The Illinois Works Coalition is headed to metropolitan Chicago to get the public's take on how Illinois should fund a long-overdue state capital plan to build and maintain roads, bridges, transit, schools and housing. MPC will provide the coalition with funding recommendations– and a proposal for how Illinois can ensure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely on capital needs.

It may seem hard to believe, but Illinois does not have a process for rating all transportation projects to determine which make the best use of taxpayers' dollars. Such a process is sorely needed, if for no other reason than that the state does not have enough money to fund all of the projects on its wish list. According to a 2007 study by the American Economics Group, Illinois has almost $9 billion in surface transportation capital needs per year over the next five years; however, only $2 billion a year is spent for surface transportation projects.

The Illinois Works Coalition – named for the governor's proposed capital plan – has been touring the state since February, led by Southern Illinois University President and former congressman Glenn Poshard, and former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert. In a recent article in the Southern Illinoisan, Poshard was quoted as stating, "If we want a capital bill, then somebody's got to say, 'Here are the tough choices and here's what we recommend.'" MPC couldn't agree more and will only support a capital investment package with an objective, criteria-driven system for making those difficult, but necessary decisions about which Illinois transportation projects deserve taxpayer dollars.

The Illinois Works Coalition will host a listening session in Geneva , Ill. , on Monday, April 28, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit the Illinois Works Coalition Web site, or contact Michael McLaughlin, MPC Director of Regional Policy & Transportation, at 312-863-6022 or mmclaughlin@metroplanning.org.

Near West Communities Invited to Help Plan Retail, Transportation Access

The Near West Task Force of Reconnecting Neighborhoods, a community planning process that will result in recommendations for enhanced transit services, retail, and improved public infrastructure in three Chicago neighborhoods, invites Near West Side community members to a public meeting on Monday, April 28 , from 5:30 to 7 p.m., at the "Major" Adams Community Committee Center, 125 N. Hoyne Ave., Chicago, to learn more about transportation and retail amenities in and around the Westhaven Park neighborhood, and to voice their opinions about how to make their neighborhood more convenient and vibrant.

The project is being led by the City of Chicago Dept. of Planning and Development, with support from the Regional Transportation Authority, MPC, and HNTB, a firm handling the project's technical work and research. For more information, visit the Reconnecting Neighborhoods Web site, or contact MPC Reconnecting Neighborhoods Manager Brandon Johnson, 312-863-6046 or bjohnson@metroplanning.org.

Suburban Mayors Exploring Potential for Joint Affordable Housing Trust Fund

At a recent City Council meeting, the City of Lake Forest gave Mayor Mike Rummel the go-ahead to explore the creation of a joint affordable housing trust fund with the four neighboring towns of Deerfield, Highland Park , Highwood, and Northbrook. The proposal also was discussed at a recent Northbrook City Council meeting; and is up for consideration by Highland Park's City Council on Monday, May 12 , and by the other cities in the coming weeks. Mayors of Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Palatine and Rolling Meadows are leading a similar effort. While the concept is in its infancyin Illinois, LakeForest's City Council is enthusiastic about the potential benefits of the ARCH (A Regional Coalition for Housing) model, which in Washington state has created a partnership between 15 communities ensuring all of them have the staff capacity and funding needed to build and preserve workforce housing.

With gas prices and foreclosure rates skyrocketing, and poverty on the rise in suburban Chicago (as evidenced by a recent Heartland Alliance report), local leaders are recognizing they can relieve some of the economic burden on families by ensuring a range of homes at all price points are available, particularly in job-rich and transit-friendly communities. Mayors from the north and northwest suburbs have already seen the benefits of working collectively to solve local workforce housing shortages through the Charter One Workforce Housing Initiative, which is engaging employers in these towns in investing in employer-assisted housing and other workforce housing solutions. An interjurisdictional affordable housing trust fund could be the next step to helping even more people save money on housing, gas and other rapidly rising costs in metropolitan Chicago. For more information, contact MPC Vice President of Community Development Robin Snyderman, at 312-863-6007, or rsnyderman@metroplanning.org.

CPS Homebuyer Assistance Helps Chicago Teachers Defy Weak Housing Market

As foreclosure rates reach all-time highs in Chicago and across theU.S., the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Teacher Homebuyer Assistance Program is helping hundreds of teachers afford homes and avoid common pitfalls that can lead to foreclosure. CPS has confirmed that, despite the local and national downturn in the housing market, the number of teachers who have purchased homes through the program remained consistent in 2006 and 2007.

With support from the City ofChicago's Dept. of Housing, and Partnership for New Communities, the program helps teachers become stable homebuyers to achieve its main goal of improving teacher retention. According to CPS Teacher Housing Director Diana Johnson, "When launching this program in April of 2005, the Board of Education had found that if we could bridge teachers through their fifth year at CPS, then we'd have likely secured a career teacher."

To date, the program, available to some 24,400 teachers system wide, has helped 524 teachers better prepare for homeownership through downpayment assistance and homeownership counseling provided by Rogers Park Community Development Corporation (CDC). Consistent with the broader REACH Illinois employer-assisted housing initiative, this counseling "ensures that teachers not only understand the [homebuying] process, but also know how to protect themselves and their investment once they make a purchase," according to Caleb Sjoblom of Rogers Park CDC.

For more information on the CPS Teacher Homebuyer Assistance Program, or other REACH Illinois Employer-Assisted Housing (EAH) programs like it, please contact Jane Hornstein, MPC EAH consultant, at jhornstein@metroplanning.org or 312.863.6040.

Following the success of that event, MPC and the CAF joined forces again to co-host The Micro Revolution: Neighbors Making a Difference-Part 2, on Jan. 24, 2008, with a panel of parents and administrators who have worked to improve the quality and design of their community schools.     

The panel was moderated by Henry Webber, the vice president of community and government affairs at theUniversity of Chicago . The panelists were Mildred Swafford, president of Edward K. "Duke" Ellington Elementary School Local School Council (LSC); Linda Sarate, board member of the Little Village Community Development Corporation; Trung Le, design director of education at OWP/P; and Robert Guercio, principal of Alexander Graham Bell School in Lincoln Square. 

The panelists all stressed the importance different groups of people working together, and encouraged citizens to look for creative solutions to educational issues in their communities. 

Mr. Le described how he incorporates community participation and new technology to design schools around the way children learn.  Principal Guercio spoke about the parental and community involvement at his school. H e also encouraged educators not to blindly accept limitations, but rather engage students and community members to find innovative solutions to problems.  

Ms. Swafford and Ms. Sarate provided personal accounts of school reform in their communities.  Ms. Swafford described how she became involved in the LSC after witnessing the conditions of schools in her neighborhood.  Through her work, and by cooperation with neighbors and school administrators, Edward K. "Duke" Ellington Elementary School was built in 2005.  

Like Ms. Swafford, Ms. Sarate helped mobilize her community to fight for better schools for their children.  Thanks in part to her efforts, Little Village Lawndale High School was opened in 2005.   

Ms. Sarate summed up the message of the day by describing how, through a series of seemingly small steps, she "started to build momentum in a community that was tired of being disrespected and put aside…[I] helped the community to open their eyes and see what was going on." 

To listen to an audio recording of the event, please visit Chicago Amplified

The Micro-Revolution roundtables were generously supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.  For more information, please contact Peter Skosey, Vice President of External Relations, at 312-863-6004 or pskosey@metroplanning.org.

Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan announced a $180 million shortfall in the district's 2008-09 budget, after making $90 million worth of cuts.

A+ Illinois,the state'sleading advocate for school quality and funding reform, calls on state leaders to solve Illinois' school funding crisis with a new, sustainable source of revenue. Currently, Illinois provides less than one-third of school revenues, placing it 48th in the nation for the state's share of funding. Without new revenues, such as a modest increase in the state income tax, schools across Illinois will fall even further behind.

Chicago Schools Positioned for Major Quality Improvements

Despite the high percentage of families living in poverty, CPS students have made incredible progress in recent years, with the potential to achieve much more. There is a growing national consensus around research-proven practices that produce results in the classroom, such as longer school days and school years, after-school and summer-school programs, smaller class sizes in the early grades, and highly-qualified teachers and principals.

Chicago schools are ready to implement the practices to boost student achievement. But without a commitment of new resources from Springfield, these measures simply cannot be realized.

Illinois Soon to be Dead-Last in School Funding and Fairness

Illinois has consistently ranked 49th in the nation for its gap in resources between rich and poor students, and white and minority students, according to the Education Trust, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit.

And now New York-the only state ranking lower than Illinois-has taken action to reverse its funding disparities. In 2006, New York's legislature provided an unprecedented $7 billion increase in school funding over four years, targeting aid to the state's poorest districts. New York now holds individual districts more accountable for distributing additional resources to high-need, low-performing students and schools, and investing in practices proven to boost student achievement.

"The rest of the world will not wait for Illinois to get its act together," said Mary Ellen Guest, A+ Illinois campaign manager. "In a few short years, today's schoolchildren will be asked to compete globally for the high-tech jobs of the new economy. Will they be prepared?"

Guest urged Gov. Blagojevich and the General Assembly to find additional, long-term revenues for schools, such as a modest increase in the state income tax. "The stakes are simply too high for Illinois to deny any student the opportunity to succeed," she added.

