Big Tent Holiday Happy Hour ✨
We're closing out another big year for Chicago urbanists with a bang! Save the date for our co-hosted holiday party at 6pm on Wednesday, December 11th at Revolution Brewing's Taproom. We will send out a separate email once the event page is live so that folks can RSVP.
Revolution Brewing's Taproom is located at 3340 N. Kedzie Ave. It is a short walk from the Belmont CTA Blue Line station, as well as CTA bus route 77.
Four-flats are so hot right now 🥵
Last month, UE and Strong Towns Chicago launched our petition urging Chicago City Council to support missing middle housing by allowing four-flats to be built citywide. We've already seen an incredible amount of support for our initiative, with over 500 supporters (including Sierra Club Illinois) adding their support. If you haven't signed yet, please add your support and help us reach our goal of 4,000 four-flat supporters.
Tell Chicago City Council you support four-flats citywide!
Get involved with Evanston's march towards housing abundance!
The City of Evanston has kicked off the engagement process for the draft Envision Evanston 2045, which will set the vision and strategy for the city for several years to come. Our partners Joining Forces for Affordable Housingare mobilizing people to engage with this process to demand zoning reform for increased housing abundance and affordability through their Equitable Zoning Reform Campaign. Sign up for their newsletter to stay informed of all the upcoming meetings and let the city know that you support greater housing density!
Chicago's Bungalow Belt 🤝 ADUs 🏘️
Another month, another UE member published! This month's honors go to Danny for his op-ed in Crain's. In the op-ed, Danny makes the case that allowing ADUs citywide will help restore the Bungalow Belt's historical role as a flexible, multi-generational space for Chicago working-class families. He also notes that requiring homeowners to obtain special use permits to construct an ADU, as some have suggested, would make ADUs prohibitively expensive, disproportionally impacting working families and seniors.
"ADUs allow families to live together while maintaining privacy, aligning with the bungalows’ original purpose. This especially empowers the 63% of Hispanic multi-generational households where home buying is a family affair. Moreover, adding ADUs provides rental opportunities within properties, echoing early 20th-century practices when bungalows were affordable housing solutions for diverse populations—a crucial feature in a city grappling with affordability issues."
Read Danny's op-edSupport ADUs citywide!
What else have we been up to?
- On October 29th, five UE members spoke in support of abundant housing at the Zoning Committee meeting. Dozens of our members have given public comment at City Hall; if you would like to receive training or advice on how to give public comment, join us on Slack!
- On November 9th, UE members attended City Civics Day, an annual event hosted by the Chicago Department of Planning and Development where attendees learn how to create positive change in their neighborhoods; our group picture was featured on their social media!