Yes Oak Park

'Single Stair' zoning reform, technical fix for affordable housing

'Single Stair' reform is a bit of a wonky zoning reform that can significant increase density and decrease building costs for multi-family housing. https://www.planning.org/planning/2025/nov/how-a-single-stairway-can-take-affordable-housing-to-a-new-level/ Colorado made a bold housing move earlier this year: To encourage higher-density development and enhance the quality

People Over Parking Act could dramatically impact development in Oak Park

The People Over Parking Act, just passed as part of a larger omnibus transit package, prohibits municipalities from requiring parking in areas served by transit. Under the bill, parking minimums will be eliminated for both commercial and residential properties within ½ mile of a L or train stop, or along bus

Join us on Discord

We've got a shiny new Discord server. https://discord.gg/SYEj2vZZR

The HPC Isn't Oak Park's HOA

Nobody elected the Oak Park Historic Preservation Commission. Opponents of new housing in Downtown Oak Park are in a tizzy. The Village Board has voted to allow planning to continue for a new apartment development, disagreeing with the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) in the process. Preservationists feel the board oversteps

Oak Park Housing Myths

Work on local housing politics long enough and you'll start to see the same arguments over and over again. Here's a decoder ring. You could fill a book with the arguments housing opponents use across the nation to oppose new construction. But like just like our

Yes Oak Park Meetup -Thur Oct 23, 6PM

Join us at Kettlestrings, 800 S. Oak Park Avenue, Thur Oct 23, 6PM, to meet other members and discuss what we can do to say Yes! to new housing in Oak Park. The Village Board will soon be considering zoning reform. We need to get organized and ensure that our

Zoning dissent at the board table

Trustee's Wesley and Straw vote against renewing our current zoning laws. Trustee Wesley: “For me, it’s basically approving racism,” he said. “When we drop a new zoning map that is not drawn from the legacy of racism, then I’ll vote ‘yes.’” Oak Park approves zoning map,

Take our housing survey

Zoning Reform SurveyThis survey aims to understand your attitudes and opinions regarding zoning reform, single family zoning, and missing middle housing.Google Docs

Single Stair reform

"Freeing space taken up by a stairway allows for exciting design and development possibilities and opens thin urban lots that would otherwise be financially infeasible. Subtracting a second form of egress—which Speckert estimates can cost up to $300,000 for a small building—would also allow funds and

Zoning reform stalls in Forest Park

The proposed reforms would increase the allowed lot coverage in denser residential districts and legalize two flats in areas where they are already grandfathered in. Why have residential zoning code updates been stalled? - Forest Park ReviewSix months after it was introduced to the village council, amendments to the residential

Chicago tackles tough rezoning efforts

Old Town, Edgewater zoning proposals that have neighborhoods divided approved by Plan CommissionZoning proposals have residents in two North Side neighborhoods divided.ABC7 Chicago

MIMBY Candidate Forum Tonight at the Library

Please show up to support diverse housing options for our future at the 'MIMBY' forum. MIMBY has recruited a coalition of groups that have opposed various developments in Oak Park. Candidates for Village Board who advocate for economic development, residential growth, missing middle and affordable housing, can use

What can we do to address our affordable housing crisis?

NPR's Fresh Air has an excellent interview with Wharton School economist Ben Keys on the causes of our current housing crisis. https://www.npr.org/2024/12/11/nx-s1-5223561/the-u-s-is-facing-a-severe-housing-shortage-will-trumps-proposals-help 'Keys notes that new construction is occurring "at a snail's pace," due, in

In depth article on Chicago's housing shortage

How City Politics Has Led to a Housing ShortageChicago desperately needs more housing. But when it comes to building apartments, the city is its own worst enemy.Chicago MagazineLeigh Giangreco Illustration by Robert Neubecker "At City Hall and in Springfield, there’s a growing movement to loosen zoning laws.

Market failures

One of the arguments we frequently hear about the lack of affordable housing is that it's evidence of a market failure. This argument has been voiced at our own board table. Typically it's made by those who are already skeptical of markets and their role in

Did the shift to remote work cause a housing shortage?

Did the shift to remote work cause the post-pandemic run-up in rental and home prices? A research summary from the San Francisco Fed makes the cases that this was a major contributing factor. "The COVID-19 pandemic reshaped the way households work. Nearly a third of employees still worked from

Obama pushes Democrats on housing

President Obama gave a full throated endorsement of zoning reform in his speech at the Democratic National Convention. “She (VP Harris) knows for example that if we want to make it easier for young people to buy a home, we need to build more units—and clear away some of

Come see us at BerrieFest Saturday September 7th

BarrieFest coming up on Saturday September 7 – South East Oak Park Community OrganizationSouth East Oak Park Community OrganizationJim Peterson We'll have a table at BerrieFest this weekend. Come get a free yard sign or sign up for regular news and updates.

The housing crisis goes beyond big cities.

The NYTimes has a long form piece on the the ongoing housing crisis and how it's impacting places we don't usually associate with dramatic spikes in rent and housing prices. They take a deep dive into Kalamazoo, my home town. Kalamazoo County’s home prices have

Massachusetts now allows ADUs by-right

Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), sometimes know as 'granny flats' have been legalized in MA by state level legislation that prevents localities from interfering with permitting on many common grounds. In Massachusetts, Your In-Law Apartment No Longer Makes You An OutlawAs has been widely reported, Governor Maura Healey on

Tim Walz, the first YIMBY VP candidate

Tim Walz is a YIMBY. He’s supported a ton of new housing that’s kept rents down in Minnesota.Minneapolis has become a national leader on housing policy reform that’s helped the city build lots of new housing and keep rents way down.AOLEliza Relman Tim Walz, the

Explore Chicago NIMBY's exhaustive list of new projects in the west loop

Though many of these buildings go far beyond what's doable in Oak Park, there are some great architectural examples in here, some of which would fit in just fine in downtown Oak Park. I'm very glad to see that Chicago is still adding new housing at

Rethinking Zoning to Increase Affordable Housing

The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials has published a list of zoning modifications recommended to promote affordable housing: Recommendation 1: Eliminate Single Family Zoning Recommendation 2: Bundle Zoning Reforms Recommendation 3: Increase Density Near Transit Recommendation 4: Eliminate Off-site Parking Requirements This is very similar to our own

A perfect example of how zoning bans affordable housing

On July 30th, 2024, the Oak Park Village Board approved the affordable housing project at 1106 Madison. This will be a five story, 36 unit building. It's being built by the folks who did the Sugar Beet Co-op building and will be run by Housing Forward. It'

Zoning gets contentious even in very progressive areas

The Big Zoning Battle of BerkeleyThis is very important, readers.The Discourse LoungeDarrell Owens Even highly-educated Americans in Berkeley, California are so culturally addicted to suburban living that going back to the normal ways of housing density appears extremely radical to them. So those who want to keep the status-quo