A+ Illinois is a coalition of over 50,000 individuals and 500 organizations working to improve the quality and funding of all Illinois schools.

For more information, please contact:Mary Ellen Guest, A+ Illinois Campaign Manager, at 312-513-6022 (cell) or meguest@aplusillinois.org, orClare Fauke, A+ Illinois Communications Director, at 312-802-2302 (cell) or cfauke@aplusillinois.org.

In 2008, MPC will focus on advancing policies that:

• increase transportation options– including walking, riding bikes, and taking transit – for residents and businesses across metropolitan Chicago, both to reduce congestion and curb emissions;
• create more great places in Illinois by identifying and promotinglow-cost, but highly effective strategies to improve planning efforts at the local, regional and state level; and
• engage the private sector in financing innovations that will serve and stabilize thelocal workforce, including affordable housing and transportation options.

Policy proposals set forth by MPC are built on a foundation of consensus-building. By partnering with civic organizations, community groups, business leaders, and government agencies during all three stages of policy development – research, advocacy and implementation – MPC for decadeshasbeen an effective agent for regional policy change.

For more information about MPC's Policy Agenda - Opportunity Knocks , contact Peter Skosey, vice president of external relations, at (312) 863-6004 or pskosey@metroplanning.org.

A+ Illinois, the state's leading campaign for improved school quality and funding, will hold a series of public candidate forums to learn what General Assembly hopefuls can do for Illinois' schools. The campaign will hold nine publicforums across the state, from Peoria to Chicago to north suburban Lake County.

"Will our next state leaders provide Illinois schoolchildren the opportunity to succeed in life and compete in the global economy?" asked A+ Illinois Campaign Manager Mary Ellen Guest. "Now is the time to find out where candidates stand on the most important issues facing our state."

In addition, A+ Illinois distributed questionnaires to all candidates for Illinois General Assembly. To read the

A+ Illinois distributed questionnaires to all candidates for Illinois General Assembly. To read the www.aplusillinois.org.

Spread the word! Download a FLYER announcing A+ Illinois' 2008 candidate forums.

CHICAGO AND NEAR SUBURBS:

Chicago West:
Senate District 5, House District 9 & 10
North Lawndale College Prep High School
1613 S. Christiana, Chicago
January 15 at 6:00 pm

Chicago South:
House District 26
Dr. Martin Luther King High School
4445 S. Drexel Blvd., Chicago
January 16 at 6:00 pm

Chicago South:
Senate District 3, House District 5 & 6
Chicago Urban League
4510 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago
January 23 at 6:00 pm

Chicago Far South:
House Districts 27 & 28
Morgan Park High School
1744 W. Pryor Ave.,
Chicago January 24, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Contact: Tanya Iida at (773) 575-3564, or tiida@aplusillinois.org

Chicago Near Northwest:
Senate District 2
Erie Neighborhood House
1347 W. Erie St., Chicago
January 22 at 6:30 pm
Contact: Vince Casillas, (312) 623-0131 or vcasillas@aplusillinois.org

NORTHWEST COOK/ DUPAGE COUNTY:

House Districts 56 & 66
Hoffman Estates Park District
1685 W. Higgins Rd., Hoffman Estates
January 17 at 7:00 pm
Contact: Laurel Bault, (630) 484-4874, or lbault@aplusillinois.org

AURORA (KANE & KENDALL COUNTIES):

House District 50
Prisco Center
150 Illinois Rd.
Aurora
January 15 at 7:00 pm
Contact: Laurel Bault, (630) 484-4874, or lbault@aplusillinois.org

NORTH SUBURBAN LAKE COUNTY:

House District 60
Greenbelt Cultural Center
1215 Green Bay Rd , North Chicago
January 16 at 6:00 pm
Contact: Vince Casillas, (312) 623-0131 or vcasillas@aplusillinois.org

CENTRAL ILLINOIS-PEORIA:

House Districts 91 & 92
Peoria Public Library
107 NE Monroe, downtown Peoria
January 17 at 6:30 pm
Contact Chris Butler, (312) 402-2204, or cbutler@aplusillinois.org

"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 forChicago. 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 forChicago'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 ourregion's greatestnatural 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 economicdevelopment in Northwest Indiana," said U.S. Rep. Visclosky. "I applaud the lakefront citiesof EastChicago, 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 ofPortage, 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.

As Chicago pursues its Olympics bid, MPC's Luncheon will highlight the legacy opportunities the Olympics can bring to elevate our region's world-class status and economic competitiveness. Our Keynote Speaker, Rt. Hon. Tessa Jowell, MP Minister for the Olympics and London, oversees the Government Olympic Executive and chairs the Olympic Board and will speak to the great opportunity an Olympics bid can have to invest in a city's infrastructure and economy.

WHEN: Thursday, November 29, 2007 11:00 – 11:45 Reception 12:00 – 1:45 Luncheon and Program

WHERE: Grand Ballroom ( East Tower ) Hyatt Regency Chicago 151 East Wacker Drive

As our only fund raising event each year, the Annual Meeting Luncheon provides important financial support for Council programs. With the large cross section of almost 2,000 corporate, civic, government and community leaders and the wide media coverage this event attracts, it is a great opportunity forward to learning valuable lessons about legacy planning from London's experience.

General admission is $150 per ticket and $1,500 per table. Sponsorship tickets and tables are priced from $500 to $25,000. Download an advanced registration form describing table options and benefits at each level or call 312-553-2000 for purchase information.

For over 30 years, Illinois leaders have debated how to properly fund education to ensure a quality education for all children no matter where they live. Through economic boom and bust, school districts with inadequate resources have been unable to provide the level of education that more prosperous districts provide. Areas with high property tax rates have struggled to attract investment from businesses and homeowners. During this time, some schools have fallen chronically short of state learning standards, often the very same ones without local tax base to support their schools. The state's fiscal position also has deteriorated, especially in regards to its unfunded pension liability.

Two detailed pieces of legislation have been proposed to address these challenges: Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), embodying Gov. Rod Blagojevich's FY 2008 Budget Proposal, and House Bill 750 (HB 750). While there are significant differences between the two packages, there are common aspects that meet several principles MPC and A+ Illinois have long supported. Both packages aim to:

• provide adequate support for quality education in all areas of the state;
• secure a sound, stable source of revenues; and
• address weaknesses in the state's unfair property tax system.

MPC recommends the following principles be used for developing a hybrid plan that will enhance accountability, raise sufficient revenues fairly across taxpayers, improve the system to address fu ndamental weaknesses, and provide long-term changes to assure lasting reforms (see table on page 6 of the full report):

1. Invest in education and targeted property tax relief.

• Fully fund General State Aid (GSA) to meet the Education Funding Advisory Board's recommendations for a minimum foundation level of $6,405 per student. The $828 million as proposed by SB 1 is a good start for FY 2008, to be phased up to $2.2 billion by FY 2011 to meet the target, adjusted for inflation.
• Raise state support for special education, targeted intervention strategies, early childhood education, and teacher mentoring and induction programs to implement proven strategies on a scale that will improve the level of education for all children.
• Invest in capital needs of schools – by building new schools and updating older schools.
• Provide $1.2 billion in targeted property tax relief through a flat grant to the top third of wealthiest areas, and a much greater reduction (up to 50 percent of education related property taxes) for distressed areas of the state.

2. Base the funding reform on the state income tax. It is the broadest tax available, is transparent, and closely matches ability to pay. There are also mechanisms to protect working families from increases in the income tax:

• Raise the personal exemption to $4,000 (double the current $2,000 level; $1.2billion credit).
• Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to 30 percent of the federal level ($424 million credit).
• Consider a child tax credit of 20 percent of the federal credit ($318 million credit).

With a 5 percent income tax rate and the above credits to prevent increased taxes on working families, the net change would be $2.66 billion in the first year and $5.64 billion once fully phased-in.

In order to cover education reform and property tax relief, the total increase of the corporate income tax would be $475 million in the first year, and $1 billion when fully phased-in.

3. Share tax burdens across all classes of taxpayers. Businesses need to be part of the solution, but relying on one single group of taxpayers to shoulder the entire burden (as proposed by SB 1) would harm Illinois' ability to retain jobs.

• Because the Governor's Office has not released data necessary to determine how to it calculated the expected GRT revenues, MPC has not been able to recommend a modified formula. However, a combination of deducting input expenses (essentially by implementing a value added tax rather than gross receipts) and utilizing a rate far lower than has been proposed by the governor and SB 1, could yield the $800 million goal. Such a proposal would need to allow a deduction of the corporate income tax on the value added tax, or vice versa, to be constitutional in Illinois .
• MPC has serious concerns regarding the cost of projected growth of proposed health crae benefits over the next four years. Natural growth of new revenues will not be sufficient to cover the Governor's projected $3.7 billion in new costs by FY 2011.

4. Adopt reform measures to ensure new revenues are well spent.

• Improve the quality and dissemination of student achievement data to make informed decisions on support systems and interventions that are needed in the state.
• Improve systems, invest in, and regularly evaluate teacher and administrator supports, including mentoring and induction support systems programs.
• Improve school spending financial systems and transparency as recommended in "Strengthening the Financial Accountability of Illinois School Districts " by the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.
• Reduce pension debt by both implementing reforms as recommended by the 2005 Governor's Pension Reform Commission and other fiscally sound reforms, and by determining ways to pay down the debt, including considering the benefits versus costs of leasing the lottery and a pension obligation bond.

