By Austin Busch
This past Saturday, the Chicago Department of Planning and Development held its second public meeting for the Moving Archer Forward plan. The event was held at the McKinley Park Fieldhouse, with outreach focusing on three 'community visions' taking shape in the plan:
- A Safe Corridor That Connects People: Identifies street design, traffic speeds, and traffic patterns that create safety risks for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers.
- Equitable and Vibrant Growth: Identifies commercial deficiencies and vacancies, and housing access and affordability.
- Make Archer a Destination: Identifies where the character and environment does not reflect neighborhood culture.
Getting engaged
Moving Archer Forward continues the planning work identified in the Stitching It Together: Framework Plan for Brighton Park and Gage Park, adopted by the City's plan commission in June 2025. That plan identified community priorities that are now being explored in detail along the Archer Avenue corridor, including housing options, open space, safe streets, and economic development.
The first public meeting was held in September of last year in Archer Heights, towards the southwest end of the corridor. DPD shared a summary of the engagement results, highlighting key themes of accessibility, pedestrian safety, open space, community identity, and safety lighting.
Other ongoing efforts included pop-up outreach events and focus groups with community advisory and small business panels. Two surveys were sent out: one for the community at large, and one for business owners.
The planning effort has encountered many unforseen challenges with public trust since the first public meeting, after an intensification in activity from ICE and street reconstruction has disrupted businesses and residents along the corridor.
"A lot of residents right now in Brighton Park and McKinley Park are concerned because of the ICE thing, so they are not sure who to believe," said Augustina Mendez. "There's a lot less people in these meetings because of the trauma and terrorizing our communities through Midway Blitz."
On a Stroll
Archer Avenue, I-55, and many segments of intersecting arterial roads along the corridor are under Illinois Department of Transportation jurisdiction. The current planning efforts have been responsive to the more progressive vision the state agency has entertained in recent years.
"In 2023, CDOT and IDOT signed a memorandum of understanding, which kind of heralded a whole new era that's now coming to fruition," said Franny Ritchie, a project consultant with the firm TYLin.
The team also specifically cited the Blue-Ribbon Commission on Transportation Infrastructure and Funding report published in January, which included recommendations to meet equity and sustainability goals, such as "planting native vegetation, trees, and pollinator habitats along roadsides and medians to improve air quality, reduce heat island effect, manage stormwater, and increase biodiversity."
Another planning element underway includes reviewing land use and access points to the CTA Orange Line. The plan's team has already started coming up with potential changes around the corridor's three stations to get feedback from the CTA on how it will affect bus operations.
A post from the Midway Airport-area community group Southwest Collective.
Most of the feedback during the meeting concerned the different street elements that could be used to make the street more friendly for pedestrians, a top priority after the first public meeting.
"One of the things that came up at the September meeting is that people really want Archer to function like a local main street or high street," said Ritchie, a project consultant with TYLin working on the plan. "They want to be able to stroll for a coffee, and maybe go somewhere else and see their neighbors, relax a little."
An interest in more non-driving options along the corridor was shared by many attendees, who feel that the current corridor is not designed to meet that preference.
"I usually drive because that's the safest way to get there, but I don't really like driving," said Caroline Wooten, a Bridgeport resident. "I would much rather walk or bike or take the bus, but the ways to do that just don't feel super safe or easy. I'm excited about the idea of it becoming even more people-oriented."
To bike or not to bike
Sticky notes through the engagement process were peppered with comments in support or opposition to bike lanes, reflecting the recent dueling rallies about the in-progress Complete Streets project on Archer in Brighton Park. A common sentiment among many attendees was how the danger of the high-speed roadway led them to bike less than they'd prefer.
"So far, I seem pretty aligned with the community," Yee, a McKinley Park resident. "My big thing has been bikes lanes and safer walking infrastructure. Before COVID, I would bike into work, up Archer to Halsted. It was very dangerous, and I'm hoping to see that change."
"The bus is all right, but biking and walking around, it's a lot of high speed cars,”"said Clay Knapp, a Brighton Park resident. "Before I moved to the neighborhood, I used to bike a lot. Moving to the area, Archer is a really tough street to bike on, and Western's really tough, so I kind of adapted."
Under Development
Another section of the meeting focused on which community needs could be filled through infill development opportunities. Poster boards showed renderings of two examples for both rail-served and bus-served transit-oriented development, using the vacant lots north of the 35th/Archer station and near Sacramento and Archer avenues as a canvas for exploring different massings and uses.
Mendez, a former resident of multiple neighborhoods along the corridor, came to the meeting to advocate for reusing some of the historic structures along the corridor for community spaces. "The (abandoned building) on Sacramento, it was an old TCI bank, and I really want to push a community center in there for the young kids in the neighborhood," she said.
Ald. Jeylú B. Gutiérrez (14th) also expressed support for more youth-oriented spaces, given the demographics of the area. "We have a young community in the 14th Ward, a lot of kids and youth," said Ald. Gutiérrez. "I think we really need more spaces where programs can happen for youth."
A cafe or coffee shop was the most popular type of establishment survey respondents want to see more of, although some community members have concerns about what those developments could mean. Once Starbucks moves in, the neighborhood changes," opined one attendee, noting the 2022 opening of a Starbucks drive-thru location on Western near Archer.
Many sticky notes also expressed opposition towards allowing more drive-throughs in general, preferring local businesses with traditional storefront access.
A current timeline of past and future engagement opportunities for the Moving Archer Forward plan. Source: DPD.
Coming soon
DPD is expecting to hold a third public meeting to present the drafted plan in May, with a goal of seeking City Council adoption in the summer.
"I'm happy that the community had, again, the opportunity to come in and voice their opinions," said Ald. Gutiérrez. "We're always open to listen to our community. I invite our constituents to continue to be part of Moving Archer Forward." To be notified of future community engagement, you can sign up to receive email notifications from DPD.
Visit the Moving Archer Forward website here.
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