Orland Park begins creating a water conservation code

The Village of Orland Park plays a leading role in environmentally sustainable practices and initiatives.  It boasts the nation’s first LEED Gold Certified police station headquarters, as well as many organizations, agencies, and individuals committed to sustainable economic development aware  of human and environmental needs.  The village works with these businesses and individuals through a number of its green initiatives, all part of Smart Living Orland Park. In 2009, the Village created the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Municipal Action Plan (ECOMAP) to reduce the amount of energy used by the community. 

A key goal of Orland Park’s ECOMAP is to educate and provide information to major water consumers on water conservation. Now, the Village has partnered with CMAP’s Local Technical Assistance (LTA) program to tailor the 2010 CMAP Model Water Use Conservation Ordinance and recommendations from the Water 2050 and GO TO 2040 plans to emphasize water conservation and efficiency through Orland Park's codes and programs. The new water conservation code will recommend ordinance language for increased water conservation practices in a unified Water Resources Chapter for Land Development Code.  The recommendation will then be presented to the Village Board for consideration. 

Learn more on February 22 

This month, the Village of Orland Park and CMAP are analyzing the village’s current water use, existing ordinance, and efficiency programs as well as gathering initial public input regarding water conservation issues. As part of that effort, the Village is inviting local residents, business owners, community leaders, and other stakeholders to attend a special event.

“This is a great opportunity for the community to get involved,” said Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin. “We want everyone’s input as the Village works with CMAP to tailor a water conservation code for the village,” the mayor added.

The first public meeting will be held Wednesday, February 22, 2012, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Orland Park Public Library, 14921 Ravinia Avenue. The meeting will feature a presentation on the need for the project, how much water is currently being used in the village, and how the project may increase water conservation practices for all sectors in the community.

“We invite everyone to participate in these meetings that will help to shape Orland Park’s water conservation program,” McLaughlin said.

For more information and to RSVP to this public event, please contact Nora Beck, CMAP Associate Planner (nbeck@cmap.illinois.gov or 312-676-7470). 

HUD and CMAP build capacity for local planning 

Especially in challenging economic times, many communities have difficulty allocating enough resources to plan as proactively as they would prefer.  At the same time, proactive planning is necessary for economic prosperity and protecting community assets.  Through a grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), CMAP is helping fill this gap by making staff resources and grants available to assist with local planning projects that help to implement GO TO 2040, the first comprehensive plan for metropolitan Chicago in more than 100 years. 

The HUD grant to CMAP was announced one day after leaders of the seven-county region, on October 13, 2010, unanimously adopted GO TO 2040.  The region’s plan establishes coordinated strategies that help the region’s 284 communities address transportation, housing, economic development, open space, the environment, and other quality-of-life issues.  See www.cmap.illinois.gov for more information.

With the three-year $4.25 million HUD award (http://www.cmap.illinois.gov/press-release-10-14-10), CMAP has begun a new Local Technical Assistance program as part of the federal interagency Partnership for Sustainable Communities. CMAP issued a call for projects in early 2011, prompting more than 220 proposals from over 130 municipalities, counties, interjurisdictional groups, and nongovernmental organizations -- an indication of significant unmet demand for local planning capacity. 

In March, CMAP began partnering with 62 local governments, nonprofits, and intergovernmental organizations selected for assistance.  Like the Village of Lakemoor effort, these projects address local issues at the intersection of transportation, land use, and housing, including the natural environment, economic growth, and community development.  Download a full list of projects at http://goo.gl/1nYBM. 

CMAP is the official regional planning organization for the northeastern Illinois counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will.  

Media contact:  Justine Reisinger, 312-386-8802 or jreisinger@cmap.illinois.gov

Project contact:  Hala Ahmed, 312-386-8800 or hahmed@cmap.illinois.gov