Addressing the state's education funding, property tax and pension liabili ty crises are extremely important for Illinois ' students, families and communities. The reforms proposed by the Metropolitan Planning Council will put the state on more solid fiscal footing and reduce the need to find cuts each year to pay for existing obligations. There are other issues that will also need to be addressed in the near future, including a long-term state capital plan that puts a strong emphasis on transit, housing investments, and infrastructure needs tied to smart planning decisions.

Yet another critical element to address in this year's State budget is the dire need of transit operating revenues, particularly for the Regional Transportation Authority. The RTA needs state authorization of $280 million from the northeastern Illinois region and a continuation of $70 million of state funding to address critical operating needs for CTA, Metra and Pace. Several additional sources of funding are being debated for this purpose and MPC is strongly supportive of the General Assembly reaching consensus on this budget to address transit operating needs. These options include increasing the sales tax rate in the RTA service area, including consumer services in the sales tax; and fees on parking facilities and congestion pricing on toll roads to encourage transit.

The reforms summarized in this report are not the only solutions. However, they do illustrate the state has workable solutions that meet revenue needs, are responsive to taxpayer fairness, and will result in tangible outcomes in Illinois for years to come.

Click here to read the full report.

"Unless legislators reject this do-nothing budget, people across the region will feel the pinch of reduced transit service, and Illinois children will continue to struggle to learn in overcrowded classrooms with outdated textbooks," said MPC President MarySueBarrett. "A no-growth budget means our lawmakers lack the political courage to do what they know is right."

If the Illinois General Assembly fails to approve a funding source to cover transit operating needs – a modest regional sales tax increase has been proposed as the most sustainable solution – the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) reports it will need to suspend 39 bus routes, increase fares by $.25 to $1.25, lay off 700 workers, defer $57 million of capital spending to operations, and reduce overall service by 8 percent. This scenario is a scaled-back version of the CTA's original doomsday scenario, but the agency estimates it will still cause some 100,000 weekday riders to abandon the system.

"Driving downtown during rush hour is like trying to sprint in a swimming pool. Imagine what it will be like with an additional 100,000 drivers on the roads," said Barrett. "Our region is growing. We're vying for the Olympics with world-class cities like Madrid, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro. And we're competing economically with our counterparts nationwide. At a time when we should be growing our transit system, it's unacceptable that we're considering shrinking it."

The majority of Illinois voters have reacted favorably to a proposed income tax increase that would provide adequate funding for programs proven to improve school performance. Yet a no-growth budget scenario would earmark just enough to allow the state's public schools to limp to next year, without implementing improvements or significantly addressing shortfalls like overcrowded classrooms and crumbling school buildings.

"The research has been done to show what Illinois schools need to prepare our children for the future. A progressive solution is on the table," said Barrett."We urge the governor and state lawmakers to reject a budget that leaves Illinois schools behind."

"It would be foolish to roll the dice when it comes to funding our most basic needs. Gaming revenues are not a sure bet," said MPC President MarySue Barrett. "We cannot afford the possibility of our transit system shutting down or our schools not being able to afford to prepare our children for the future workforce. We must identify long-term funding sources for these essentials."

If lawmakers instead rubber-stamp quick funding fixes, Illinois will lack the same basics next year and the year after next. "Gaming may seem like a way out this year, but we'll be faced with the same unmet needs in a matter of months," she said.

Barrett added that a modest regional sales tax increase – the first since 1983 – is a logical tax to fund operating expenses for the region's public transportation system; and that raising the state income tax to fund public schools – while protecting low-income families – is the most progressive solution.

"Sustainable, appropriate solutions are on the table," said Barrett. "We urge the governor and state lawmakers to pass a budget based on sound policies that stand the test of time."

It won't be decorated with gold flakes or presented on a Swarovski-studded platter, but the $2 billion brownie available at this Thursday's "Billion Dollar Bake Sale" at the State Capitol will be loaded with more than chocolatey goodness: students, parents and educators will be "selling" the brownie and other high-priced pastries to send lawmakers the message that education takes a serious investment, not pocket change.

In addition to brownies with $2 billion price tags – equivalent to the cost of fully funding the per-pupil spending amount recommended by the state's Education Funding Advisory Board – hungry legislators will be able to "buy" cookies for $498 million, the state's share of special education needs. Students from schools across the state will deliver these and other treats to lawmakers' offices. A+ Illinois, a coalition advocating for comprehensive, statewide school funding reform, is organizing the bake sale as part of its ongoing campaign to urge elected officials to reach consensus on a budget that will support public schools not only for FY08, but for the long term.

The "Billion Dollar Bake Sale" will be held in the State Capitol Rotunda on Thursday, July 19, and feature a news conference at 11 a.m., as the Illinois Senate convenes a set of daily hearings on such issues as education spending, special education costs, and improving student achievement through quality and accountability standards.

For more information concerning A+ Illinois' efforts and recommendations, please contact Clare Fauke, A+ Illinois communications coordinator, at 312.863.6012. Learn more about A+ Illinois on the campaign's Web site .

Playbook for Redeveloping Joliet 's 4 th and 5 th District's now Available

Joliet makes headlines year after year as one of the nation's fastest-growing cities. While many working families are flocking to Joliet's expanding West Side – due in part to Will County's booming distribution and logistics industry – neighborhoods on the city's East Side, Joliet's historic core, have yet to fully recover from major industrial and retail losses and a stagnant housing market. The good news is these communities, home to some 81,000 residents, are close to having a comprehensive reinvestment plan, now available in draft form on the City of Joliet 's Web site .

The draft Joliet Quality of Life Plan is the result of a community-led process advised by a team of consultants and nonprofit planners, including MPC's Community Building Initiative . Unwilling to stand by and watch their neighborhoods decline, concerned citizensin Joliet's 4 thand 5 th districts formed the Quality of Life Task Force. In partnership with the Cityof Joliet, the task force invited MPC to develop recommendations for housing and retail opportunities on the city's EastSide; the Center for Neighborhood Technology to examine transportation and industrial development; Teska Associates, Inc., to provide recreation and land use counsel; and Partec Consulting Group to offer expertise on education and social services.

The draft Quality of Life Plan provides detailed recommendations in each of these areas, and offers valuable data about Joliet's downtown and East Side communities, including supply and demand trends. For example, East Side residents spend $600 million each year outside their neighborhood for key consumer needs, demonstrating enormous purchasing power and retail development opportunity in the community. Overwhelmingly, the consultant team agreed that the plan's success depends on a successful ongoing partnership between the community and the city, perhaps by creating a community development corporation for Joliet 's East Side.

For more information on the Joliet Quality of Life Plan Executive Summary, contact Joanna Trotter, manager of MPC's Community Building Initiative, at 312.863.6008.

Meet the MPC Staff:
MPC's Michael McLaughlin Brings D.C. Experience to Local Transportation Issues

After spending more than 10 years in the nation's capitol as a top transportation advisor to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and chief of staff to former U.S. Rep. Bill Lipinski (D-Ill.), Michael McLaughlin , a nativeof LaGrange,Ill., returned to the Chicago region in February to join MPC as Transportation Director. McLaughlin is no stranger to regional and state transportation issues: in 2002, he coordinated the Transportation Transition Team for then-Governor-Elect Rod R. Blagojevich, and he's well-steeped in transit funding and planning policy, Amtrak and aviation issues, and freight rail concerns.

McLaughlin's appreciation for the people of metropolitan Chicago and a desire to "see how the non-governmental process" informs transportation policymaking led to his return to the region. "Learning new things and coming up with innovative ways to solve transportation problems" is what McLaughlin says he enjoys most about his current role with MPC.

McLaughlin earned his bachelor's degree in political science and history from the Universityof Iowa , and a master's degree in public affairs atIndiana University. His favorite Metra stop: "Easy. That's theLaG range Road stop where I get on and off the train every day. The stop and the nearby restaurants, outdoor cafes, and shops are a great example of harmony between transit and the community," he says, adding that he bikes to the station most days.

For tips, information and background on Chicago-area transportation issues, contact Michael McLaughlin, MPC transportation director, at 312.863.6022.

Learn more by contacting Mandy Burrell, MPC communications associate, at 312.863.6018, or by visiting MPC's Web site. 

For over 30 years, Illinois leaders have debated how to properly fund education to ensure a quality education for all children no matter where they live. Through economic boom and bust, school districts with inadequate resources have been unable to provide the level of education that more prosperous districts provide. Areas with high property tax rates have struggled to attract investment from businesses and homeowners. During this time, some schools have fallen chronically short of state learning standards, often the very same ones without local tax base to support their schools. The state's fiscal position also has deteriorated, especially in regards to its unfunded pension liability.

Two detailed pieces of legislation have been proposed to address these challenges: Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), embodying Gov. Rod Blagojevich's FY 2008 Budget Proposal, and House Bill 750 (HB 750). While there are significant differences between the two packages, there are common aspects that meet several principles MPC and A+ Illinois have long supported. Both packages aim to:

• provide adequate support for quality education in all areas of the state;
• secure a sound, stable source of revenues; and
• address weaknesses in the state's unfair property tax system.

