Events

Tomorrow is the final day to enter a comment into public record about the Illinois Department of Transportation's Circle Interchange expansion project. Here's a quick rundown of what can realistically be influenced at this point:

We’d like to give a warm welcome to urban planners from across the country who are coming to our fair city for the American Planning Association’s national conference, April 13-17. The APA has published an excellent, 46-page Planner’s Guide to Chicago, chock full of Windy City sights and activities that will appeal to attendees, as well as some fascinating historic and contemporary maps.

The participatory budgeting process lets citizens brainstorm ideas and then vote on how ward money will be spent, but 5th Ward Alderman Leslie has decided to remove most transportation projects from consideration. The district, which includes parts of South Shore, Grand Crossing, Woodlawn and Hyde Park, is one of four wards where citizens will help decide how to use their alderman’s $1.3 million in discretionary “menu” money this year, and the only one on the South Side.

Editor's note: After Michelle reported on the Women Bike Chicago Conference earlier this month, the Tiny Fix posted a critique of Cynthia Bell's advice to "not look too sexy" at a workshop on comfort, safety, and style. This is Michelle's response.

At a waterside press conference this afternoon with Mayor Rahm Emanuel, outgoing U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood promised that the roughly $100 million federal loan that will bankroll the Chicago Riverwalk will definitely be finalized by June. Earlier this winter the Chicago Department of Transportation sent LaHood’s agency a letter of interest for a loan through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act. Now the USDOT is inviting CDOT to submit a formal application for the loan, which will cover almost the entire project cost.

Chicago’s participatory budgeting movement has exciting potential to democratize the way city money is spent, which could lead to innovative walking, biking and transit improvements. First pioneered in 1989 in Porto Alegre, Brazil, participatory budgeting allows citizens to recommend projects for public funding and then vote on how the cash is spent.

Michelle Stenzel is co-chair of Bike Walk Lincoln Park, a committee to make walking and cycling safe in that neighborhood.

Guest contributor Lisa Phillips trained as a journalist and then urban planner, while becoming an almost-daily bicyclist. She has worked at the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Department of Transportation, and has volunteered with Cycling Sisters and Bike Winter.

Saturday's bike swap, located in the largest venue since its humble beginnings in the party room of Jak's Tap in 2010, brought in more visitors than ever -- about 1,700, according to the Active Transportation Alliance. Organizers credit several changes, including social media marketing, discounts for University of Illinois at Chicago students and staff, and new attractions. The event's proceeds benefit Active Trans, The Chainlink, and Bike Winter.