CREDITS: 5.5 CM

ABSTRACT

NOTE: This mobile workshop will start and end at the Hilton Orrington/Evanston.

This mobile workshop takes participants through a critical planning corridor in the South Suburbs of Chicago to examine the visible and structural impacts of disinvestment, abandonment, and uneven development—and the emerging opportunities for revitalization.

Starting in Harvey, Illinois, participants will observe the long-term effects of fiscal distress, industrial decline, and housing vacancy, with attention to how municipal capacity constraints have shaped the built environment and service delivery. The tour then moves to Chicago Heights, Illinois, where participants will analyze patterns of commercial corridor decline, legacy industrial land use, and fragmented redevelopment efforts.

In Glenwood, Illinois, the workshop will explore suburban transition dynamics, including aging housing stock, land reuse challenges, and regional economic shifts that have impacted community stability and growth potential.

The final stops in Homewood and Flossmoor, Illinois provide a comparative lens, highlighting more recent investment, downtown revitalization strategies, transit-oriented development, and stronger municipal capacity. This contrast allows participants to directly evaluate how governance, planning strategy, and regional positioning can dramatically alter community trajectories even within close proximity.

Throughout the workshop, participants will engage in guided discussion on structural inequities in suburban development, land use policy implications, and strategies for equitable reinvestment. The session is designed specifically for students and emerging professionals interested in urban planning, public policy, community development, and real estate, with an emphasis on critical observation and applied learning.

This mobile workshop is planned for a 5.5 hour trip. This extended route is intentionally designed to provide a comparative, corridor-based analysis of disinvestment and reinvestment patterns across the South Suburbs of Chicago, where short geographic distance reveals dramatically different planning outcomes shaped by municipal capacity, land use policy, and regional economic shifts.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES 

1. Identify physical and socioeconomic indicators of urban decline, disinvestment, and abandonment in South Suburban communities.
2. Compare and contrast planning strategies and municipal capacity between communities experiencing decline and those undergoing reinvestment.
3. Evaluate how regional planning decisions and infrastructure investment patterns influence long-term community development outcomes.