MPC recommends the following principles be used for developing a hybrid plan that will enhance accountability, raise sufficient revenues fairly across taxpayers, improve the system to address fu ndamental weaknesses, and providelong-term changes to assure lasting reforms (see table on page 6 of the full report):

1. Invest in education and targeted property tax relief.

• Fully fund General State Aid (GSA) to meet the Education Funding Advisory Board's recommendations for a minimum foundation level of $6,405 per student. The $828 million as proposed by SB 1 is a good start for FY 2008, to be phased up to $2.2 billion by FY 2011 to meet the target, adjusted for inflation.
• Raise state support for special education, targeted intervention strategies, early childhood education, and teacher mentoring and induction programs to implement proven strategies on a scale that will improve the level of education for all children.
• Invest in capital needs of schools – by building new schools and updating older schools.
• Provide $1.2 billion in targeted property tax relief through a flat grant to the top third of wealthiest areas, and a much greater reduction (up to 50 percent of education related property taxes) for distressed areas of the state.

2. Base the funding reform on the state income tax. It is the broadest tax available, is transparent, and closely matches ability to pay. There are also mechanisms to protect working families from increases in the income tax:

• Raise the personal exemption to $4,000 (double the current $2,000 level; $1.2billion credit).
• Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to 30 percent of the federal level ($424 million credit).
• Consider a child tax credit of 20 percent of the federal credit ($318 million credit).

With a 5 percent income tax rate and the above credits to prevent increased taxes on working families, the net change would be $2.66 billion in the first year and $5.64 billion once fully phased-in.

In order to cover education reform and property tax relief, the total increase of the corporate income tax would be $475 million in the first year, and $1 billion when fully phased-in.

3. Share tax burdens across all classes of taxpayers. Businesses need to be part of the solution, but relying on one single group of taxpayers to shoulder the entire burden (as proposed by SB 1) would harmIllinois' ability to retain jobs.

• Because the Governor's Office has not released data necessary to determine how to it calculated the expected GRT revenues, MPC has not been able to recommend a modified formula. However, a combination of deducting input expenses (essentially by implementing a value added tax rather than gross receipts) and utilizing a rate far lower than has been proposed by the governor and SB 1, could yield the $800 million goal. Such a proposal would need to allow a deduction of the corporate income tax on the value added tax, or vice versa, to be constitutional in Illinois .
• MPC has serious concerns regarding the cost of projected growth of proposed health crae benefits over the next four years. Natural growth of new revenues will not be sufficient to cover the Governor's projected $3.7 billion in new costs by FY 2011.

4. Adopt reform measures to ensure new revenues are well spent.

• Improve the quality and dissemination of student achievement data to make informed decisions on support systems and interventions that are needed in the state.
• Improve systems, invest in, and regularly evaluate teacher and administrator supports, including mentoring and induction support systems programs.
• Improve school spending financial systems and transparency as recommended in "Strengthening the Financial Accountability of Illinois School Districts " by the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.
• Reduce pension debt by both implementing reforms as recommended by the 2005 Governor's Pension Reform Commission and other fiscally sound reforms, and by determining ways to pay down the debt, including considering the benefits versus costs of leasing the lottery and a pension obligation bond.

Addressing the state's education funding, property tax and pension liability crises are extremely important for Illinois' students, families and communities. The reforms proposed by the Metropolitan Planning Council will put the state on more solid fiscal footing and reduce the need to find cuts each year to pay for existing obligations. There are other issues that will also need to be addressed in the near future, including a long-term state capital plan that puts a strong emphasis on transit, housing investments, and infrastructure needs tied to smart planning decisions.

Yet another critical element to address in this year's State budget is the dire need of transit operating revenues, particularly for the Regional Transportation Authority. The RTA needs state authorization of $280 million from the northeastern Illinois region and a continuation of $70 million of state funding to address critical operating needs for CTA, Metra and Pace. Several additional sources of funding are being debated for this purpose and MPC is strongly supportive of the General Assembly reaching consensus on this budget to address transit operating needs. These options include increasing the sales tax rate in the RTA service area, including consumer services in the sales tax; and fees on parking facilities and congestion pricing on toll roads to encourage transit.

The reforms summarized in this report are not the only solutions. However, they do illustrate the state has workable solutions that meet revenue needs, are responsive to taxpayer fairness, and will result in tangible outcomes in Illinois for years to come.

Click here to read the full report.

MPC released its plan today, embargoed until the morning of Thursday, May 24, 2007.

The MPC proposal would achieve the goals shared by plans being debated inSpringfield, Senate Bill 1 and House Bill 750, both of which would provide adequate funding for all Illinois schools and property tax relief. Debate over these bills has stalled, with just two weeks until the Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn, because legislators are struggling to see the fairness in either bill's funding stream.

Because the cost of doing nothing is too great, MPC recommends legislators adopt its compromise proposal, which more evenly and fairly distributes the tax burden across all classes of taxpayers. The MPC plan would:

• provide $2 billion in FY 08 to bring all schools to the recommended per-pupil funding minimum, plus $650 million for school construction and maintenance;
• provide $1.2 billion in targeted property tax relief to distressed communities;
• expand personal exemptions and child credits so that working families won't pay more;
• make business part of the solution, without overburdening employers to fund state needs.

MPC's revenue plan complements the school quality and fiscal accountability plan released on Monday by a group of civic, business and education leaders, including A+ Illinois – another sign that advocates are working together with legislators to close in on a compromise.

MPC strongly supports the General Assembly reaching consensus on this budget in order to address other pressing needs, including funding to support transit operating and capital needs in metropolitan Chicago.

The Metropolitan Planning Council's complete revenue plan is available on an embargoed basis on the MPC Web site. For more information, contact MPC Communications Associate Mandy Burrell , at 312-863-6018 (office), 773-640-1206 (cell), or mburrell@metroplanning.org.

On May 2, over 10,000 education supporters descended on Springfield to demand school funding reform this year. With signs reading, "The Time is Now!" and "Invest in Excellence," the marchers sent a clear message that lawmakers need to make fixing Illinois' school funding and fiscal crises their top priority.

Students, teachers, parents and seniors marched from the Springfield Convention Center to the steps of Illinois state capitol. At the foot of the Abraham Lincoln statue, the marchers heard from education and community leaders about the need for immediate action.

After the rally, many participants headed into the capitol building to ask their own senators and representatives what they would do this year for school funding reform. "The 2007 legislative session presents an historic opportunity for our state leaders to finally fix Illinois' school funding and fiscal crises," said Mary Ellen Guest, A+ Illinois campaign manager. "Illinois schools and families have waited long enough -- the time for reform is now!"

To see more photos from the May 1, 2007 rally, visit the A+ Illinois Web site.

"For years, we've called for meaningful school funding and accountability reforms to ensure all Illinois schoolchildren receive a quality education," said Scott Goldstein, MPC vice president of policy and planning. "The governor's Helping Kids Learn plan is a far-reaching proposal that targets significant new state revenues to proven methods for bringing Illinois' public school system from where it is – a system that struggles to adequately educate Illinois students – to where it needs to be – one that prepares all of our children to compete in the global economy."

While preparing Illinois' future workforce is key to a healthy statewide economy, so, too, is breaking the decades-old cycle of disinvestment that plagues too many Illinois communities. The Metropolitan Planning Council urges state leaders to include property tax reform in the final budget, to ensure communities like Harvey – where property taxes are four times higher for homeowners and nine times higher for commercial properties than the national average – can compete for new business investment and homeowners.

"Only targeted property tax reform will put distressed Illinois communities on a level playing field to attract jobs and tax revenue to support their schools in the long term," added Goldstein.

The Council still believes that an increase to the personal and corporate income tax and a broadening of the sales tax would be the best way to fund education. The state's long-term economic well-being also drives MPC's concerns about the gross receipts tax as a revenue source for funding schools. The "devil will be in the details" to ensure that a gross receipts tax does not create new problems that will hamper economic development and job growth inIllinois.

"We have called for elected officials to put solutions on the table," said Goldstein. "We look forward to working with the governor and other elected officials to improve upon this plan and finally enact reforms that are sorely needed inIllinois."

Fewer apartments, rising housing costs, and slow job growth are among the reasons why a growing number of working people can't afford a home in metropolitan Chicago. Ever wonder who is being priced out of homes in your coverage area? MPC can provide data showing actual wages for key sectors of your local workforce – such as teachers, medical professionals, and, ahem, journalists – and what their wages would need to be to afford to live near where they work.

Among our findings:

• Though our region's population is growing, jobs are not being created in Kane, Lake, McHenry or Will counties at a rate proportional to population growth.
• As more people move into the edges of the six-county region, rental opportunities – like job opportunities – are slow to follow.
• Medical assistants, firefighters, preschool teachers, and journalists are among the many workers forced to pay more than the recommended 30 percent of their incomes on housing.

Data on local wages and housing costs is available for communities in DuPage, Kane,Lake, McHenry and Will counties.

MPC contact: Josh Ellis, Community Development Associate, 312 .863.6045, jellis@metroplanning.org

Meet the MPC Staff
MPC's Scott Goldstein Helps Improve Communities through Policies and Practice

Whether your community is weathering school funding concerns, a population influx, economic instability, protection of critical water resources, or broadband technology issues, Scott Goldstein, MPC vice president of policy and planning, can provide expertise on community development trends.

