Building Capacity Through Collaboration In Chicago’s Suburbs

Municipalities in Chicago’s suburbs are increasingly working together on housing and community development issues to create efficiencies of scale, leverage outside expertise, and stretch limited resources. In Cook County, the Chicago Southland Housing and Community Development Collaborative (CSHCDC) and the West Cook County Housing Collaborative (WCCHC) are two examples of cross-jurisdictional collaboration that have greatly enhanced the capacity of the 29 municipalities they represent. In the five years since their creation, the two groups have helped to attract public- and private-sector partners and resources to participating communities, which has resulted in new housing and jobs and replicable planning and development tools. This brief explores what the two groups have been able to achieve, as well as lessons learned that can help other communities considering collaborative strategies…Please click here to read the full brief by by Robin Snyderman and Beth Dever on the Confronting Suburban Poverty in America web site.