schools in Illinois, which create significant
disparities in educational opportunity between property-poor and
property-wealthy school districts. Critical to Network 21’s campaign are
quality and accountability reforms that will ensure resources are deployed
effectively and efficiently to enhance student outcomes.
Contact:
Leslie B. Lipschultz
Network 21 Education and Tax Policy
Manager
312.863.6008 or llipschultz@metroplanning.org
MPC
assesses CHA plan for redevelopment
The latest in MPC’s series
monitoring the progress of the Chicago Housing Authority’s Plan for
Transformation, “Examining the Chicago Housing Authority’s Redevelopment
Strategy,” focuses on issues that will determine the effectiveness of the
redevelopment plan. These include timing, land availability,
decision-making and financing. The report looks at six sites: Lake
Park Crescent and Jazz on the Boulevard (North Kenwood /Oakland); Henry Horner,
Rockwell Gardens and ABLA Homes (Near West Side); Madden Park/Ida B.
Wells/Darrow (Douglas and Oakland).
The goal of the CHA’s Plan for Transformation is to
develop public housing in mixed-income and pedestrian-friendly communities that
are neither isolated nor insulated from the city as a whole. This means
ensuring that new public housing development addresses and works to mitigate the
historic causes of racial, economic and spatial segregation.
Contact: Robin Snyderman
Housing
Director
312.863.6007 or rsnyderman@metroplanning.org