The Chicago-area native and father of two has experience working both at the policy level and on the ground with a range of local communities to improve economic development and quality of life. His current responsibilities include developing policy recommendations for the A+ Illinois campaign for school funding and tax reform, and guiding the Campaign for Sensible Growth and Community Building Initiative. After 12 years with MPC, he says he most appreciates the opportunity to improve public policy at a broad level, but is most proud of assisting the ongoing economic and physical transformation of south suburban Riverdale, where nearly all of MPC's policies are coming into play.

Goldstein serves as the public policy chair for ULI Chicago and is a member of Mayor Daley's Digital Divide Advisory Committee. He led the passage of stormwater management and local planning legislationin Illinois. Goldstein received a master's degree in urban planning from Columbia University in New York and began his career with Banana Kelly, a leading community development corporation in the South Bronx in New YorkCity.

MPC contact: Scott Goldstein, Vice President of Policy and Planning, 312.863.6003, sgoldstein@metroplanning.org

Learn Why Street Design Matters at March 15 MPC Roundtable Luncheon

Chicago and other global cities suchas NewYork City,London, Paris, Copenhagen and Shanghai have begun to dramatically rethink the design of their streets and public squares. FromChicago's Ogden Avenue to the Paris Plage, city streets are being transformed from throughways to popular places for residents and visitors to shop, eat, meet, greet and relax. The Metropolitan Planning Council and the Chicago Architecture Foundation will co-host a roundtable on Thursday, March 15, from noon to 1:30 p.m., featuring local and national experts discussing what it takes to turn ho-hum streets into desirable neighborhood destinations.

"If you plan cities for cars and traffic, you get cars and traffic. If you plan for people and places, you get people and places," says Fred Kent, founder and president of Project for Public Spaces, a New York City-based nonprofit that has helped some 1,500 communities in the U.S. and around the world turn their public spaces into vital community places. Kent will be a featured speaker at the event, along with Cheri Heramb, acting commissioner of the Chicago Dept. of Transportation.

The lunchtime event takes place at the Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, in The John Buck Company Lecture Hall. Media may attend at no cost, but registration is appreciated to plan for lunch. For complete details, including a full speaker lineup and standard registration and costs, visit MPC's Web calendar.

MPC contact: Kit Hodge, Associate, 312.863.6044, khodge@metroplanning.org

Retail 1-2-3 Teaches Communities the A-B-Cs of Retail Development

Most communities have wished that the solution to their respective retail development needs were as easy as the Jackson 5's platinum hit, "ABC." Of course, they rarely are. That's why the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) teamed up with the Campaign for Sensible Growth, International Council of Shopping Centers, and Metropolitan Mayors Caucus to produce a new retail development workbook.

Retail 1-2-3: A Workbook for Local Officials and Community Leaders provides local communities with case studies, market-based financing options, examples of what developers look for in a project and other factors to consider when faced with a retail development challenge. Many local and regional retail "wins" are featured in theworkbook, including Elmhurst,Tinley Park, Marengo, Andersonville, andLockport. The book also explains how successful communities are making "the shopping experience," "big box," and "lifestyle center" part of their lexicon, while experimenting with new retail trends such as mixed-use development.

At events in Tinley Park on April 4, Waukegan on April 9, Elmhurst on April 10, and Des Plaines on April 17, participants will learn how Retail 1-2-3 can help them achieve retail success in their communities. For more information, check MPC's Web calendar, or contact Josh Ellis.

MPC contact: Josh Ellis, Community Development Associate, 312.863.6045, jellis@metroplanning.org
Contact: Mike Davidson, Manager, Campaign for Sensible Growth, 312.863.6009, mdavidson@growingsensibly.org

State of Affairs: By now, the debate in urban, suburban and rural communities across the state isn't whether we should fix Illinois ' broken school funding system; it's how. The Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC), a leading member of the A+ Illinois statewide campaign for school funding and property tax reform, strongly recommends that property tax relief be a major component of the overall reform package.

For decades, the State of Illinois has been shirking its school-funding responsibilities and looking to local property taxpayers to make up the difference. The Illinois Constitution assigns the state primary responsibility for funding schools; yet, on average, state revenues account for just 36 percent of total school spending, compared with the national average of 50 percent.

The state's over-reliance on property taxes to fund education is hurting property owners, students, communities, and Illinois ' economic competitiveness:

• The system unfairly sticks property taxpayers with shouldering what is rightfully the state's responsibility for funding schools; it has driven Illinois state property taxes, as a percentage of personal income, to the 10 th highest in the nation.
• Illinois has the nation's second largest funding gap between property poor and property wealthy school districts. This spending gap parallels student achievement gaps: the 2005 nation's report card singled out Illinois for having the nation's worst achievement gap between its richest and poorest students – proving at the fundamental level, money really does matter.
• Illinois ' extreme over-reliance on property taxes is leading to economic disinvestment in many communities. Most local leaders realize encouraging business development is vital to generate the necessary property tax revenues to fund schools. Yet commercial and industrial property taxpayers in Illinois , especially in Cook County , pay far higher property taxes than in neighboring states, to help generate revenues for local schools: for instance, property taxes in local communities like Chicago Heights are seven times higher than average industrial properties nationwide. In many areas, this is stymieing economic development.
• Illinois' ability to compete in an increasingly global economy depends not only upon the economic muscle of the Chicago metropolitan region, but also upon a skilled, trained workforce. Illinois' over-reliance on property taxes is forcing schools to make due with less than they need to provide a quality education – eliminating AP courses, increasing class sizes, cutting teaching positions – and cheating our students out of the knowledge and skills they need to be prepared for the jobs of tomorrow.

Solution: If the state's abysmal financial state has a silver lining, it's that it is creating a perfect storm for major systemic change in 2007. The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago released a study in December 2006 warning Illinois' massive and growing debt is sending our state spiraling toward a "financial implosion." The study prescribes cutting spending growth, boosting income taxes, and broadening the sales tax to generate additional revenues for currently underfunded state pensions, healthcare costs, and education.

MPC and A+ Illinois agree with the Civic Committee's thorough assessment, but would add that property tax reform is critical, especially for distressed areas.

Property taxes for school funding should be replaced by transparent, guaranteed funding from the state. The mechanism for reducing property taxes recommended by previous reform efforts and by the state's own Education Funding Advisory Board (appointed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich) is a percentage rebate funded by the state and passed on directly to taxpayers on their property tax bills. Any rebate system must ensure there are no cuts in funding to local school districts and create a direct accountability system between voters and the state legislature.

Property tax reform should result in both guaranteed, across-the-board relief, as well as targeted, additional relief for distressed communities. It is only by leveling the playing field by bringing the property tax burden down in distressed areas that they will be able to attract increased investment by businesses and homebuyers, who will in turn be able to support their local schools.

Key Legislative Priorities:

During the November 2006 veto session, a group of state legislators formed an Education Caucus, pledging to make education funding a top priority during the 95th General Assembly. Legislators from both chambers, both sides of the aisle, and across the state are participating in the caucus. Among them are:

• Rep. Bob Pritchard (R- Sycamore), Chair of Legislative Education Caucus, member of House Education Committee
• Rep. Roger Eddy (R- Hutsonville), school superintendent, member of Education Caucus
• Rep. David Miller ( D-Calumet City ), member of House Education Committee and Education Caucus
• Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D-Maywood), Chair of Senate Education Committee and member of Education Caucus

At the briefing, MPC senior staff members will provide background and forecasts for issues already capturing the attention of lawmakers, including school funding and property tax reform; public transportation funding; a new state capital investment package; sustainable land use planning; and workforce housing. Staff will discuss challenges facing key bills expected to be introduced, and identify lawmakers who are emerging as champions of these issues.

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 the promotion and implementation of sensible planning and development policies necessary for an economically competitive Chicago region.

What:
Media briefing hosted by MPC will outline key issues topping the state legislature's agenda for the95th Illinois General Assembly.

Who:
MarySue Barrett, MPC President
Scott Goldstein, MPC Vice President of Policy and Planning
Peter Skosey, MPC Vice President of External Relations
Robin Snyderman , MPC Housing Director

When:
Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2007
noon to 1:30 p.m.

Where:
Metropolitan Planning Council, 25 E. Washington St., Suite 1600, Chicago

All media are welcome to attend at no cost. Lunch will be provided.

Please register by contacting Mandy Burrell at 312-863-6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org.

In the grand tradition of holiday correspondence, we thought we'd share our '06 highlights – sort of like Aunt Martha's annual letter, with a twist: these stories don't drone on about us, the staff of the Metropolitan Planning Council. They feature the people whose lives we work to improve every day, through our efforts to increase the availability of affordable homes, expand and improve public transit, maintain our region's economic well-being, and ensure adequate funding for our schools. We hope you will consider covering regional trends from their perspective.

Regular Media Tips readers know we send four tips each month, featuring recent events, breakthroughs, and perspectives on the issues we care about. In 2007, look for revamped Media Tips, with more stories like the ones you're about to read, and profiles of local experts who can help you analyze trends when the news is breaking. Also, next time you're on deadline, visit MPC's new Online Newsroom, offering our latest media releases and reports, FAQs, and an expert guide.

Thanks to all of you who have called on MPC in the past year. We are glad to be a resource you can rely on, and we look forward to working with you in 2007!

First-Time Homebuyer Learns There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays

Like nearly half of all Americans, Dannetta Smith establishes personal goals at the start of each new year. What sets Dannetta apart is that she actually accomplished her 2006 New Year's resolution before 2007, when she purchased her first home this year.

