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III. Comprehensive Plan - The Village of Melrose Park 2040 (pg
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Comprehensive Plan Melrose Park 2040
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This project provided hands on experience with examining a municipality and developing a document that fosters a shared vision for the future. I worked with a large group of peers and stakeholders to create a 2040 Comprehensive Plan and set of recommendations for Melrose Park. My main focus was Chapter 5, Natural Resources and Hazards.
Published April 2020 The Village of Melrose Park is located within suburban Cook County, twelve miles west of the City of Chicago. In the next century, Melrose Park will face many challenges to remain a community that is welcoming to immigrants and industrial employers.
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In 2040,
Melrose Park will continue to thrive as an industrious community that centers its residents by investing in their growth, preserving their culture, and sustaining their environment & well-being.
Melrose Park will achieve this vision by first taking a resident-centered approach to planning, as the needs of community members must be given the same level of importance as that of industry. The prioritization of inclusive growth will further this vision by expanding industry and business in Melrose Park while also enhancing safeguards, job training, and educational opportunities for residents. Similarly, Melrose Park should embrace and emphasize the diverse cultures and immigrant heritage of its residents while preserving its legacy as an industrial suburb. And lastly, Melrose Park should sustain the well-being of its residents by remedying the harmful environmental e ects of manufacturing and industry while best utilizing its natural resources.
INTRODUCTION 11
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Des Plaines River. Photo by Kazuya Kawamura
In 2040, Melrose Park will sustainably manage its natural resources, expand access to green space and parks, and reduce environmental stress related to flooding, pollution, and climate change.
OBJECTIVES AND RECOMMENDATIONS
In order for Melrose Park to continue to thrive into the future and support the well-being of its residents, the Village must make concerted e orts to protect and sustainably manage its valuable green space, parks, waterways, and air quality. This section assesses the current conditions of Melrose Park’s natural resources and hazards and makes recommendations for how to address challenges and capitalize on opportunities to improve these environmental assets for the local community and broader region.
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Parks and Green Space
The industrial heritage of Melrose Park is undeniably important for economic growth of the community and remains a key part of the Village’s history. However, it seems that the amount of industrial land use compared to open space is currently out of balance, casuing this could be causing problems for residents. Out of the 4.24 square miles in Melrose Park, 25.9% of land is allocated for industry. This is more than double the average for eight surrounding municipalities (11.1%).1 Conversely, only 1.8% of land is allocated for open space (compared to average 7.9% in neighboring communities). As mentioned in the Economic Development section, Melrose Park is a major employment center. The Village stands to benefit from balancing economic opportunities with a quality environment.
Access to a su icient quantity of parks and green space is an important factor in maintaining the health and well-being of the community. These natural resources improve air quality, provide shade, o er less crowded and quiet places, provide visual stimulation against urban landscapes, absorb stormwater runo , serve as meeting places, and restore blighted neighborhoods.
There are also methods for measuring the economic value of parks and green space. Most homebuyers are willing to pay a premium for a location with physical and/or visual access to open space and the education and recreational benefits that they provide. Increases in property values around parks lead to increases in the amount of property tax revenue that the local government receives from its residents. Net gains to the city’s annual income means that parks and green spaces could ultimately pay for their own implementation and maintenance.
Community gardens o er many opportunities for education and training, as well as physical activity. Participants learn important skills such as garden design and management, fundraising and marketing, program development and coalition building, as well as carpentry and horticulture techniques. Moderate to high physical activities are also associated with gardening, these include: digging, raking, weeding, mulching, hoeing, sowing seeds, harvesting, watering, mixing growing mediums, and replanting transplants. In addition to sites for growing food and flowers, gardens are seen as cultural and social neighborhood centers, where people go to meet with friends, family, neighbors, newcomers, and visitors. People of all ages can get together, sometimes on a daily basis, to play games, relax, exercise, cook and share food, chat, and find out what is going on in the community. Today community gardens also appeal to newly arrived immigrants, who use them to help maintain cultural traditions, preserve heritage, and pass on skills to their children. This could be very important for the thriving Hispanic population which currently makes up over 70% of Melrose Park residents.
