Blog

Join our annual Coalition Meeting and Advocacy Day – March 26 and 27, 2014

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Coalition meetingSmart Growth America staff and coalition members at 2013’s meeting and advocacy day.

Smart Growth America’s ally coalition is a collaborative and broad group of non-profit organizations working on state and regional smart growth issues across the country.

On March 26 and 27, 2014, Coalition members will gather in Washington, DC for our annual Coalition Meeting and Advocacy Day. Coalition members and Smart Growth America staff will come together to discuss new issues in smart growth, public policy and how the coalition as a whole can work together to advance these important issues, as well as meet with members of Congress about smart growth issues at the national level.

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You are invited: Celebrate local smart growth successes during the New Partners for Smart Growth conference

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Smart Growth America is headed to the New Partners for Smart Growth conference in Denver, CO next month, and we want to see you there.

If you plan to attend the conference, join us for a reception in honor of the local elected leaders who champion smart growth strategies across the United States. Network with high-level industry experts and innovators and learn more about Smart Growth America’s national smart growth advocacy in the coming year.

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Join Smart Growth America at the 2014 New Partners for Smart Growth Conference

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npsg-2014
The annual New Partners for Smart Growth conference brings together public officials, development professionals, advocates, and civic organizations to connect with experts from across the country and catch up on the evolving best practices in smart growth. Hundreds of speakers cross disciplines to share insights, tools and strategies for making smart growth a success in communities across the country.

This year’s conference will take place February 13-15, 2014 in Denver, CO, and Smart Growth America is excited to be one of the many organizations participating. If you plan to attend the conference, be sure to catch the following sessions featuring Smart Growth America’s members and staff.

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Smart Growth America's Local Leaders Council welcomes 100th member

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LLC Board meetingThe Local Leaders Council’s inaugural Advisory Board meeting in October 2012.

Earlier this month, we marked a milestone achievement for bringing smart growth practices to more communities nationwide: the addition of the 100th member to our Local Leaders Council.

The Local Leaders Council is a nonpartisan group of municipal officials who share a passion for building great towns, cities, and communities. Representing communities of all sizes from across the United States, Council members are dedicated to using smart growth strategies to help their hometowns compete and grow in today’s economy.

Local Leaders Council

Local leaders, regional teams gather in Salt Lake City to talk smart growth implementation

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LLC in Salt Lake CityFrom left: Mayor Tom Beehan, Councilmember Edmund Ford Jr., Councilmember Charles Landreth, Mayor Ruth Randleman, Council President Lewis Reed, and County Board Member Chris Zimmerman.

Elected officials, urban planners and municipal staff from ten regions across the country met in Salt Lake City, UT this week to learn and strategize about the implementation of major regional planning and sustainability projects funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Sustainable Communities program.

Ralph Becker, Mayor of Salt Lake City and member of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, opened the three-day event by speaking about how regional planning has benefited his city. “If you look at what’s happening in our downtown or with our transit system; if you look at the University of Utah and how it catalyzes economic growth; or if you look at our growing diversity, it is clear that in this community there is a common sense of purpose for who we are, what we want to be, and how we’re going to get there.”

Local Leaders Council

Jake Day on partnerships and community support in Salisbury, MD

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salisbury-mdPlaza in Downtown Salisbury, MD. Photo by Ed LeCompte via Flickr.

As the “Hub of Delmarva,” Salisbury, MD is the largest city on the Delaware-Maryland-Virginia peninsula. With a population just over 30,000, Salisbury serves as the commercial, transportation, media and employment hub of the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

Jake Day, City Council President since April 2013 and Advisory Board member for the Maryland Chapter of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, is looking to reverse decades of disinvestment in Salisbury’s core.

Local Leaders Council

Rina Cutler encourages cooperation between city and state DOTs at annual Complete Streets dinner

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Rina CutlerRina Cutler addresses the National Complete Streets Coalition’s annual dinner.

Friends and partners of the National Complete Streets Coalition gathered in Washington, DC last night to celebrate the Complete Streets movement, to discuss the Coalition’s work over the last year and to recognize the annual support from the Coalition’s 50 partner organizations.

The evening’s featured guest was Rina Cutler, Deputy Mayor for Transportation and Utilities for the city of Philadelphia. In her remarks, Cutler highlighted Philadelphia’s strategies for implementing Complete Streets. The idea of Complete Streets has grown from a minor issue endorsed by a small corps of local advocates into what Cutler described as a “citywide revolution” with widespread support.

Complete Streets

What smart growth advocates need to know about the omnibus appropriations bill

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Congress
Last night, Congress released a $1.1 trillion omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2014, which lays out funding for agencies and their programs working to help communities build in smarter, stronger ways.

The bill contains many high points for smart growth advocates, and if you were one of the many people who encouraged Congress to pass a strong appropriations bill in the past few days, thank you. Your voices were heard!

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Calvin Mercer on linking natural assets in Greenville, NC

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The South Tar River Greenway in Greenville, NC.
The South Tar River Greenway in Greenville, NC. Photo by Mark A. Neal via Flickr.

Calvin Mercer, At-Large City Councilmember in Greenville, NC and member of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, is a champion for active living, recreation and broader community awareness of smart growth.

Mercer has served on Greenville’s City Council since 2007 and stresses walkability, bike paths and greenways and parks as important components of what he calls “quality growth.” Greenville is home to an extensive greenway network, and though its inception predates Mercer’s elected leadership, he views it as a vital part of Greenville’s continued pursuit toward quality growth. Since 1991 the city has added 4.5 miles to the greenway system, which consists of multi-use paths and repaired or added sidewalks.

Local Leaders Council

Could state DOTs provide better service for less money?

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innovative-dot-second-edition-coverState transportation officials across the country are facing the same challenges: Revenues are falling and budgets are shrinking but transportation demands are continuing to grow.

Innovative approaches can help transportation officials overcome both these sets of challenges, and an updated resource from Smart Growth America and the State Smart Transportation Initiative (SSTI) outlines how.

The second edition of The Innovative DOT, released today, provides 34 strategies transportation officials can use to position their agencies for success in a new era of constrained budgets. Originally released in 2012 and developed with input from top transportation professionals and agency staff from around the nation, the handbook documents many of the innovative approaches state leaders are using to make systems more efficient, government more effective and constituents better satisfied.

“America’s transportation system is vital for economic growth and to our everyday quality of life,” said Roger Millar, Vice President of Smart Growth America. “Faced with tight budgets, transportation agencies are taking new approaches to managing our nation’s transportation infrastructure. The resources in The Innovative DOT encourage smarter investments and a more strategic approach to help deliver the best possible performance given our current fiscal situation.”

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