The Park Forest resident's path to homeownership was rocky. But her resolve to provide a better life for her family, combined with an innovative homebuyer assistance program offered by her employer, St. James Hospital and Health Centers, helped Dannetta, 39, overcome financial and institutional obstacles that prevent millions of Americans from ever owning their own homes. By participating in the hospital's employer-assisted housing (EAH) program, Dannetta received invaluable homeownership counseling from the nonprofit Regional Redevelopment Corp., plus $5,000 in down payment assistance from St. James. This money leveraged an additional $8,000 in assistance from other public and private homeownership programs. St. James' EAH program made it possible for Dannetta, a lifelong renter who had been on public assistance for a decade, to buy a home five minutes from her job as a patient care coordinator at the hospital's Chicago Heights campus.

"[Becoming a homeowner] was a struggle, and the program was a lot of work, but I wanted to leave something for my children," said Smith, 39, who has two daughters, ages 21 and 15. "Now I know I can do all things if I stay focused."

MPC introduced EAH in our region and helps employers design EAH programs. Learn more about EAH in Illinois, including a list of 60-plus participating employers, at the REACH Illinois Web site. Contact MPC Communications Associate Mandy Burrell at 312-863-6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org to be connected with Dannetta, and others like her who purchased homes thanks to EAH programs.

Far Too Many Spinning Their Wheels Trying to Get Around the Region

As an Army officer inIraq, Donald Cole had no choice but to rise and shine for early morning wake-up calls. After his deployment ended in 2003, he looked forward to "sleeping in" – by a soldier's standards, letting the sun rise before you do.

Yet on this chilly morning, two hours before daylightdawns over Lake Michigan, Cole is awake. By 5:35 a.m., he's out the door, waiting to catch the #70 CTA bus. It's the first leg of his nearly two-and-a-half-hour daily commute from the apartment he shares with his wife,Anne, in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood, to his job at Federal Signal Corporation in south suburbanUniversity Park. Cole transfers from the bus to a Blue Line train headed for the Loop, where he catches a Metra train to UniversityPark. It's the end of the line for the train, but not for Cole: he hops into his car, which he keeps parked in the lot at the station, and drives five minutes to Federal Signal.

"There's no other way for me to get from the station to work," says Cole. "No Pace busses offer service. My company used to have a shuttle, but apparently they stopped it two years ago because only a few people were riding it."

Cole isn't alone. From passing up job offers to relocating to less desirable communities, families across the region are being forced to make disappointing tradeoffs to avoid the expense and stress of "extreme" commutes. Meanwhile, our transit service providers – Metra, Pace and the Chicago Transit Authority – are faced with shrinking budgets as they struggle to maintain and expand the rail lines and bus routes that serve our region's growing transportation needs. The Regional Transportation Authority and its partners in the "Moving Beyond Congestion" campaign (including MPC) are calling 2007 "The Year of Decision" for critical transit investments.

Securing funding is only half the battle: careful planning is required to make the most of these investments. At MPC, we will be seizing the spring legislative session as the opportunity to identify new revenues for maintaining and expanding our public transportation network, and improving land use planning, so that people like Donald Cole can stop spinning their wheels. For more transportation-related tales from commuters, business leaders and community planners, contact MPC Communications Associate Mandy Burrell at 312-863-6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org .

Redevelopment Project Gives Couple the Greatest Gift of All: Self-Employment

Longtime Garfield Park resident Minnie Smith and her husband of 50 years, Joe, have fulfilled many of their dreams: they raised six children and ran a BBQrestaurant on Chicago's South Side, and Minnie serves as president of their block club and tends three community gardens in their West Side neighborhood. This summer, they celebrated their latest endeavor when the doors opened toGarfield Park's first and only coffee shop, Westside Coffee Express, at Lake and Pulaski in the BethelCenter.

"There used to be a restaurant on this corner, years ago, but it's long gone," said Minnie. "We didn't have any coffee places in our area, and everybody wanted a place where we could have meetings and get a cup of coffee. This is it."

Owning a business in Garfield Park is a dream Minnie and Joe say they couldn't have accomplished without help from Bethel New Life, Inc . Through the development of the Bethel Center – a "green-designed" building connected to the Green Line El station at Lake and Pulaski, with businesses such as Westside Coffee Express, a dry cleaner, daycare, Community Saving Center, and employment center – Bethel is helping many Garfield Parkers find better opportunities in their neighborhood.

Bethel Center – together with Parkside Estates, Bethel's affordable housing development two blocks away – connects jobs, places to shop, public transit, and affordable homes. Representing community planning at its best, this combined development earned Bethel New Life, Inc. MPC's 2006 Burnham Award for Excellence in Planning.

Across Chicagoland, new economic and residential development near transit, also known as transit-oriented development (TOD), is meeting the needs of many markets: Local businesses get a steady source of customers. Communities reap new tax revenues. Residents save money and time by not having to drive everywhere. And all taxpayers are better served when we develop where expensive infrastructure, like roads and sewers, already exist, rather than digging up precious green space. Contact MPC Communications Associate Mandy Burrell at 312-863-6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org for background on transit-oriented development and to learn more about communities you cover that are jumping on the TOD bandwagon.

Rural, Urban, and Suburban Schools Pin Funding Hopes on New Year

Gordon Bidner, 69, a retired businessman and rural land owner in downstate Carlock, worries about today's students:Illinois' school funding crisis is hurting their chances for success, he says.

Bidner lives in Olympia School District 16, geographically the largest districtin Illinois, with some 2,100 students covering more than 375 square miles, including eight towns and touching five counties in the sprawling farm region nearBloomington.

Like many other rural districts, Olympia has seen its main source of revenue-local property taxes-dwindle as state legislators attempt to help farmers by reducing farm property assessments. Bidner said his property assessments have decreased about 30 percent since 2001. Meanwhile, Olympia's share of revenue from property taxes has dropped below the state average (54 percent, compared with 57 percent statewide), leaving the district less able to supplement state dollars with local ones.

Olympia has lost its last two property tax referenda attempts, forcing the district to cut quality programs, according to Superintendent Don Hahn. The district has dwindled from six grade schools to three, significantly hiked fees, laid off teachers, slashed programs, and increased class sizes.

It's the program cutting that Bidner worries about. What will happen to rural students who compete for college admissions with their urban and suburban counterparts who have greater access to music, art or Advanced Placement classes?

"I'm afraid that children won't be able to attend the University of Illinois because of limited course offerings," he said. "If the schools financially can't offer those courses, that's a problem and it needs to be addressed. I don't think it's right or fair."

Members of A+ Illinois, a statewide campaign for school funding and property tax reform co-led by MPC and seven other organizations, agree with Bidner – as do many legislators. During the November veto session, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle and every region of the state joined A+ Illinois for a news conference in Springfield . They expressed their desire "to put sound public policy ahead of politics" and work together to improve school funding and quality statewide. A new legislative "Education Caucus" has pledged to make education funding and property tax relief their top priority in the 2007 General Assembly, which convenes in January.

Stay up-to-date on the latest news at the A+ Illinois Web site. Contact Clare Fauke, A+ Illinois communications coordinator, at 312-863-6012 or cfauke@aplusillinois.org for many more stories and background information on school funding and property tax reform.

With Nov. 7 just 25 days away, A+ Illinois  and its partners in the fight for adequate school funding in Illinois are turning up the heat. On Saturday, Oct. 14, at noon, supporters will gather in downtown Chicago at Federal Plaza (at the corner of Dearborn and Adams streets) to demonstrate to state leaders that our children can't wait any longer for education funding and quality reform. The march will end at the James R. Thompson Center at Randolph and Clark streets. Sponsors include A+ Illinois, Illinois Action for Children, the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago Teachers' Union, Citizen Action, The Golden Apple Foundation, Illinois Education Association, Illinois PTA, NAACP, Protestants for the Common Good, and Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.

On Monday,Oct. 23 , at 7 p.m., A+ Illinois – in partnership with Latino Coalition for Prevention, Clergy Speaks Interdenominational, Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce, South Suburban Action Caucus, and U.S. Rep. Danny K. Davis' (D-Chicago) Education Task Force – is hosting a community forum on education funding and quality reform at Chicago Embassy Church, 5848 S. Princeton Ave. All three gubernatorial candidates have been invited

In the past year, A+ Illinois (co-led by the Metropolitan Planning Council and eight other groups from Voices for Illinois Children to the Illinois Farm Bureau, and joined by tens of thousands of individuals) has become a go-to source for reporters working on stories related to local or statewide school funding and property tax reform. A+ Illinois can provide information ranging from policy analyses to real stories of students, teachers and property owners hurt byIllinois' broken school funding system.

MPC contact: MarySue Barrett, President, 312 .863.6001, msbarrett@metroplanning.org
A+ Illinois contact: Bindu Batchu, Campaign Manager, A+ Illinois, 312.863.6014, bbatchu@aplusillinois.org

Rail~Volution Conference on Transit-Oriented Development Rolls into Town

As the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) builds regional consensus for increased transit funding, and Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning positions itself to improve the connections between transportation and development decisions, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is excited to partner with RTA as host, from Nov. 5 to 8, to Rail~Volution Chicago 2006, a national conference on building communities around public transit, as well as a pedestrian and bicycling-friendly streets.

