Planning Programs and Projects

The RTA awarded $55,000 to the City of Harvard for Phase I engineering needed for pedestrian access improvements along Illinois Route 173 from Marengo Road to US Route 14, including new sidewalks, ADA crosswalks, and pedestrian access over Mokeler Creek. Currently, there are no sidewalks along Route 173, forcing pedestrians to walk on the shoulder. At the crossing of Mokeler Creek, pedestrians have to walk in the travel lanes of Route 173 to get over the creek.

The RTA has awarded $55,000 to the City of Harvey to complete Phase I engineering required for improvements along Broadway Avenue in downtown Harvey. The project will include transit access improvements such as bus shelters, pedestrian improvements including ADA-compliant intersections, and new roadway bike facilities. These improvements will better provide for a multi-modal downtown Harvey and will connect the new Pace Harvey Transportation Center with Broadway Avenue.

The Village Hazel Crest seeks RTA support to develop an Equitable TOD Plan for areas west of the Hazel Crest Metra station, leveraging the transportation assets in the area to balance investment and begin to deliver community benefits through greater pedestrian, bicycle and commuter activity. The Village would use a new plan to  coordinate Village, County, state and federal resources for the station area, which has experienced disinvestment relative to the  rest of Hazel Crest. Having TOD related investment would also further Village goals to create an Arts District in the study area, with programming and related building improvements to Village-owned vacant buildings, with the intension to convert into an adaptive reuse as a Center for the Arts. Improved pedestrian walkability and added bicyclist safety installments would benefit artists and the overall residential and commuter base living near the Hazel Crest Metra station. Lastly, the Village would like to identify further investment in the area for higher density, high quality multi-family workforce housing that would serve a number of workers with high quality housing near the Metra station, with quality amenities at a reasonable price point that does not exist today.

The Village of Itasca seeks RTA support for zoning code updates that will allow the types of development envisioned in the Village's adopted Downtown Itasca Strategic Action Plan, completed through the RTA's Community Planning program. The Village's existing code needs modifications to modernize the code to better align with best practices and other Village initiatives. Zoning amendments will be centered on downtown Itasca and areas surrounding the Itasca Metra station, and will include such tasks as drafting tables for dimensional standards as well as uses, address parking ratios for mixed use developments, develop unified design guidelines for Downtown Itasca, as well as develop specific guidelines for the Itasca Historic District. 

The City of Lockport seeks RTA assistance to develop an ETOD Plan for the downtown area of Lockport including the area surrounding the Lockport Metra station. The study area encompasses the National Historic District, future growth areas south of the Metra station, north to connect with the Star Innovation District and a changing neighborhood east to Madison, inclusive of the Freshman Center in the historic Central High School. The goals with the new plan would be to update the original 2009 downtown plan to reflect the changes that have occurred over the past 15 years in the central downtown and extend the study area south to capture the underserved Fairmount area and the Taft School District. Both areas are heavily reliant on residential tax dollars which have been lacking. The City would like to build off continued success in the central downtown to identify the future for some legacy properties that could be improved and generate additional revenue in the southern portions of the study area. The City would like to extend the plan north to contemplate changes that will occur as a result of the Star Innovation District and the frontage along State Street on both the east and west sides of the street.

The RTA has awarded $44,000 to the Village of Maywood for Phase I engineering needed for a covered bicycle shelter near the 5th Avenue Metra station served by the Union Pacific West line, heated bus shelters along 5th Avenue as served by Pace, wayfinding signage for the train station, and pavement marking improvements.

The Village of Maywood seeks assistance from the RTA and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) who are partnering together to conduct a study of the Roosevelt Road corridor in southern portions of the Village, from 1st Avenue on the east to 13th Avenue on the west. The goal of the Roosevelt Road Corridor plan is to identify immediate, near term and long-term opportunities for, as well as the feasibility of a number of economic development projects including, the potential for infill housing, mixed-use development, and the bolstering of commercial development along the corridor. Additionally, they seek to improve the curb appeal and pedestrian access to transit, businesses, and the Hines VA Hospital, Madden Mental Health Center, and Loyola's Medical campus. By partnering with adjacent villages, institutions, and stakeholders the Village will be able to better to coordinate a more detailed plan for the corridor's future, creating a more accessible and safe environment for the community.

The Village of Morton Grove seeks RTA assistance to develop  the Dempster Street Corridor Plan. The study area would travel the length of Dempster Street from Central Avenue on the east to Harlem Ave on the west, within the Village limits. Over the past two decades, major shifts in transportation infrastructure, demographics, the environment, and the economy have affected the established Dempster Street corridor and produced new challenges. An updated Dempster Street Corridor Plan will help Morton Grove respond to those shifts and address emerging issues head-on. The recent addition of Pace’s Pulse bus rapid transit service have improved Dempster Street’s function as an efficient transportation corridor. However, issues related to shallow lot depth, access management, evolving parking needs, and adjacency to established single-family neighborhoods have hindered the corridor’s ability to function as an economic engine for the community. The Corridor Plan is needed to provide a cohesive vision for Dempster Street that leverages and connects transit assets, expands retail and employment-generating development, identifies parking solutions, and identifies complementary opportunities for new housing. The Village desires a new vision for the Dempster Street corridor to encourage reinvestment, support existing and future business, and provide needed services and amenities to the community. In addition, the Village hopes to broaden diversity in housing choices along the corridor, attract investment and development, and better manage parking.

The RTA is providing the Village of Plainfield Phase II engineering and construction funds to build a 0.6 mile extension of a 10' wide shared-use path along the south side of 143rd Street from Van Dyke Road to Wallin Drive. Wayfinding signage to the Plainfield Park-n-Ride and downtown Plainfield will be included along the route. These improvements will better connect residents to transit and downtown Plainfield. 

The Village seeks RTA assistance to conduct a Developer Dialogue to solicit feedback from members of the private development community on Village strategies to attract development at seven Village-owned parcels in the downtown area near the Round Lake Metra station. The developer dialogue would be a follow-on activity to implementing the Village's Comprehensive and Downtown Plans. The Village has enhanced motivation to sell and approve development of the Village owned properties  that have been vacant and under Village control for many years, and seeks a refined strategy in doing so.