Wylie Crowther

Wylie Crowther is a Research Assistant at MPC, and he will split his time between supporting the City’s Cut the Tape Task Force and MPC’s technical assistance initiatives. He will support the task force through meeting planning, outreach, and management as they meet to discuss streamlining the approval process for housing and commercial development. Wylie will collect data that will support the task force in finding solutions for the city to build faster, everywhere, and together. Wylie will also support the evaluation of MPC’s technical assistance pathways to determine the impacts of these programs and find opportunities for new program models. He will work closely with MPC’s current technical assistance program, Change Lab, where MPC provides training and/or implementation services to support systems change.

Wylie recently graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a BA in Urban Studies where he focused on urban spatial analyses, transportation policy, and LGBTQ+ inclusion in the built environment. Major projects he completed through his education include collaborating with the Chicago Department of Transportation to recommend strategies for Divvy bike-share to reach more Chicagoans, creating an all-gender restroom map of UIC’s campus, and aiding in a climate study on LGBTQ+ students at UIC. Before joining MPC, Wylie interned for the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s Transportation Improvement Program and provided GIS research support at UIC’s Urban Data Visualization Lab.

A proud Crucian from St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands, Wylie has fallen in love with Chicago and is happy to be making meaningful changes in his new home. He hopes to bring what he’s learned back to his community in the islands as they develop their first-ever comprehensive land and water use plan. In his free time, Wylie finds creative joy through LEGO-building, DJing, and spending time with his cat, Kathy.