Chicago is considered the "granddaddy of transit-oriented development," the practice of building great neighborhoods around public transit. Rail~Volution Chicago 2006 will feature 22 mobile workshops that take participants (by train, bike and foot) to different locations in the tri-state region where transit-oriented development is shaping communities. Learn more at www.railvolution.com.

"Public transit not only gets us around, but also sparks new development, homes at a range of price points, and community interaction," said Peter Skosey MPC's vice president of external relations. "Rail~Volution Chicago 2006 will showcase how transit benefits everyone in the region – not just riders of the system."

MPC contact: Peter Skosey , Vice President of External Relations, 312.863.6004, pskosey@metroplanning.org

Ogden Avenue Redevelopment Next Step in North Lawndale's Revitalization

Residents, business owners, and community leaders want to transform Ogden Avenue from a forbidding, expansive speedway to an inviting boulevard that defines and anchors the neighborhood. Working in close partnership with Ald. Michael Chandler (24 th Ward) and the Chicago Depts. of Transportation (CDOT) and Planning and Development, and with the support of the Steans Family Foundation, Harris Bank, and LISC, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is leading a process to gather community input on a new design for this long stretch of Ogden.

North Lawndale has a proud history, but until recently, the neighborhood had been in a vicious cycle of disinvestment. Thanks to the sustained efforts of residents, the future is looking brighter in NorthLawndale. Ogden's redevelopment will be critical to North Lawndale's future, and will demonstrate how "context sensitive" street design can support community redevelopment.

At the first meeting of the Ogden Avenue Coordinating Committee on Sept. 26 meeting, stakeholders shared their ideas with Acting CDOT Commissioner Cheri Heramb and Ald. Chandler, a discussion that revealed the complexity of creating a vision of Ogden Avenue as North Lawndale 's main street. Much of the project's success rests on the ability to attract more retail and residential developments to draw users to the street – from people shopping and walking, to bicyclists, transit riders and drivers.

MPC contact: Peter Skosey, Vice President of External Relations, 312.863.6004, pskosey@metroplanning.org

Stay Up to Date on MPC's Work with New Online Newsroom and RSS Feed

To make it easier for you to get the information you need when you're working on a story, we've updated the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC ) Web site by expanding and improving our online Newsroom, and adding an option to receive updates on our work through RSS.

In one convenient click, the online Newsroom provides access to MPC's most recent media releases and reports; help determining the right expert on our staff to help you when you're on deadline; answers to frequently asked questions about the Council; an articles archive; our calendar of events; and a history of our 72-year-old organization. To check out the new newsroom, visit our homepage, www.metroplanning.org , and click on the Newsroom tab at the top.

To subscribe to an RSS feed, organized by our issues, look for the link at the bottom of each program homepage (under the Our Work tab). Just copy the link into your feed reader, or "aggregator," and you'll have access to all media news releases, Web articles, and online resources related to your chosen subject.

These new Web features are intended to make life easier for you. However, if digital digging isn't you're style, feel free to direct inquiries to MPC Communications Associate Mandy Burrell , who handles our media relations. She can be reached at 312.863.6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org. Or try MPC Communications Director Kim Bolton at 312.863.6020 or kbolton@metroplanning.org .

The Council hosted Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich at Chase Auditorium in Chicago on Sept. 7, and Republican candidate Judy Baar Topinka at the Hyatt Regency Chicago on Aug. 7, providing each with a forum to explain their plans to increase housing options, ease traffic congestion, invest in northeastern Illinois' transportation network, improve schools, and inspire sensible growth. Comcast was media sponsor of both events.

"As Chicagoland continues to grow, voters are calling on all candidates for state and local office to come prepared with solutions to the regional growing pains affecting all of us," said Joseph Stackhouse, senior vice president for Comcast and an MPC executive advisor. "Comcast is proud to help educate voters during this election year by bringing them the Metropolitan Planning Council's 2006 gubernatorial candidate forums."

At the forums, Gov. Blagojevich and Treasurer Topinka responded to three questions provided by MPC in advance. Craig Dellimore, political editor for WBBM Newsradio-780 AM, moderated both events. Each candidate made groundbreaking remarks on key issues integral to creating healthy communities, including school funding and property tax reform; a new state capital plan to invest in roads, bridges, schools, and public transit; the need to connect jobs and affordable homes to reliable, safe, and convenient transportation options; and the state's role in stimulating innovative local community planning.

Comcast Digital Cable customers can access the candidate forum content ON DEMAND, now through Election Day. Customers should access ON DEMAND via their remotes or by tuning to channel 1, and then choosing the "Get Local" folder and "DECISION 2006." MPC also has posted excerpts from both candidates' remarks on its Web site.

For more information, contact Mandy Burrell, MPC communications associate, at 312-863-6018 or mburrell@metroplanning.org; or Angelynne S. Amores, Comcast media relations director, at 847-489-6296 or as_amores@cable.comcast.com.

Cook County Board Commissioner Mike Quigley says a widely used economic development tool intended to revitalize blighted areas is being misused, and he's calling for reform. Among the problems Quigley cites with tax increment financing (TIF) is its overuse and "astounding lack of accountability." He's hoping to resolve the latter issue by requiring the county to list taxes collected for TIF on property tax bills. MPC Vice President of External Relations Peter Skosey says that while it's right to re-examine whether all TIFs are being applied properly (the Illinois General Assembly last amended the TIF statute in 1998 ), the use of TIFs is an important redevelopment tool that should continue to be available to communities in need of renewal. For instance, said Skosey, TIFs have been instrumental in revitalizingChicago 's industrial corridors in Pilsen and CalumetHarbor.

"In disinvested communities, TIFs help attract new development and overcome blight by paying for improvements such as new sidewalks, lighting and environmental remediation," said Skosey. "While it's sensible to periodically examine whether all TIFs are being applied to truly blighted areas, TIFs are crucial to maintaining our competitive economic edge by making communities more attractive and, therefore, more likely to draw state and federal dollars for future infrastructure improvements."

MPC contact: Peter Skosey, Vice President of External Relations, 312.863.6004, pskosey@metroplanning.org

A+ Illinois Deciphers Candidates' Code on School Funding Reform

In the past year, A+ Illinois (co-led by MPC and seven other groups) has played a key role in elevating school funding and property tax reform as a top election-year concern for voters and candidates alike. For the first time in Illinois' decades-long fight for fair school funding, A+ Illinois has united a broad coalition of civic, education, children's advocacy, business, labor, civil rights, faith-based, human services, and community organizations under one mission: to change Illinois' school funding system to reduce the reliance on property taxes and ensure the quality of a child's education does not depend on where he lives.

By representing the struggles facing rural, suburban and urban school districts – and their surrounding communities – A+ Illinois has become a go-to source for reporters working on stories related to local or statewide school funding and property tax reform. As the election season heats up, A+ Illinois can provide information ranging from policy analyses to real stories of students, teachers and property owners hurt by Illinois' broken school funding system. In addition, the campaign recently evaluated the leading gubernatorial candidates' plans to fund our schools and reduce the burden on local property taxpayers. The verdict: neither Gov. Rod Blagojevich nor Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka has earned acceptable grades for their plans.

"Illinois leaders should be embarrassed that our state ranks 47th in the nation for the state's share of education funding," said BinduBatchu, A+ Illinois campaign manager. "All candidates for state offices must take responsibility for these issues by coming up with sustainable plans for reform."

MPC contact: MarySue Barrett, President, 312 .863.6001, msbarrett@metroplanning.org
Contact: Bindu Batchu, Campaign Manager, A+ Illinois, 312.863.6014, bbatchu@aplusillinois.org

Mark Your Calendars: MPC Packs Autumn Agenda with Events across the Region

Need fodder for calendar items, story ideas, or a way to nab that elusive source? Pencil us in! Through November, MPC's calendar is filled with roundtables, workshops and conferences on topics ranging from what's being done to prevent flooding in our region to how public transit has become a vital part of redeveloping disinvested communities. Upcoming events include the following:

Public-Private Partnerships Workshop
Wednesday, Oct. 4, Union League Club, Chicago
The explosion of interest in public-private partnerships for funding infrastructure in Illinois has prompted many questions on how best to use this valuable tool to maintain our competitive edge. Experts from the public and private sectors will discuss how public-private partnerships can be put to best use at this one-day workshop sponsored by MPC, Business Leaders for Transportation, and the National Council for Public-Private Partnerships. Register here   for the workshop. 

MPC 2006 Fall Roundtable Series
This series will feature four distinct sessions, in downtown Chicago, at which expert panels will discuss the chosen topic, followed by a moderated question-and-answer session. Each roundtable begins at noon. Lunch will be served. The series will cover the following topics:
Friday, Oct. 13: Wanted: Promising, Market-Oriented Rental Housing Strategies
Friday, Oct. 20: Managing Stormwater and Planning for Water Supply
Thursday, Nov. 2: A Second Look: Reinvesting in Transit-Rich Communities
Thursday, Nov. 16: Revival of the Fittest: Is Your Neighborhood Ready?
Visit MPC's Web calendar to register for these roundtables.

First Annual Governor's Conference on Affordable Housing
Tuesday, Oct. 17, through Wednesday, Oct. 18, Chicago History Museum, Chicago
This conference will bring together hundreds of practitioners from the diverse fields that make housing development possible in Illinois, ranging from developers to advocates, to build on the statewide momentum to increase the quality and affordability of housing. Visit the Illinois Housing Development Authority's Web site for details.

