Scroll down this list to find reports which can be downloaded to your computer.  You will need a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print the documents.

Download Adobe Reader 7.0 now.

Urban Planning & Development

A New Northwest Indiana: A Cleaner Economy and Environment, Allison Hannont, University of Chicago, May 2005  (415 KB)

A Shared Future: The Economic Engagement of Greater Chicago

and Its Mexican Community , Douglas Doetsch, Clare Muñana,
and Alejandro Silva, Chicago Council on Global Affairs, 2006  (2.33 MB)

A Shared Future - Spanish Summary   (678 KB)

Assessing And Managing The Ecological Impacts Of Paved Roads, Committee on Ecological Impacts of Road Density, National Research Council, 2005  (20.19 MB)

Atlas of Illinois Poverty, Illinois Poverty Summit, Spring 2003  (2.23 MB)

Benefits of Parks: Why America Needs More City Parks and Open Space, Paul M. Sherer, Trust for Public Land, 2006  (1.27 MB)

Building Green Infrastructure: Land Conservation As A Watershed Protection Strategy, William Poole, Lynda Frost, October 1999 (1.11 MB)

Calumet Area Land Use Plan, Chicago Department of Planning and Development (DPD), December 2001  (839 KB)

Changing Course: Recommendations For Balancing Regional Growth and Water Issues In Northeastern Illinois, The Openlands Project, 2004  (1.71 MB)

Charting A Future For National Heritage Areas, National Parks System Advisory Board, 2006  (6,86 MB)

Chicago Housing Conditions: South Chicago At The Gates Of The Steel Mills, Sophonisba P. Breckinridge and Edith Abbott, The American Journal of Sociology, Volume 17, September 1911  (1.71 MB)

Chicago Metropolis 2020: Preparing Metropolitan Chicago for the 21st Century, Elmer W. Johnson, The Commercial Club of Chicago, January 1999  (451 KB)

Chicago Neighborhood Plans:Quality-of-Life Plan Summaries,

Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), New Communities Program, May 2005  (2.73 MB)

Chicago’s Public Works Program - Is It Working For Everyone?:
Capital Investment In Our Neighborhoods (1990-2002), Chris Schwartz, The Neighborhood Capital Budget Group, 1999  (1.72 MB)

Choosing Our Community’s Future: A Citizen’s Guide To Getting

The Most Out Of New Development, David Goldberg, Smart Growth America, December 2011  (4.71 MB)

Conservation Buffers: Design Guidelines For Buffers, Corridors, and Greenways, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service Southern Research Station, Report # SRS-109, 2008  (7.72 MB)

Finding Food In Chicago and The Suburbs The Report Of The Northeastern Illinois Community Food Security Assessment, Daniel Block, Noel Chavez, Judy Birgen, Chicago State University Frederick Blum Neighborhood Assistance Center and the University of Illinois-Chicago School of Public Health, Division of Community Health Sciences, June 2008  (1.48 MB) 

Greening Cook County, Mike Quigley, Cook County Commissioner
April 2005  (599 KB) 

Healthy Urban Development Checklist: A Guide For Health Services When Commenting On Development Policies, Plans And Proposals, NSW Department of Health, 2009  (2.82 MB) 

Improving The Quality of Life In South Chicago: The New Commun-ities Initiative, SDCOM, Summer 2000  (1.72 MB) 

Keeping It Green: A Citizen's Guide to Urban Land Protection in Canada, Evergreen, 2005  (191 KB)

Managing Urban Parks For A Racially And Ethnically Diverse Clientele, Paul Gobster, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service, North Central Research Station, 2002  (191 KB)

Metropolitan Natural Area Protection To Maximize Public Access And

Species Representation, Jane A. Ruliffson, Robert G. Haight, Paul H. Gobster, Frances R. Homansa, March 2006  (1.21 MB)

Neighborhood Open Space Management: A Report on Greening Strategies in Baltimore and Six Other Cities, The Parks & People Foundation, Spring 2000 (231 KB) 

No Place Like Home: The State of Hispanic Housing in Chicago,

Los Angeles, and New York City (2003), Eileen Diaz McConnell, University of Illinois, June 2005, (897 KB)

Paving Our Way to Water Shortages: How Sprawl Aggravates Drought, Betsy Otto, Katherine Ransel, & Jason Todd, American Rivers, Deron Lovaas and Hannah Stutzman, Natural Resources Defense Council, John Bailey, Smart Growth America, 2002  (525 KB)

Planning for Parks, Recreation, and Open Space In Your Community, Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development, February 2005  (4.24 MB) 

Quality Of Life Indicators: Northwest Indiana (Draft), Northwest Indiana Quality of Life Council, June 2003  (2.93 MB) 

Regenerating Community: The Recovery of a Space for Citizens, John L. McKnight, Northwestern University, May 2003  (56 KB) 

Sensible Tools Handbook for Indiana: A Guidance For Public Officials, Professionals and Citizens Interested In Applying Sensible Growth, Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission,

July 2007  (4.91 MB) 

Staying in the Game: Exploring Options for Urban Sustainability,

Urban Sustainability Learning Group, The Tides Center,1996  (402 KB) 

Talk The Talk; A GuideTo the Language of Transportation Planning, Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission (NWIRPC),

2003  (70 KB) 

Taking The High Road: Protecting Open Space Along America’s Highways, Preston L. Schiller, Trust for Public Land, 2002  (10.87 MB) 

The EPA and Environmentalism in Chicago: Recommendations for a Community Based Approach, Elizabeth C. Babcock, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region V, August 1997 (46.8 KB) 

The Metropolis Housing Index: Housing As Opprtunity, Chicago

Metropolis 2020, July 2004 2003 (5.08 MB) 

The Metropolis Plan: Choices For The Chicago Region, Chicago

Metropolis 2020, February 2003 (6.48 MB) 

The Multicultural Metropolis: Neighborhood Diversity & Segregation

Patterns in the City of Chicago, 1990-2000, Sandoval, 2006 (1.16 MB) 

2040 Regional Framework Plan, Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission (NIPC), September 2005  (40.59 MB)

UNDER PRESSURE: Land Consumption in the Chicago Region,      1998-2028, Openlands Project, June 1999  (2.44 MB) 

Urban Conservation Policy Handbook, The Mid-America Association of Conservation Districts (MAACD), June 1998  (1.79 MB) 

Weighing the Costs and Benefits of Expanding the St. Lawrence Seaway: An Economic, Environmental, and Policy Analysis, Sarita Hermant Muley, University of Chicago, May 2005  (552 KB)

Where We Stand: A Snapshot of Northwest Indiana, Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission (NIRPC), Sept. 2008  (7.55 MB)

Back to Research Reports