CNT Announces New Staff Charged with Directing Transportation and Community Development Work

CNT has announced that María Choca Urban will serve as its Director for Transportation and Community Development. María’s career in transportation and community development spans 15 years in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining CNT, she served as the Chicago Transit Authority’s General Manager for Policy and Strategic Solutions where she directed the CTA’s Transit Oriented Development (TOD) initiatives including a joint effort with the City of Chicago to undertake several pilot projects and development of the CTA’s first TOD plan for its rail network.

“I am excited that Maria has joined our transportation team, “said Kathryn Tholin, CNT’s Chief Executive Officer. “Her wealth of experience will be an asset to CNT as we develop sustainable transportation strategies for the 21st Century.”

María worked as an Assistant Commissioner for the City of Chicago’s Department of Planning under the administration of Mayor Harold Washington directing the Neighborhood Planning Division. She oversaw the preparation of redevelopment plans for low and moderate income neighborhoods and acted as a liaison to community representatives and elected and appointed officials. Her tenure with the City culminated with a plan to use Chicago’s boulevard system to spur the redevelopment of inner city neighborhoods – a blueprint that guided later investments by Mayor Daley. Following her government service, María joined the Woodstock Institute as a Vice President. There she conducted research on alternative community financial institutions and provided technical assistance to banks and community representatives in the design and implementation of community lending programs.

After Woodstock, Maria helped her husband start and grow a personal financial planning practice for high net worth individuals while raising her family. She returned to public policy and planning in 2004 joining Chicago Metropolis 2020 as Program Director for land use, transportation, housing and economic development. While at Metropolis she contributed to The Metropolis Freight Plan and Homes for a Changing Region, forecasts respectively of the Chicago region’s freight and housing needs through 2030, and developed particular expertise in freight-related development patterns in the south suburbs.

Maria currently serves as Secretary of the boards of the Woodstock Institute in Chicago and Shore Line Place, a senior and low-income housing development in Wilmette. She has held numerous positions on the St. Francis Xavier School Board and the School’s PTA, including President and fundraising. She served as the Chair of the Wilmette Youth Commission and as a Board Member of the Interfaith Housing Council of the North Shore and Association House of Chicago. She is a member of Leadership Greater Chicago.

Maria has a Masters in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Chicago. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from the University of Notre Dame where she graduated with high honors. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Maria was born in Havana, Cuba and raised in Chicago. She and her husband, Steve, reside in Wilmette, Illinois. They have been married 24 years and have four children.

For more information, contact Nicole Gotthelf, (773) 269-4029 .

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