Rail~Volution: Building Livable Communities with Transit
Sunday, Nov. 5, through Wednesday, Nov. 8, Marriott Magnificent Mile Hotel in Chicago and various locations across the tri-state region
This three-day conference will explore how innovative leaders are connecting jobs, homes, entertainment, and transportation options to create communities that work. Rail~Volution will feature more than 20 mobile workshops that take participants to various locations across the tri-state region, highlighting why metropolitan Chicago is known as "the granddaddy of transit-oriented development." Visit Rail~Volution's Web site to register.

Media is invited to attend all events free of charge. Details on these and other events – including speakers, exact times and locations, and registration requirements – are available on MPC's Web calendar, www.metroplanning.org/calendar.asp .

Excerpts from from Gov. Blagojevich's remarks follow: Excerpts from Treasurer Topinka's remarks are also available online. In addition, MPC media partner Comcast is broadcasting both candidates' remarks, in their entirety, through its OnDemand feature until the election.

On creating a state planning office
I think that a lot of what government can do better is do a better job of planning. Planning is the first step, but the other step is to work in a more cooperative and coordinated fashion with the other units of government. Unfortunately, Illinois is a state with a great deal of local governments ... Now, we're not in love with the idea of creating new agencies, so I don't know that we would actually create an agency to address this issue. It's unlikely we would because we're in the other mode, which is to say we're reducing the size of government ... So, while I would not embrace or endorse the concept of creating a new agency to do this, I would, however, suggest that we should probably use an existing agency, probably maybe one like CMS, maybe one like the Department of Commerce and economic opportunity, maybe some of the other agencies, and have people working there who can work with the local governments and try toconsolidate functions and bring more efficiency to the effort and also a lot more planning.

On investing in infrastructure to accomodate growth
We understand the great growth that's taking place in places like Kendall County, Will County and out in the western collar of counties. As a result of that, we're building I-355, which is in direct response to that growth. And we want to pass a capital bill ... that would also address some of the issues of trying to deal with our infrastructure needs so we can get people to and from where they're going, in less traffic with less congestion and with less hassle. I think we're making a lot of progress. There's a lot more things to do, like the idea of being able to coordinate the local governments. We've been working to do those things. And we have to think regionally as well as just from a statewide perspective. Different states have to coordinate some of their efforts. But certainly the stategovernment and municipal governments need to do a better job coordinating.

On his capital plan
What I would suggest is we take a look at our capital plan, take a look at the bill we've been trying to pass for three years ... I know that the architects of our capital construction plan have reached out to a lot of probably the people, men and women, here in this room, for some of your ideas and some of your initiatives and try to input that into our plan, which is one that would build more schools, one that wants to address the issue of crowded classrooms, one that embraces the idea of smaller schoolhouses, school buildings, where kids can learn better in an environment that's a lot more conducive to learning, an environment that's less threatening to young children ... A plan that would obviously invest in our roads and our bridges and our schools, and one that clearly is all about making sure that we do good things for people as opposed to not good things for people, that we give people more choices as opposed to less ... I believe if we're still in business after the November elections, we're in a very strong position to be able to pass a capital bill and we're going to keep working with you guys to try to makesure we do it in a way that's responsible to the taxpayers of our state.

On specific capital investment priorities
Our capital improvement program makes significant investments in roads and bridges, significant investments in mass transit, and calls for a billion dollars in new school instruction. Now, the way we pay for it is through a variety of ways. The road program would be paid for by tapping into the existing road fund that's sitting with a surplus balance of around $400-$500 million. We would take $140 million out of that fund and use that as a dedicated source of revenue. Every year, with the motor fuel tax and other revenues, that road fund gets replenished. The money then would be used as a dedicated source of revenue. Then, you would do bonding off of that, and do a $2.3 billion road and bridges expansion project. Mass transit, we're calling for about $850 million in mass transit investments – CTA, RTA, the Metro Link down in the Southern Illinois, as well as mass transit around the state. That would be paid for the way it always is – through general revenue funds ... And then our school construction plan had a variety of ways that we tried to work with the legislators who kept using that as an excuse to not vote for one, to be able to pay for investments in our schools. We believe this is the best way because we're now enjoying this surplus revenue that we didn't anticipate two years ago because the economy's improved, to use some of that also as a way, a dedicated source ofrevenue for a $1 billion school construction plan.

On increasing education funding
First of all, let me say that I wish there was a magic wand and I wish I could snap my fingers and solve all of the different problems that we inherited after 26 years of misplaced priorities. I point out that the struggle that we have today to try to put more money in our schools -- the state invests more money for our schools and puts less pressure and eases the burden on homeowners -- is one that we've made real progress on over the last four years. But you have to recognize that we're coming from 26 years of one administration from the next under-funding our schools from the state ... I think if you look at what we've done in the first four years during historic budget deficits and now we've got our fiscal hours in order, we've got tremendous opportunities, I think, to go to the next level and really fundamentally address theschool funding issue in a way that's different from what a lot of people are advocating.

On his proposal to privatize the lottery to fund schools
We think we can get $10, $12, maybe $15 billion on the privatizing of the lottery. Make the promise of that lottery real. The promise was that this was going to be the way we were going to fund our schools. Actually make that real. Put $4 billion in new investments in schools in the first four years, over and above what you might do with the general revenue fund, because circumstances change and revenues change, depending upon the economy and some of the other choices that the legislature and the governors make, and then take the balance of that money, whether it be $6, $8, $10 billion, and create a school endowment fund, an education endowment fund. The interest on that fund alone will more than cover the amount of money that goes to the school common fund from the lottery. Use that to consistently fund schools, and then have an out clause, which has been mischaracterized by some, by the year 2024 that I call the Hong Kong Clause, which isafter 2024 it reverts back to the state, we don't just let it go.

On easing the property tax burden
This [lottery plan] is a creative way to put more money in our schools that doesn't raise taxes on people and we get more bang for our buck with our resources ... And then, I think, as you do that, you've got to keep passing bills that put caps on local property taxes and even squeeze that even more, so that every unit of government is going to be focused on trying to do more with less. One thing I know after being governor for four years: if you give government money, they're going to spend it and if you givegovernment unfettered access to money, they're not going to make the hard choices.

Comcast subscribers can access the Forum content on Comcast ON DEMAND, channel 1, beginning Monday, Sept.18. Choose the ON DEMAND menu and look for a folder titled DECISION 2006.

Written excerpts of Topinka's remarks and from Gov. Blagojevich's appearance are currently available online. Excerpts from the governor's appearance will be posted soon.

To ensure these issues remain top of mind for candidates and voters this election year, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) hosted Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich at a downtown event Sept. 7, and Republican candidate Judy Baar Topinka Aug. 7, providing each with a forum to explain their plans to increase housing options, ease congestion, invest in the transportation network, improve schools, and inspire sensible growth.

"For the past three gubernatorial election cycles, the Metropolitan Planning Council has hosted forums to educate candidates on the role of planning in ensuring all Illinois residents have access to the opportunities they need to be successful in business and life," said MPC President MarySue Barrett. "We're proud that these events have influenced past gubernatorial candidates, once elected, to commit to state-level policy changes that have expanded workforce housing, improved school funding, and increased investments in our transportation infrastructure. These advancements show that planning means progress in the lives of Illinois voters."

Thursday, Gov. Blagojevich presented his plans before an audience of business, government and civic leaders at Chase Auditorium in Chicago 's Loop. The governor was invited to attend the Metropolitan Planning Council's 2006 Annual Meeting Luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Chicago on Aug. 7, where Topinka outlined her plans; however a conflict required him to reschedule.

Gov. Blagojevich and Treasurer Topinka responded to the same three questions MPC provided in advance. Craig Dellimore, political editor for WBBM Newsradio-780 AM, moderated both events. Each candidate made groundbreaking remarks on key issues integral to creating healthy communities, including school funding and property tax reform; a new state capital plan to invest in roads, bridges, schools, and public transit; the need to connect jobs and affordable homes to reliable, safe, and convenient transportation options; and the state's role in stimulating innovative local community planning. Excerpts from Topinka's remarks are available on MPC's Web site . In addition, MPC media sponsor Comcast will begin broadcasting through its OnDemand feature both candidates' remarks, in their entirety, beginning Monday, Sept. 18.

At Thursday's event, MPC also presented the Jean Allard Regional Trailblazer Award to Beth Santell in honor of her late husband, Sam Santell, who passed away at age 52 on April 19, 2006.

MPC has long championed independence, leadership and regional collaboration, and few people have exemplified these principles more than Jean Allard, MPC's president from 1991 to 1996. As the first woman partner of the law firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal; the first woman on the boards of Commonwealth Edison, LaSalle National Bank, and Marshall Fields; and founder of the Chicago Network, Allard made a career out of breaking new ground. During Allard's tenure with MPC, she was one of the first leaders of a major civic organization in Chicago to realize that being truly metropolitan meant changing the way MPC operated by reaching out to all parts of the region. After Allard stepped down from MPC and returned to legal practice, MPC recognized her with its first Regional Trailblazer Award in 1997, permanently naming the award in her honor.

Santell dedicated his career to regio