Think for a moment about what our region could be in 2040. More transit choices? Doable. Safer neighborhoods? Possible. Cleaner water? Sure, if we work at it. Whatever our goals for tomorrow and the future, we need a plan to get there. Fortunately for northeastern Illinois, we now have one – GO TO 2040, our region’s first comprehensive plan since the 1909 Plan of Chicago. Five years in the making, and informed by direct input from thousands upon thousands of residents from across the region, GO TO 2040 delivers not only a vision for the future, but also concrete action steps to realize it. Now that the plan is done, the work of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), the plan’s authoring body, will shift to implementation – but they can’t do it alone.
CMAP Director Randy Blankenhorn kicks off the GO TO 2040 plan for northeastern Illinois.
Photo: Chantal Hayes
That point was stressed again and again at a rousing ceremony yesterday at the Harris Theater in Chicago. A cavalcade of excited speakers, including U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, and Palos Hills Mayor and CMAP Board Chair Gerald Bennett, exhorted the 800-plus attendees to “make this your plan, and your neighbor’s plan, and your children’s plan.” Find out how to do that here.
Today the news got even better - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced $4.25 million in grant funding to support CMAP’s efforts to implement the plan and “link transportation, land use, housing, economic growth, the natural environment, and human and community development, with the overarching goals of improving livability and bringing about sustainable prosperity.”
Mayor Richard M. Daley praised the GO TO 2040 plan for northeastern Illinois.
Photo: Chantal Hayes
Frankly, everyone at MPC is pretty excited. GO TO 2040 sets a course toward a future we want to be part of creating. GO TO 2040 is both a milestone and a breath of fresh air. Livable communities with ample open space, housing choices, and efficient use of water and energy. Economic and educational innovation to cultivate our region’s human capital. Tax and investment policies that lead to efficient governance and investment of public dollars, not just spending. A transportation system that moves people and goods where, when and how they want to go, greatly enhancing our regional mobility.
Our Robin Snyderman, Vice President of Community Development signing her support for the GOTO2040 Plan.
Photo: Chantal Hayes
Sound good? We think so. Now it’s time to make it happen. Read the plan, talk to your family and neighbors about it, and ask your current and would-be elected officials how they intend to work in concert with it. Sign up for CMAP newsletters to track progress toward implementation. Do your part at home by being more efficient with water and taking transit when it’s a viable choice. We have a beautiful region here, from the lake to the prairies, and we need your support to keep it that way.