09/25/2025

Calumet: Off the Grid - A New Delta

Student Project

Graduate students and researchers in the Master of City Design program, in collaboration with the new Center for Climate and Health Equity (CECHE) at UIC, explored ecological planning and design solutions for the future of Calumet. From Hegewisch to Pullman, Calumet: Off the Grid addressed the region’s fragmented landscapes with climate adaptive, equity driven solutions that reimagine the relationship between people, water, and land. We also brought our regional vision to the neighborhood scale in the Pullman community, identifying this as the first gateway neighborhood. We used a variety of community engagement techniques through site visits, community events, and informal conversations to co-design a final plan. Our summer engagement efforts took place over four weeks, making the design process a challenge. However, Pullman residents are highly engaged and have experience with participatory planning efforts, which made our work as students with big dreams for the future Calumet region truly award winning.

Click here for the project website.

Click here for a .pdf of the plan.

Project team: 

• Master of City Design Students: Ashley McKnight, George Perkins, Disha Chande, Kshitij Sriperambuduru, Clare Colvin, John Mack, Aesha Acharya, Zi Tang
• Master of Urban Planning & Policy Students: Margot Bronec, Elizabeth Burton, Noah Arroyo

Submitted by: University of Illinois at Chicago

Funding agency: MUSE Community + Design, Design Workshop, SOM

Supporting organizations: Tracy Murray, City of Chicago 9th Ward and the Historic Pullman Foundation,