Gardeners generally seek to improve health and wellness, practice environmental stewardship, build relationships with neighbors, and organize around other neighborhood issues and needs. Urban gardening is an e ective tool for crime reduction, community empowerment, and promotion of civic participation. A study in Denver, CO found that each new community garden contributed to residents’ increased perception of neighborhood safety and a reduction in violent and non-violent crime. Involvement in community gardens can also help neighborhoods to analyze their own problems, take action to improve economic, social, cultural, or environmental conditions, and can create a feeling of being part of society as a whole.
These spaces also serve as much more than inexpensive places to gather and relax. Community gardens have unique plants and structures that reflect the culture, creativity, and aesthetics of the members. These personalized, independently-created, and constantly changing participatory landscapes contrast sharply with the more uniform and refined aesthetics of institutionalized landscapes, such as city parks.
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Photo Source: https://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/ Pages/news/us/en/2012/Aug/0801_urbangarden.html
VILLAGE OF MELROSE PARK COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
Recommended Zones for Adding Green Space
(1) Recommended zone for planting trees in west Melrose Park Recommendations for green space near Lake ST: (2) Community garden in Westlake Hospital underused parking lot; and (3) Pocket parks in residential zones according to Lake ST Plan 9 .
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Perhaps the most valuable natural asset and recreational amenity in Melrose Park is the Des Plaines River, which borders the Village to the east. However, in 2016 the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determined the water quality of the Des Plaines River is impaired for use by aquatic life, fish, consumption, primary contact, and recreation.2 The EPA identified several reasons for this impairment, including atmospheric deposition, channelization, combined sewer overflows, municipal point source discharges, and urban runo /storm sewers. The majority of Melrose Park lies within the Lower Des Plaines River watershed and, as such, is contributing to this impairment through the deposition of air pollution, stormwater runo , and combined sewer overflows.
Air pollution is an unfortunate byproduct of the vast amount of industrial and transportation land use in Melrose Park. In the US EPA’s 2014 National Emissions Inventory database, Melrose Park had 10 documented point sources of air pollution that emitted 403 total tons of pollutants.3
Stormwater is an issue for water quality because rainwater picks up pollutants like oils, road salt, pesticides, and fertilizers as it flows across streets, sidewalks, and lawns. It also contributes to flooding, as impervious surfaces prevent rain and snowmelt from soaking into the ground and cause stormwater to pool in neighborhoods and funnel quickly into storm drains. In Melrose Park, these storm drains are connected to the sewer systems that carry wastewater from homes and businesses. This combined sewer system is frequently overwhelmed during storm events, causing sewage backups in homes and overflows of untreated sewage and stormwater into the river. In addition to the Des Plaines River, Silver Creek and Addison Creek run through Melrose Park. The flood plains for all three of these water bodies place homes and property in those areas at risk for flood damage. As shown in Map 1 (right), business owners and residents in West Melrose Park are particularly vulnerable to this flood risk. Map 1: Areas in Melrose Park Vulnerable to Flood Risk
2 Integrated Water Quality Report and Section 303(d) List (2016). Recommendation 12 3 https://edap.epa.gov/public/extensions/nei_report_2014/dashboard.html#point-db Explore tree planting and beautification initiatives.
OBJECTIVES AND RECOMMENDATIONS Melrose Park residents are a ected by the urban heat island e ect and air pollution with medium- and long-term impacts on their health. Many cities around the U.S. are implementing the “Million Trees” initiative to reduce these health impacts. As mentioned above, the EPA has documented 12 point sources of air pollution in 2014 in Melrose Park. According to the Planting Healthy Air report, trees are known to filter out fine particulate matter (PM). PM is also called “particle pollution” and can contain microscopic solids or liquids that, when inhaled, lead to serious health problems. While there has not yet been an assessment of impact on residential areas, priority should be to assess the lower income residential areas of Melrose Park. A study from the University of California stated that climate change disproportionately a ects the poor and minorities in the United States. The western area of Melrose Park has the lowest income for the residential areas.. These areas are surrounded by industry, making them optimal starting points for tree planting initiatives. Tree planting initiatives are great tools for beautification of retail and commercial corridors as well. Improving the health and visual aspects of these areas can boost economic development. It is proven that trees and green infrastructure can be e ective in lowering temperature, reducing energy costs and enhancing property valuesX.
Des Plaines River Bridge. Photo by Kazuya Kawamura 71
