News

Consolidated Planning Agency
Prioritizes Environment

In 2005, the Illinois General Assembly created a new public agency charged with coordinating comprehensive regional planning for northeastern Illinois. This agency, now called the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), is consolidating the work and functions of the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission and the Chicago Area Transportation Study.

In mid-August more than 100 representatives from Chicago Wilderness organizations presented their ideas and concerns to CMAP Executive Director Randy Blankenhorn as CMAP prepared its first strategic report on its vision, governance, and funding for submission to the General Assembly.

The Chicago Wilderness Sustainability Team and many others worked to draft a Statement of Principles (pdf) to guide regional planning priorities, placing protection of environmentally sensitive critical areas at the fore. Among other things, the Statement of Principles recommended that development be encouraged in areas that are served by existing transportation and other infrastructure, have sufficient density and mix of uses to create compact urban settlements reachable by walking, and that enhance protection of environmentally critical areas.

In addition, Chicago Wilderness recommended that planning decisions address all stormwater management issues, including water quantity and water quality, in a manner consistent with biodiversity conservation and habitat protection.

Suffice it to say that natural resource protection has not often been at the forefront of regional planning efforts. But CMAP’s report, issued in September and accessible at CMAP’s Web site, signals a change. For one, CMAP has pledged to listen to and work with Chicago Wilderness “to address the real issues that face our communities…CMAP will provide leadership, advocacy and the needed capacity to ensure that the region’s environmental assets are protected and sustained,” the report said.  “According to Chicago Wilderness, the rapid development of land for urban uses is the primary threat to the region’s unprotected natural lands, and in some cases it is even causing serious degradation of protected lands,” the report noted.

The CMAP report refers to the Chicago Wilderness Green Infrastructure Vision (pdf) among the resources the agency intends to rely on in its work.

CMAP will seek support from the Illinois General Assembly in 2007 for a secure funding stream, which will be critical to its ability to plan and implement in the future.