U-TOD Moving Forward
Blue Island’s long awaited Transit-Oriented Development zoning district continues to move toward adoption. On Monday, May 14 at 6pm the Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing to discuss the proposed Uptown-TOD (U-TOD) district. The meeting will be held at the City Hall East Annex, 2434 Vermont Street, Blue Island. The Blue Island City Council will hear the recommendation of the Zoning Board on Tuesday, May 22 at 7pm. This meeting is also held at the East Annex.
You can download the proposed zoning district ordinance, maps, and memos at http://www.blueisland.org/zoning
The U-TOD district has been proposed since the adoption of the Blue Island Plan for Economic Development (2005) and encompasses the South Station Residential District, Hospital District and Main Street Commercial Area, and the South Main Street Area as found in the Blue Island Plan, as well as the Olde Western Historic District. The new district comprises of areas zoned C-1 Central Area Commercial south of Union Street, including Olde Western; C-2 Highway Commercial parcels on Vermont Street between Irving and Division; and R-1 Single Family Residential parcels along Chicago Street and both west of Chatham and south of Vermont to the Cal-Sag and Division Street. Zones have been created within the U-TOD district to preserve Single Family Residential found in the current R-1 district.
Blue Island’s Uptown TOD District
Blue Islanders have long enjoyed the conveniences of a central business district and easy connections to public transit. The rest of Chicagoland first took notice with the adoption of our Blue Island Plan for Economic Development. One of the goals of the Blue Island Plan was to adopt zoning and land use regulations that promoted the assets of our Uptown commercial area through Transit-Oriented Development (TOD).
Transit-Oriented Development is simply that: guiding a community’s development so that connections to transit are promoted as one of the many benefits of living in a station area. For Blue Island residents it’s a quick trip to work or an easy way to reach cultural attractions. It’s also affordable, keeping money in your pocket, and good for the environment too.
Supported by a grant from the Regional Transportation Agency (RTA), Blue Island is poised to consider its first major zoning amendment in nearly twenty years. Working with planners and architects at Teska Associates and Ginkgo Planning, who reviewed all the work of the Blue Island Plan, interviewing stakeholders and both the Blue Island Historic Preservation Commission and Plan Commission along the way, a final draft has been prepared for presentation.
Mark Fenton Visits Blue Island
October is Community Planning Month, and as usual, there’s no shortage of planning events happening around town! Active Transportation Alliance recently hosted renowned active living advocate Mark Fenton for a workshop at MetroSouth Medical Center.
Mark is an engineer that graduated from MIT, trained as an Olympic athlete, and is a professor at Tufts University. He’s had his own show on PBS. He’s spoken internationally. He’s an author. He’s produced DVDs. And like us, he loves Blue Island!
Mark brings a strong public health message to the work he does. His favorite is a simple “30 - 20 - 365”
- Adults need 30 mins. of active living each day. This could be a walk to the train, a bike ride to work… any way you want! (BTW, kids need an hour!)
- 20% of adults get the activity they need.
- 365,000 Americans die each year from disease related to poor health and diet.
To start reversing these alarming trends, Mark travels across the US helping communities identify ways they can promote more livable and healthy lifestyles.
