London’s Tessa Jowell keynotes Metropolitan Planning Council 2007 Annual Meeting Luncheon, which also features presentation of MPC’s Burnham Award for Excellence in Planning
(Chicago) …
As
Chicago
competes with six other global cities for
the honor of hosting the 2016 Olympics, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC)
urges that planning for the Games be tied to broader goals to maintain and build
upon
Chicago
’s
world-class status. At MPC’s 2007 Annual Meeting Luncheon,
“Going for the Gold:
Chicago’s Olympic Destiny,” some 1,000 Chicago-area leaders heard from keynote
speaker, the Rt. Hon. Tessa Jowell, MP, the United Kingdom’s Minister for the
Olympics and London, how “legacy planning” can improve a bid city’s chances, but
more importantly strengthen a metropolitan region for generations to
come.
“For
London
, hosting
the Olympic and Paralympic Games is about much more than even a great summer of
sport. It offers a unique opportunity to change our capital city for the better,
leaving a legacy of transformation and hope for decades to come,” said
Jowell, a
driving force behind
London
’s successful bid for the 2012
Games.
“Our door is open and our knowledge and experience available to all the cities
bidding to receive the Olympic and Paralympic baton from us in 2012 – and
beyond. I am very happy to be able to discuss our experiences with the people of
Chicago
as part
of that commitment.”
Jowell was introduced
by James Clark, Britain’s newly appointed Consul General
for
Chicago. Her insights about
the wider benefits of hosting the Olympics – such as the opportunity to bolster
a city’s housing, transportation and neighborhood assets – were an inspiring
message for the crowd of decision-makers gathered for MPC’s major annual
fundraising event on Thursday, Nov. 29, at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.
“Tessa Jowell’s remarks
serve as an excellent reminder that as we compete for the 2016 Olympic Games, we
can build upon the successes of experienced host cities,” said
MarySue Barrett
, president of MPC. “Our plans not
only should capture the imagination of the International Olympic Committee and
world, but also make our region more competitive in the global economy.”
“Chicago is a city forged by bold plans,
from Daniel Burnham’s 1909 vision that has shaped our Lakefront and boulevards to
the city’s dramatic
front
yard,
Millennium Park,” said Patrick G. Ryan, chairman
and CEO, Chicago 2016. “Bidding for the 2016 Olympics is an opportunity to bring
out the best in our city and to build a legacy
for
Chicago’s next 100
years.”
At the event, MPC also presented its 2007 Burnham Award
for Excellence in Planning, including a cash prize of $5,000 underwritten by
National City Bank, to five northwest Indiana communities for The Marquette
Plan: The Lakeshore Reinvestment Strategy. Together with U.S. Rep. Peter J.
Visclosky (D-Ind.), the leaders of East Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Portage and
Whiting, Ind., pooled $200,000 in local
and federal resources to conduct the initial study to address a difficult
challenge: attracting new market investments in communities long-defined by industry. The
Marquette
Plan outlines
a strategy to bring jobs and retail opportunities to the beachfront
communities of Northwest Indiana, while protecting and
enhancing
our
region’s
greatest
natural
resource,
Lake
Michigan
.
“Our position on Lake Michigan grows more valuable each day, and the Marquette
Plan will leverage this tremendous resource to create new jobs, new
recreation, and
new economic
development in Northwest
Indiana,” said U.S. Rep. Visclosky. “I applaud the
lakefront
cities
of
East
Chicago,
Gary,
Hammond,
Portage
and Whiting for their support of the
Marquette Plan.”
For 19 years, MPC’s
Burnham Award has recognized forward-thinking plans and projects in
the
Chicago region. On
behalf of the five communities and U.S. Rep. Visclosky, A.J. Monroe, director
of community development for the City
of
Portage, accepted the award from Joseph A.
Gregoire, president and CEO, Illinois Banking, National City Bank; and member,
MPC Board of Governors.
“The
Marquette Plan
represents the power
of individual communities working together to make the biggest impact,” said
Gregoire. “Individual efforts on the part of each of these communities are
commendable, but together and with the support of U.S. Rep. Visclosky and the
private sector, these five communities have been able to leverage impressive
resources to shape a brighter future for the entire
region.”
Such work exemplifies the
power of collaboration, a hallmark of MPC since its founding at the Century of
Progress World’s Fair in 1934. By working together with a range of partners –
from city, suburban and county governments to community organizations and
developers – MPC is helping ensure everyone who lives and works in metropolitan
Chicago can prosper as part of a world-class region, according to MPC Board
Chair Lee M. Mitchell, partner, Thoma Cressy Bravo, Inc. MPC develops, promotes
and implements policies and strategies to achieve this goal, such as improving
access to transportation options, increasing state funding for education, and
assisting communities in developing a range of homes that accommodate people at
all stages in life.
Mitchell also shared some
of MPC’s 2007 highlights, including the following:
-
With the International Council of Shopping Centers,
Campaign for Sensible Growth, and Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, MPC published
Retail 1-2-3 , the third in a series of planning workbooks for local officials
and community leaders.
-
As part of a broader effort to craft a redevelopment
strategy for the City of Joliet ’s East Side , MPC recommended ways to
strengthen the community’s housing and retail markets. This is just one of
more than 20 communities MPC has provided hands-on development assistance to
in the past few years.
-
MPC’s Community Building Initiative has launched
Reconnecting Neighborhoods to bring access and opportunity to three
mixed-income communities in Chicago .
-
Five regions across the U.S. , including Mississippi
’s Katrina-ravaged Gulf Coast , have engaged MPC in helping them start
employer-assisted housing (EAH) programs. This summer, the Chicago area
celebrated its 1,000 th EAH homebuyer.
- The MPC-led Good Housing Good Schools Act, signed into law in August,
gives a financial boost to school districts that welcome multi-family housing,
a practical solution to the jobs-housing mismatch.
Mitchell also welcomed
newly elected members of its Board of Governors: Vincent Cordero, vice president
and general manager, Univision Television Group; Michael Moore, managing
director, head of Chicago capital markets, Lehman Brothers; Stephen M. Porras,
vice president, acquisitions, affordable housing, Related Midwest; and James P.
Stirling, director, UBS; and newly appointed Resource Board members Christopher
B. Burke, president, Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.; and Karla O.
Teasley, president, Illinois American Water.
The MPC 2007 Annual Meeting
Luncheon was made possible by Honorary Co-Chairs Mayor Richard M. Daley, City of
Chicago; James Clark, Her Majesty’s Consul General, Chicago; and Patrick G.
Ryan, executive chairman, Aon Corporation; as well as Presenting Event Chair
Joseph A. Gregoire, president and CEO, Illinois Banking, National City Bank.
National City
was Presenting Sponsor for this year’s luncheon, with a $50,000 contribution.
MPC also thanks Event
Co-Chairs Gail K. Boudreaux, executive vice president of external operations,
BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois; Colin Dyer, president and CEO, Jones Lang
LaSalle, and Peter Roberts, chief executive officer of the Americas, Jones Lang
LaSalle; Miles D. White, chairman and CEO, Abbott; and Thomas Wilson, president
and CEO, the Allstate Corporation.
Founded in 1934, the
Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group of
business and civic leaders committed to serving the public interest through
development, promotion and implementation of sound planning and development
policies so all residents have access to opportunity and a good quality of life,
the building blocks of a globally competitive greater Chicago
region.