Urbana, Illinois

How Urbana is governed

Form of government not yet listed.

0 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.

• Mayor

  Executive

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  The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.

  • City Manager / Administrator

    Executive

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    The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).

    • Police Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the police department.

    • Fire Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the fire and emergency services department.

    • Public Works Director

      Administration & departments

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      Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.

    • Finance Director

      Administration & departments

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      The budget, taxes, and city accounts.

    • Planning & Zoning Director

      Administration & departments

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      Land use, zoning, building permits.

    • Parks & Recreation Director

      Administration & departments

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      Parks, programs, and public facilities.

• City Council

  Legislative

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  The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.

  • City Clerk

    Administration & departments

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    Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.

  • City Attorney

    Administration & departments

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    The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.

  • Boards & Commissions

    Legislative

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    Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.

• Municipal Court

  Judicial

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  Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.

  • Municipal Judge

    Judicial

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    Presides over the municipal court.

Website

urbanail.gov

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Population over time

From 39,484 in 2007 to 38,336 in 2020 (−2.9%).

History

The Urbana area was first settled by Europeans in 1822, when it was called "Big Grove". When the county of Champaign was organized in 1833, the county seat was located on 40 acres of land, 20 acres donated by William T. Webber and 20 acres by M. W. Busey, considered to be the city's founder, and the name "Urbana" was adopted after Urbana, Ohio, the hometown of State Senator John W. Vance, who authored the enabling act creating Champaign County. The creation of the new town was celebrated for the first time on July 4, 1833.

Stores began opening in 1834. The first mills were founded in c. 1838-50. The town's first church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the parsonage, was built in 1840 by the Rev. A. Bradshaw, with the Baptist Church following in 1855. The Presbyterian Church was founded in 1856. The city's first school was built in 1854.

Urbana suffered a setback when the Chicago branch of the Illinois Central Railroad, which had been expected to pass through town, was instead laid down two miles west, where the land was flatter. The town of West Urbana grew up around the train depot built there in 1854; further, in 1861, its name was changed to Champaign. The competition between the two cities provoked Urbana to tear down the 10-year-old county courthouse and replace it with a much larger and fancier structure, to ensure that the county seat would remain in Urbana.

Champaign-Urbana was selected as the site for a new state agricultural school, thanks to the efforts of Clark Griggs. Illinois Industrial University, which evolved into the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, opened in 1868 with 77 students.

A number of efforts to merge Urbana and Champaign have failed at the polls.

On October 9, 1871, a fire burned much of downtown Urbana. Children playing with matches started the fire. (It is unrelated to the Great Chicago Fire that started the day before, though both fires occurred during severe drought and were spread by high winds.)

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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• Pinckneyville 5,066
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