The wait is over! The final draft of Chicago’s Lincoln Square Master Plan is live, following a May 30th ‘Unveiling Event’ at The Old Town School of Folk Music. Over 130+ community members attended the event to take part in input activities and learn about draft strategies and placemaking concepts. Special thanks to everyone who shared constructive feedback, thoughtful comments, and casual conversation. Check out the SSA website for more information!
“The plan should create a neighborhood that’s more livable for residents and more attractive to businesses and visitors. That encompasses everything from nitty-gritty details such as optimizing traffic signals and installing power sources for farmers market vendors to whimsical flourishes like Instagram-friendly public art.” – Jodi Mariano, Project Manager, Teska Associates | Excerpt, Block Club Chicago Article
“Our real goal is to ensure this is a plan for Lincoln Square, by Lincoln Square” – Erin Cigliano of Teska Associates, | Excerpt, Block Club Chicago Article
The Lincoln Square Master Planning process officially kicked-off in Fall of 2018 with a pop-up booth at Lincoln Square’s much loved Apple Fest. As the planning team “bobbed” for ideas, Lincoln Square locals shared what they love about their neighborhood and also what could use a little TLC. Residents shared over 150 unique ideas but from Day 1, one thing was made clear… both residents and visitors alike LOVE Lincoln Square. Some Lincoln Square favorites include the events, festivals, summer concerts, restaurants, public library, local “mom and pop” businesses, scale and style of development, plentiful parks and trees, walkability and access to transit, cultural roots and history, and the welcoming, family-friendly vibe of the neighborhood.
Locals continued to share their placemaking ideas and community priorities via a variety of online tools hosted on the project website. Three online neighborhood polls were posted that collectively yielded over 1,700 responses and 2,000+ comments, and an additional 700 insights were shared and mapped via the project website and at the Apple Fest kick-off event. Furthermore, meetings with SSA Commissioners and the Project Advisory Committee served as important check-points throughout the process. All of this feedback (and we do mean all) was steadily collected, the emerging themes flagged, and priorities outlined to establish and shape the urban design, transportation, and market strategies proposed in the Draft Plan.
After nearly a year of local outreach and engagement, Teska Associates along with market experts Goodman Williams Group, transportation planners Sam Schwartz Engineering, and the Lincoln Square Chamber and SSA 21 presented the Draft Master Plan. The 130+ folks who attended the event were provided the opportunity to share feedback on which strategies they favored most.
Ryan Warsing, neighborhood services director for the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce and SSA, noted the preferences seemed to be “everything.” – Excerpt, Block Club Chicago Article
Many thanks to our Lincoln Square Fan Club — i.e the hundreds of individuals, local businesses, organizations, residents, stakeholders, and visitors who shared their input and were involved in the master planning process. We said it before, and we’ll say it again — this truly is a plan for Lincoln Square, by Lincoln Square. To the future, onward!
Source(s): Block Club Chicago Article // June 4th, 2019
Check out this awesome sliding comparison of the ‘existing’ vs. ‘future’ concept images of placemaking opportunities in Lincoln Square!
