An influx of capital and recovery funding provides an opportunity for municipalities to make infrastructure investments that will improve residents’ quality of life, reduce racial and ethnic disparities, and mitigate the effects of climate change.

Cook County is home to more than 130 municipalities – cities, towns, and villages ranging in size from the City of Chicago, with a population of more than 2.7 million, to the village of Phoenix, with fewer than 2,000 residents. While these numerous independent governments support residents’ desire for local control, the sheer number of them creates significant challenges in the delivery of certain government functions, particularly capital investments – transportation, water, sewer, and public building investments – that require scale and specialized capacity.

An influx of capital and recovery funding from the federal and/or state government provides an opportunity for municipalities to make critical investments in their infrastructure. However, small municipalities often lack the capacity and capital planning expertise needed to access or invest these funds or meet the compliance obligations that come along with them. In addition to those challenges, some municipalities, particularly those in the south and west suburbs, have experienced decades of persistent disinvestment. The resulting lack of funding, staff, technical knowledge, and other resources further diminishes their capacity to make critical capital investments.

Since 2021, Civic Consulting Alliance and our pro bono partners supported Cook County and its Bureau of Asset Management (BAM) – which services all of Cook County’s real estate assets – to strategize and implement a new “Build Up Cook” program.

The Build Up Cook program provides capacity and expertise to help municipalities leverage time-sensitive recovery funding and advance their critical capital infrastructure projects. This collaborative program goes beyond the traditional ad hoc support that the County typically provides for capital improvements and will prioritize working with communities that have experienced historic disinvestment. By making these investments, Cook County seeks to bolster communities’ economic development goals, address resident needs, and strengthen under-resourced communities’ long-term internal capacity.

Below is an overview of the phases of support that Civic Consulting Alliance and our pro bono partners provided to help the Bureau of Asset Management strategize and implement the “Build Up Cook” program.

• In 2021, we explored the potential for BAM to leverage its internal expertise and provide technical assistance regarding capital projects and facilities management to local governments in Cook County, prioritizing communities identified in the Social Vulnerability Index.
• In 2022, we launched a second project with pro bono partners Analytics8 and KPMG to build a visualization tool that applies an equity lens to prioritize assistance for communities that have experienced persistent disinvestment and need support to secure critical infrastructure and public services investments. 
• In 2023, we assisted Cook County with program design and governance structure to stand up the Build Up Cook program pilot. Civic Consulting Alliance worked closely with BAM to develop a comprehensive plan for launching the program, and supported the creation and initial convening of an Interagency Working Group (IWG) that will meet regularly to understand municipality needs, coordinate resources, and equitably allocate support across municipalities. The IWG transforms how the County supports municipalities. It includes representation from relevant County Bureaus and CMAP, and provides a forum for the collaborative identification and prioritization of municipal infrastructure projects and capacity-building initiatives.

The strategy, implementation roadmap, data tools, and Interagency Working Group launch completed by Civic Consulting Alliance and its pro bono partners will be critical to Build Up Cook’s success.  Now, with additional capability provided by the Bureau of Asset Management, under-invested communities will have support to secure critical infrastructure and public services investments that will improve the quality of life for their residents. This includes reducing racial and ethnic disparities on income, health, and wealth, as well as mitigating the effects of climate change.

Cook County recently launched the Build Up Cook program to help municipalities with capital planning, project management, and compliance. The program is designed to prioritize working with communities that have experienced historic disinvestment. It is a significant step forward in the County’s efforts to provide sustainable support for
municipalities to improve their infrastructure, bolster economic development, and address residents’ needs. The Chicago Tribune article, “Posen, Phoenix mayors say Cook County program to tackle infrastructure troubles is paying dividends” details the impact the pilot program has already made in the south suburbs.

Partners:  Analytics8, KPMG, Protiviti

The Build Up Cook project was featured in our 2023 Impact Report – visit impactreport.ccachicago.org to learn about our recent projects.