carfree chicago

What’s Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana’s favorite hidden public place? Between Aug. 9 and Sept. 10, vote online at PlacemakingChicago.com for your favorite of two dozen finalists in the “What Makes Your Place Great? Your Secret Corner of Chicagoland” photo and video contest.

To find the undiscovered places that make Chicagoland great, Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) and Chicago Architecture Foundation (CAF) called on people to submit a photo or video and written description of their favorite hidden public place in the region to the “What Makes Your Place Great? Your Secret Corner of Chicagoland” contest.

I've been looking forward to the new train service planned between Chicago and Madison, Wis. So I was disappointed to hear that Scott Walker, a Republican candidate for Governor in Wisconsin, has launched a major attack against passenger trains in Wisconsin. Please ask your friends in Wisconsin to show their support for passenger rail expansion.

Wisconsin was awarded Recovery Act funds to extend the successful Amtrak Hiawatha from Milwaukee to Madison. Walker has promised to stop construction if he is elected.

This week, he held an anti-train rally in Milwaukee and began running TV ads promising to "stop this train." He even set up a special website: http://www.NoTrain.com

The Midwest High Speed Rail Association has set up an action page where Wisconsin residents can show their support. Please show your support for Amtrak expansion at:

http://www.midwesthsr.org/wisconsin

Farmers markets best serve their purpose when you can walk to one, but if you need to travel to a market, there are a number of options that are very convenient by CTA train. I missed my usual farmers' market on a recent Saturday morning, and unfortunately there's no Sunday markets in my neighborhood. So I looked up where the Sunday farmers' markets are and ventured outside my neighborhood to the Glenwood Sunday Market, because it was such an easy trip right next to the train. Here's a list of some other great options for farmers markets by train.

Red Line

Glenwood Sunday Market (Sundays) -- Morse stop

Edgewater Farmers Market (Saturdays) -- Between Granville and Thorndale stops

From Thechainlink.org, a social network for cyclists in Chicago. Thought this would be a great place to share car free thoughts....

Link is here, but I have also posted the question below. -

http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/people-who-do-not-own-cars?page...

Quite a few threads have me wondering what your lifestyle is like that it doesn’t necessitate owning a car. I think it is great that you are able to live car free, but I am wondering how this is. Many people have expressed the feeling of freedom that comes with not owning car, but for me it feels like a lack of.

Anybody who's ever visited Evanston has probably been to Davis Street. This downtown shopping district is bustling with chain stores, boutiques and restaurants. It is the place where people come to shop, dine and have fun. It is a bustling downtown... But it's not the only downtown. You see, Evanston does not have one downtown shopping district.

It has three.