Smart Growth America has partnered with Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE) on a collaborative project—part of the Kresge Foundation’s Climate Change, Health, and Equity (CCHE) initiative—to advance energy equity and economic inclusion in six southwest Atlanta zip codes by providing both quantitative and policy analysis focused on the emerging clean jobs sector and other climate … Continued
Smart Growth America has partnered with Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE) on a collaborative project to advance energy equity and economic inclusion in southwest Atlanta by providing both quantitative and policy analysis support focused on the emerging clean jobs sector and other climate and equity topics. Climate change presents an urgent, existential threat to our … Continued
In partnership with the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Smart Growth America (SGA) is eager to begin a new research project that will analyze the fiscal impacts of climate-informed zoning policy in Norfolk, Virginia, a community already experiencing the damaging impacts of climate change, including flooding. Alongside a comprehensive scan of peer cities’ climate-informed zoning approaches, SGA will consider how those approaches and land use policy can affect housing affordability, fiscal budgets, and equitable development objectives as well as highlight best practices to help coastal communities better prepare for future flooding and other climate change hazards.
In a unique partnership focused on bringing vital connections to rural America, Smart Growth America is helping T-Mobile give one small community a prize package worth $3 million as well as millions in smaller grants for hundreds of other rural and small town communities to reinvest in their downtowns, improve their quality of life, become … Continued
Images from the Community Cornerstones Project Brochure.
Southeast Seattle is home to the most diverse and immigrant-populated neighborhoods in Seattle, Washington. Now, as a result of the Community Cornerstones project, it could become the City’s next equitable transit-oriented development (TOD) success story.
Part of the strategy is to attract dense mixed-use development to several of Southeast Seattle’s neighborhoods that are in close proximity to the light-rail system opened in 2009, while also preserving the area’s affordability for existing residents through partnerships with community development and financial institutions. The area is already home to one of the most transit-utilized areas of Seattle, and through the project the area is likely to grow with more people, businesses, and jobs.
From 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.”
Want to learn about new, innovative strategies for creating great places? Several upcoming webinars provide ideas and inspiration for local leaders.
Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership
January 15, 2014 — 2:00 PM EST
Join NALGEP, EPA’s Mathy Stanislaus, and several local leaders for a webinar on the Administration’s new “Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership” (IMCP). The IMCP encourages communities to devise comprehensive economic development strategies that strengthen their competitive edge in attracting global manufacturers and their supply chains. Phase 2 of the IMCP was recently announced. In this competition, up to 12 communities that come up with winning strategies will receive a designation of “Manufacturing Community” that gives them elevated consideration for $1.3 billion in federal dollars and assistance from 10 cabinet departments/agencies. Register >>
Directions in Federal, State, and Local Transportation Funding
January 22, 2014 — 2:00 PM EST
Community Builders, a project of the Sonoran Institute, aims to help local leaders build successful communities in the American West–communities with strong and diverse economies, quality growth, vibrant downtowns, and complete neighborhoods. The Community Builders Webinar Series showcases the stories of people in the business of building stronger communities. During this hour-long webinar, consultant Jim Charlier will share insight into existing and upcoming sources for transportation funding for federal, state, and local agencies Register >>
Want to learn about new, innovative strategies for creating great places? Several upcoming webinars provide ideas and inspiration.
Applying for Smart Growth America’s free technical assistance workshops
November 6, 2013 — 2:00 PM EST
Smart Growth America is now accepting applications for our 2014 series of free technical assistance workshops. Join us on Wednesday to hear all about the 12 types of workshops offered, who is eligible to apply and details of the selection process. Learn more and register >>
Cincinnati, OH is a regional leader in pursuing ways to make the city more livable and attractive to residents and business. To help advance the city’s smart growth goals even further, Cincinnati will receive technical assistance from Smart Growth America’s Leadership Institute to inform residents and community leaders about the benefits of transit oriented development (TOD).
Roger Millar, Vice President of Smart Growth America, says, “This workshop will provide the community with an opportunity to learn more about transit options and transit oriented development in the context of Cincinnati. Now is a great time to assess how Cincinnati can most effectively align its development with transit investments.”
Amtrak station in Rochester, NY. Photo via New York Railroads.
Rochester, NY is building a transportation gateway to the city that will serve the region and become a landmark for generations—thanks in part to a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT).
In August, USDOT dedicated $15 million in TIGER grant funding to replace the city’s current Amtrak station, which first opened its doors in 1978, with a new intermodal transit center. The new 12,000 square foot, $26.5 million facility will include high passenger platforms, an underground concourse and two new passenger sidings.
