How connected is your neighborhood?
Can you get to grocery stores, shops, and other amenities easily by public transit, or do you need a car? Can you walk where you need to go?
Is your community accessible and affordable for all people, including:
- Youth and seniors?
- Homeowners and renters?
- Abled and disabled?
- People of all races, ethnicities, backgrounds, and socioeconomic statuses?
These are the questions and community considerations ETOD addresses. This is also what differentiates ETOD from traditional TOD, which has historically excluded minority groups from development decision-making within their own communities.
Read more to learn more about:
- Why ETOD is needed in neighborhoods across Chicago
- The basic definition of ETOD
- TOD and ETOD policy work in the city
- Examples of successful ETOD projects
- Tools for developers who are interested in building ETOD sites
Disparities in development between the South, West and North Sides
In many North Side neighborhoods, housing costs have become unaffordable for the average household, especially for Black and Brown residents. Whereas on the South and West sides, historic disinvestment and segregation mean community residents often can’t easily access the things they need in their own neighborhoods.
While urban planning issues vary by neighborhood, ETOD can benefit every Chicagoan because our built environment is shaped through development. Depending on the approach taken – TOD or ETOD – the development process has the power to worsen or bridge gaps in equity.
What is ETOD?
ETOD, which stands for “equitable transit-oriented development,” is a framework for how to approach development in a way that helps to build more connected and equitable neighborhoods.
Put simply, ETOD means building housing and neighborhood amenities, such as large residential complexes, grocery stores, and shops, near public transit – either train or bus stops – making it easier and faster for people to get around using public transportation.
In comparison to its predecessor, TOD (transit-oriented development), ETOD places a greater emphasis on ensuring that the transit-oriented projects that get built are community-driven and serve community residents and that they advance equitable outcomes in housing, health care, and food access.
In Chicago, City policy designates an ETOD as any development within a half-mile of a train station or a quarter-mile of a major bus corridor.
ETOD projects come in all shapes and sizes, from single-floor commercial developments, to larger residential buildings, to mixed-use projects that include both elements.
ETOD has a range of benefits for all communities, including:
- Increasing access to jobs by increasing the number of businesses accessible via public transit.
- Reducing the cost of living for residents by making it easier and faster to get around without a car, which is much less expensive.
- Creating a healthier environment to live, work, and play in by encouraging a greener mode of transportation.
- Contributing to gentle density, particularly affordable housing near transit.
The evolution of ETOD in Chicago
Chicago started incentivizing transit-oriented development projects in 2013, providing parking flexibility and additional density benefits to projects located near transit throughout the city. However, nearly all projects that used the TOD incentives were located downtown and on the North Side, continuing a pattern of disinvestment long familiar to the city’s South and West Sides.
In 2019, the City updated its TOD policy and required the creation of Chicago’s first-ever equitable TOD policy plan, which was formally adopted in 2021. Since then, the City has invested over $1 billion in ETODs through grants, tax credit allocations, and other resources. In 2022, the Connected Communities Ordinance further updated the City’s zoning laws to promote ETOD across the city.
Due to these funding sources and policy changes, there are now 60+ ETOD sites throughout the city.
Example ETOD projects: What ETOD looks like in practice
ETOD comes in all shapes and sizes, from single-floor commercial developments, to larger residential buildings, to mixed-use projects that include both.
That can look like:
- 43 Green, a mixed-use development that includes affordable and market rate housing units, located near the 43rd Green line station in Bronzeville.
- The Hatchery, a food and business incubator located next to the Kedzie Green line in East Garfield Park.
- Lucy Gonzalez Parsons Apartments, a 100-unit affordable housing development built on a former parking lot near the Logan Square Blue Line station.
Get involved in ETOD in your community
If you are a developer interested in building an ETOD, or if you are a resident or community leader who wants to learn more, visit the Elevated Chicago Resources page.
If you would like to get in touch with Elevated Chicago directly, please use the information on our Contact Us page.
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