2026 Chautauqua: Expanding upon the Salon Conversation: The Housing Paradigm 

Be on the forefront of discussing and driving change in our housing market by attending LAI Chicago Region’s Chautauqua. This members-only event includes breakfast and an in-depth discussion unpacking what’s shaping housing across our region and what comes next.Building directly on the urgent, collaborative dialogue ignited at our recent Spring Salon Conversation (The Housing Paradox: Complex Entitlements, Fewer Homes, and Rising Rents and Home Costs), this year’s Chautauqua shifts the focus from identifying systemic barriers to executing real-world solutions.  The complexities of modern housing demand more than traditional, siloed approaches. As our region navigates shifting demographics, compounding economic pressures, and an unprecedented demand for affordability, the core challenge is no longer just where we build, but how we build equitably, sustainably, and resiliently. To ground our collective thinking, the morning will open with a cornerstone Plenary Address from CMAP Principal Planner, Enrique Castillo. This opening address will set the stage by connecting regional trends directly to local opportunities and constraints, and exploring the economic, political, and spatial landscapes of our current housing market. Following the plenary, we will invite you to discuss specific themes in structured breakout groups to distill the chaos into a sharp, impactful manifesto of key takeaways that we can put into practice.

Speakers and Moderators Include:

• Enrique Castillo,

MUPP, Principal Planner for Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

We’ll explore questions like:

• How can multi-disciplinary teams overcome the paradox of complex entitlements to build high-quality, dense housing faster?
  
• What design and land-use strategies ensure that new housing developments preserve community authenticity and safeguard local identity rather than accelerating displacement?
  
• How do we effectively balance market-rate development incentives with the deep infrastructure investments required for long-term equity and climate resiliency?

This won’t be a passive lecture—this is a hands-on, practical dialogue with experts from architecture firms, universities, developers, and beyond.

More information