May 3, 2006

Dear Friend,

With rising gas prices, concern about transit funding, distress over traffic congestion and anxiety about high rates of traffic injuries and deaths in our region, now is the time for residents to help identify long term solutions.

We are pleased to invite you to join the Chicago Area Transportation Study, the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission and the Regional Planning Board in an interactive meeting where you will have the opportunity to comment on the Update of the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan. It is important to document your ideas about this update. We are working with specialists in public involvement to ensure that these meetings are engaging and fruitful for you as well as for us. They have designed a meeting that we believe you will find informative and meaningful.

Seven participatory meetings will be held throughout northeastern Illinois. The meetings are designed to gather your ideas, wherever you live, using the innovative tool Transopoly℠. (see attachment). A meeting agenda is attached. You are welcome to attend the meeting that is most convenient for you. These evening meetings are described in more detail in the “Agenda” section of the attachment. Here are the dates and locations.

All meetings begin at 6:30 with a sign-in and socializing period. The facilitated session lasts from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Please register for one of our meetings by either emailing ctaqc@cnt.org or by calling (773) 269-4097. Include your name, phone number, address, and email address when responding. While any number of people can attend the meetings, the participatory activities may reach capacity quickly. Please, register soon to ensure your “seat at the table.” We look forward to seeing you there.

Sincerely,

Randy Blankenhorn, Executive Director
Regional Planning Board

P.S. Our first hope is that you will join us in person. If you are unable to come but would like to give us your opinion through our on-line survey, please visit www.sp2030.com.

What are the Regional Planning Board, the Chicago Area Transportation Study and the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission?

The Regional Planning Board (www.rpbchicago.org), a new agency created through combining the Chicago Area Transportation Study (CATS) (www.catsmpo.com) and the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission (NIPC) (www.nipc.org), will oversee the update of the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan. CATS had sole responsibility for regional transportation planning in the past. This graphic may help you understand how the region is transitioning to a new planning modal.

The Regional Transportation Plan guides long term transportation decisions and investments for northeastern Illinois, specifically Cook, DuPage, McHenry, Kane, Kendall, Lake, Will, and a section of Grundy County. The original version of the 2030 RTP, which was adopted in 2003, is available on CATS’ “Shared Path” website, www.sp2030.com.

Can you give me a little more information about the meeting locations and how to get there?

For complete transit information contact the RTA at 836-7000 (from any local area code) or visit online at www.rtachicago.com.

Near West

May 16, 2006
Berwyn Police Department
6401 W. 31st Street
Berwyn, IL
 Metra Burlington Northern/Santa Fe
Pace 302, 312, 315, 322
CTA Blue Line
Near intersection of 31st St. and Ridgeland Ave.
Parking Lot Available

North

May 18, 2006
Waukegan Police Department
420 Robert V. Sabonjian Place
Waukegan, IL
 Metra Union Pacific/North Line
Pace 561, 563, 564, 565, 572
Near intersection of Robert V. Sabonjian Pl. and Martin Luther King Jr. Ave.
Parking Lot Available

Far West

May 31, 2006
Kane County Govt. Center, Bldg A
719 S. Batavia Avenue (Route 31)
Geneva, IL
 Metra Union Pacific/West Line
Pace 802, 921
Near intersection of Rt. 31 and Third St.
Parking Lot Available

Central

June 1, 2006
Anne Sather Restaurant
929 West Belmont Avenue
Chicago, IL
 CTA Red, Purple, and Brown Lines
CTA Bus 22, 77, 156
Near intersection of W. Belmont Ave. and N. Wilton Ave.
Street parking available

Southwest

June 6, 2006
Joliet Public Library
150 N. Ottawa Street
Joliet, IL
 Metra Heritage Corridor and Rock Island District
Pace 501, 502, 505, 831, 834
Near intersection of Ottawa St. and W. Clinton St.
Parking Lot Available

Northwest

June 8, 2006
Palatine Village Hall
200 E. Wood Street
Palatine, IL
 Metra Union Pacific/Northwest Line
Pace 699
Near the intersection of Wood St. and Oak St.
Parking Available

South

June 15, 2006
Blue Island City Hall Annex
2434 Vermont Street
Blue Island, IL
 Metra Rock Island District & Metra Electric
Pace 349, 359, 385, 397
Near the intersection of Vermont St. and Artesian Ave.
Parking Lot Across the street

How long will the meeting last and what will we do?

Meeting Agenda

  • Registration & Survey: 6:30-7:00
    • Sign in, enjoy refreshments, socialize with other participants, review your handbook, and fill out your surveys.
  • Facilitated Meeting 7:00-9:00
    • Welcome & Introductions
    • Background Presentation
    • Transopoly℠
    • Transopoly℠ Map Discussion
    • Evaluation and Closing

What is Transopoly℠?

The public involvement tools in the Transopoly series were developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology to help the general public understand the relationship between transportation planning and land use planning. The tools are unique in that they require users to make fiscally prudent choices on a long-range vision for transportation planning. Transopoly helps diverse groups build consensus. The version of Transopoly that will be used for the update of the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan is customized to address specific strategies and projects that are under consideration for our region.

Transopoly will take 1 1/2 hours to “play.” Each table of participants will have a map of the designated area (the “game board”), a hypothetical budget, and other essential tools. To the extent possible, existing land use and transportation features are marked on the map to facilitate decision-making.

When using Transopoly to express investment preferences:

  1. Laypeople learn to trust their own judgment and appreciate constraints in the official planning process;
  2. Very different populations come to agreement about what would serve the largest number of people, not just their own sub-group; and
  3. The opportunity to consider the cost and benefit of various projects shapes the project choices.

Transopoly is a tool that seems as straightforward as a board game. Transopoly has been used successfully since 2001 to help groups articulate their transportation priorities within reasonable financial limits.