Bikes
Portage Park: The Recap Is In — and It's Encouraging
Yesterday morning's CT noted that no recap of Thursday's Portage Park Neighborhood Bike Network meeting had yet been published. Now both Block Club Chicago and Streetsblog Chicago have weighed in, and the picture is largely positive for bike advocates.
More than 200 people filled the Portage Park Senior Center — a crowd large enough that a line stretched to the parking lot — to hear CDOT's presentation on three proposed striped bike lanes (Central, Laramie, and Montrose) and five neighborhood greenways. The turnout itself signals something: this is a neighborhood that cares about how its streets work.
David Smith, CDOT's assistant commissioner for Complete Streets, said the response was encouraging: "The community has really responded very well to this. They're very engaged, and I think there's a lot of excitement."
The pivotal question heading into the meeting was Alderman Anthony Sposato (38th Ward), who controls most of the project footprint and had reserved judgment until he heard from constituents. His read: "I support whatever the community supports. I think it's a good plan, but if the community doesn't like it, I don't like it. We have to calm traffic down around here." That framing — "I think it's a good plan" with a democratic hedge — is about as close to endorsement as a cautious alderman gets before the comment period closes.
A few specific concerns surfaced from the room. One resident worried about congestion on Central Avenue, a busier road, and suggested the Sunnyside greenway might be more feasible. Another said she wished there had been more outreach to residents living directly on the affected streets. A CPS employee said he wished the proposal included protected lanes rather than painted ones on the busier streets — a valid critique that advocates will likely continue to press.
For now, CDOT says it will use all the feedback to refine the traffic-calming measures. Installation is slated for late 2026 or early 2027.
The CDOT survey closes March 15 — eight days from now. If you bike in or around Portage Park, Jefferson Park, or the surrounding northwest-side grid, this is a direct channel to CDOT.
Lead
NRDC: Chicago Needs to Triple Its Pace — Starting Now
A report published yesterday by the Natural Resources Defense Council lands with urgency: Chicago is not moving nearly fast enough to comply with federal lead service line replacement requirements, and the window to course-correct is closing.
The numbers are stark. Of Chicago's estimated 412,000 lead or suspected-lead service lines — the most of any city in the country — only about 8,000 have been replaced since the city's program launched in 2021. The city's current plan calls for replacing 8,300 lines per year starting in 2027, on a 50-year timeline. The EPA's Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, however, will require Chicago to replace roughly 20,000 lines per year — more than double the city's plan, once the federal clock starts in 2027.
NRDC senior policy advocate Chakena D. Sims outlines three specific correctives:
Publish a neighborhood-level spending plan. The city has repeatedly struggled to get funds out the door — drawing only $70–90 million of a $325 million federal loan that expires next year, and spending just $41.5 million of $60 million authorized in 2023. Monthly or quarterly targets, broken down by neighborhood, would create accountability.
Invest in trusted community partners. Cities that have accelerated replacement have done so by working through block club presidents, faith leaders, and neighborhood organizations — not relying solely on government workers and mailers. Chicago's notification failures have been documented: as of mid-2025, only about 62,000 of 900,000 required notices had gone out, leaving more than 90% of at-risk residents uninformed.
Restructure contracts. Short, infrequent contracts with vague scopes make it hard for contractors to bid and impossible to scale concurrent crews across neighborhoods. Longer, more specific contracts would let the city run multiple work zones simultaneously.
The report is a useful document to cite if you're engaging with your alderperson or state legislators on this issue. The window before 2027 is also the window for the city to demonstrate it can spend the money it already has.
Free lead tests are available by calling 311 or visiting chicagowaterquality.org. Income-eligible homeowners may qualify for a free full service line replacement.
Housing & Abundance
ADU Ordinance: 25 Days Out
With April 1 approaching fast, a brief flag: Chicago's citywide ADU ordinance — expanding accessory dwelling units beyond the five pilot zones to all multifamily districts, plus alderman-opted-in single-family zones — takes effect on that date. April 1 is also when the city will begin accepting building permit applications under the new rules.
The expansion covers an area roughly 135% larger than the pilot zones, and represents a meaningful step toward closing Chicago's estimated 100,000-unit housing shortfall through gentle density. The main catch: in RS-zoned areas outside the original pilot zones, each alderman controls whether and where ADUs are permitted — meaning 50 wards could produce 50 different local regimes. If you own property in an RS zone, now is the time to check in with your alderperson's office about whether they've opted in.
Questions: adu@cityofchicago.org.
Portage Park bike network survey open through March 15 at chicago.gov. Illinois primary election: March 17. City Council next meets March 18. ADU ordinance effective April 1.