7th Ward – Capital improvement projects and investments

The CIP is not intended to be an all-inclusive inventory of the City's capital needs for the upcoming five years. Instead, it is a document that outlines planned capital improvements given available financial resources. CIP
projects are funded through a variety of ways including general obligation bonds, revenue
bonds (e.g., aviation; sewer and water systems), state and federal funding, and other government and private sources. CIP projects
are City lead and on City owned infrastructure.

The 2022-2026 CIP includes the continuation of the Chicago Works program that kicked off in 2021. Chicago Works invests in
communities through infrastructure by leveraging capital investments to spur local economic development and job creation.

Chicago Works is designed to strategically address a backlog of deferred public asset maintenance items. Projects are selected and prioritized to optimize infrastructure investments, drive down operational costs, and balance and correct past inequalities to significantly improve the quality of life and livability of all Chicago communities.
Development of the CIP The five-year CIP is published on an annual basis but is subject to change throughout the year based on the ever-changing nature of infrastructure and funding sources.
Throughout the year, City departments identify, prioritize, and quantify the capital needs they anticipate over the next five years.
In February their capital improvement recommendations are submitted to the Office of Budget & Management (OBM).
OBM reviews each department’s CIP submissions for each program and sub-program and meets with department subject matter experts to discuss projects already in progress, project costs, and work schedules.

Department priorities and project funding sources are also considered for each individual project. After a thorough analysis, OBM develops a draft five-year CIP and meets with the Chief Financial Officer’s (CFO) office to correlate and align anticipated funding requirements.
The final CIP is publicly published in the 2nd quarter of the year for transparent reporting to all Chicago residents. Project Selection & Equity The City oversees a complex array of infrastructure assets from airports to traffic signals to libraries to water mains. Each asset class utilizes multifaceted specialized project selection and prioritization criterion that, at the core, considers and balances
infrastructure condition, equitable investment, and efficient asset maintenance and service delivery.

For all infrastructure assets, the following base criteria are used:
• Federal, State, or Local Regulatory Requirements: Ensure assets are in a state of good repair per requirements
• Public Health, Safety, and General Welfare: Develop safe infrastructure that is inclusive for all Chicago residents
• Cost Effectiveness: Make the most cost-effective improvement over the anticipated service life of the asset
• Inclusive Economic Opportunity: Invest in growing the local economy and enhancing the prosperity for all Chicago residents
• Enhance Neighborhood Vitality: Utilize infrastructure as a mechanism to raise the quality of life for residents
• Support Development Efforts: Select infrastructure projects to correspond with economic development for tangible and quantifiable benefits.

Individual infrastructure asset selection criteria, led by City department asset class specialists, also considers several other
factors when selecting infrastructure investments:
• Equity: Equitable investment distribution with the goal of addressing long underserved communities, populations, and users
• Project Readiness: Ability to implement on schedule without disruptive delays
• Community and Stakeholder Input: Work collaboratively with aldermen and community stakeholders when making investment decisions in their community
• Asset Policy Goals: Advance projects which connect with and promote mobility, environment, safety, and community. In transportation, these goals include implementation of Complete Streets which safely provide accommodation to all users of the public way, and Vision Zero to eliminate traffic deaths and life- altering injuries.

Sustainability Through Infrastructure The CIP addresses major sustainability issues impacting Chicago, including greenhouse gas
emissions, storm water management, and local air quality. The investments laid out in this five-year CIP will make meaningful improvements to these key issues through several different pathways.
• Improved walkability reduces dependency on motorized trips, fossil fuel consumption and carbon emissions: This five-year CIP prioritizes funding increases to improve the state of condition of the pedestrian public way, with a focus on improved safety and increased utilization of the public transit system.
In Chicago, about a quarter of all carbon emissions come from the transportation sector, and the majority of trips are still made by car. The City can increase transportation sustainability by improving conditions for pedestrians and bicycle riders along with improved access and efficiency of public transportation.
• Improved storm water management: Managing storm water in Chicago is a major challenge and will increasingly be so as climate change increases the frequency, duration, and intensity of 3 heavy rainfall events that overwhelm the City’s sewer system and result in pollution of Chicago’s precious lake and river resources. This CIP will improve the ability for streets and alleys to absorb storm water by increasing the number of green alleys and planting thousands more trees which help absorb and retain water.
• Improved local air quality and carbon sequestration: Making a substantial investment to plant trees along streets across the City will have a measurable impact on improved local air quality, reducing urban summer temperatures through shading and cooling, and sequestering carbon from the atmosphere.