It’s time to make the beloved housing solution that turned Chicago into a bustling, modern city legal again.

2-to-4-flats were so successful that today virtually every Chicago neighborhood has them. They are everywhere, largely affordable, and have been an integral part of their neighborhoods for over a century.

It’s time to re-legalize 2-to-4-flats citywide and bring back the kind of fiscally responsible incremental development that made Chicago a strong town.

A proposed redevelopment in Chicago would replace parking lots around the United Center with a walkable, mixed-use entertainment district. By being respectful of the current residents’ needs and building out the development incrementally, the 1901 Project could be a rare megadevelopment that is not only completed but is also enjoyed by all.

In this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution, host Tiffany Owens Reed is joined by Chloe Groome and Aaron Feldman, co-leads of the Local Conversation group Strong Towns Chicago.

They discuss the initiatives that Strong Towns Chicago is working on, including legalizing fourplexes throughout the city and getting city officials involved in tactical urbanism. They also talk about the challenges the group faces and their strategies for overcoming those difficulties, including building a coalition with other advocacy groups.

What’s Chicago’s fastest-growing neighborhood? Here’s a hint: its population spikes at 9 AM every weekday and declines at 5 PM. Although it’s long been defined by its towering office blocks, people are rapidly making the Loop their 24/7 home. From 2020 to 2023, the Loop grew by 9% to 46,000. This is up from around 12,000 residents in 1990. More impressive yet: this makes Chicago’s downtown the fastest growing in the country.

To compete with the suburbs, American cities should try an urban typology that has kept families in European city centers for millennia. With traditional courtyard urbanism, wall-to-wall buildings frame a city block so that the interior courtyard is closed off to the streets. The buildings are mid rise, usually 4-6 stories tall, and are built to the property line, so there is little to no setback. Because the buildings are high and wall-to-wall, the interior courtyards are safe and sound-insulated. By providing residents convenient access to car-free green space where children can play safely, courtyard blocks are ideal for families.

With its educational activities and advocacy, Strong Towns Chicago is working to make our neighborhoods safer and more pleasant to live, work and move through. From small community gatherings to city hall, this quiet, bottom-up revolution in our city’s development is slowly gathering steam and getting louder.