NADO members and their local communities and board members are invited to attend a free webinar presentation by Transportation for America.  Rather than being a technical overview of MAP-21, which other sources have covered, this webinar will be an opportunity to engage stakeholders and decisionmakers on funding a variety of modes public transportation, vanpool, biking, walking, and road/bridge maintenance and repair projects that support in support of strong communities.  Please share the following announcement to invite your RDO and RTPO board members and others in your region to this presentation.

Investing in a variety of transportation options—like public transportation, vanpooling, bicycling, walking,  and safe roads and bridges—are crucial for stronger, more resilient communities in our nation’s rural areas. It’s important to know how our new federal transportation bill (MAP-21) has changed the way communities can access transportation dollars and what these funds can be used for.

Panelists for this discussion include:

• Commissioner Kathy Rinaldi, Teton County, Idaho
• Charles W. Fluharty, President and CEO, Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI)
• Chris Zeilinger, Director of Policy Development, Community Transportation Association of America Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA)
• Georgia Gann, Deputy Director of Government Affairs, Transportation for America
• John Robert Smith, President and CEO, Reconnecting America and Former Mayor of Meridian, MS (moderator)

Webinar logistics:

• Title: How to use the 2012 federal transportation bill to strengthen rural economies
• Date: Wednesday, February 27, 1 p.m. Eastern/10 a.m. Pacific
• Click here to register

During the “Rural Successes and Opportunities in Creating Sustainable Communities and Regions” breakout session held December 3, Troy Maggied and Karen Rogulja of the Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SWWRPC) discussed recent accomplishments of the Grow Southwest Wisconsin initiative, including data collection, building partnerships, and public involvement efforts.

To view the Powerpoint presentation, click here.  To learn more about the Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, click here.

During the “Rural Successes and Opportunities in Creating Sustainable Communities and Regions” breakout session held December 3, Christine Walker, Executive Director of the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission (UVLSRPC), presented updates about the work her organization has been doing in New Hampshire, including food mapping, a housing needs assessment, and conducting policy and regulatory audits.

To view the Powerpoint presentation, click here.  To learn more about the UVLSRPC, click here.

On November 13, 2012, the National Association of Counties (NACo) presented a webinar in partnership with NADO Research Foundation that discussed strategies to engage elected officials and other community leaders in community planning projects. This webinar featured innovative strategies from regional planning projects and a “clinic” to critique outreach materials submitted by a select number of HUD 2010/2011 sustainability grants recipients.  Speakers included Elisa Ortiz, Smart Growth America; Bethany Wilcoxon, Des Moines Area MPO (Iowa); and Carol Davis, New River Valley Planning District Commission (Virginia).

View the webinar recording here. For more information, contact Cindy Wasser at NACo at cwasser@naco.org or 202.942.4274.

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This webinar was produced by NACo, through a subcontract agreement with NADO Research Foundation. NADO Research Foundation provided overall guidance and project direction. The work that provided the basis for this webinar was supported by funding under an award with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The substance and findings of the work are dedicated to the public. The author and publisher are solely responsible for the accuracy of the statements and interpretations contained in this publication. Such interpretations do not necessarily reflect the views of the Government.

In July, FTA released final guidance in the form of a Circular on incorporating environmental justice (EJ) principles into plans, projects, and activities that receive funding from FTA. This final guidance provides recommendations Metropolitan Planning Organizations, public transportation providers, State Departments of Transportation, and other recipients of FTA funds on how to fully engage EJ populations in the public transportation decision-making process; how to determine whether EJ populations would be subjected to disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects as a result of a transportation plan, project, or activity; and how to avoid, minimize, or mitigate these effects. FTA’s Webinar on the Circular will explore the details of these recommendations and provide specific guidance for how FTA grant recipients should incorporate EJ review into their transportation planning and NEPA efforts.

• Introductory Remarks
  • Therese McMillan, FTA Deputy Administrator

• Speakers:
  • Lucy Garliauskas, Associate Administrator, Office of Planning and Environment
  • Cecelia Comito, Regional Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel
  • Maya Sarna, Environmental Protection Specialist, Office of Planning and Environment

In May 2012, USDOT issued an updated Departmental Order, Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, for the first time since 1997.  This order was developed in response to the 1994 Presidential Order on environmental justice (EJ) and lays out how the department will address EJ in all its programs, policies, and activities.  In addition, FHWA released its own EJ order in June 2012, and FTA released a detailed EJ circular in July 2012 (separate from a Title VI circular in August).

These three EJ orders provide guidance to transportation agencies receiving federal funds on complying with the agency’s policies and regulations.  In the webinar, federal agency specialists reviewed how each of the new orders provide a significant legal framework for conducting transportation planning at the local level, within MPOs and RTPOs, and in state DOTs, as well as for consultants conducting work under contracts using federal funds.

View the slides here (PDF), or watch the recording below.

Addressing Environmental Justice in Transportation Planning Practice from NADO on Vimeo.

More resources on USDOT, FHWA, and FTA’s recent orders on environmental justice are here.
In addition, FTA will hold the webinar, “Environmental Justice: What does it mean?” on October 11, 1 – 3 p.m. ET.

To view PDF files, use Adobe Reader.

AICP members can earn 1.5 Certification Maintenance credits for this activity.

To join the webinar, visit here: https://epa.connectsolutions.com/epasmartgrowth
No pre-registration is required. Call 1-888-850-4523. Participant passcode: 719661. This conference has a maximum audio capacity of 290 callers, so participants may wish to share lines. For more details, visit http://www.epa.gov/dced/webinars/index.html.

To learn more about opportunities like this, join EPA’s Smart Growth Listserv here: http://yosemite.epa.gov/opei/opeipub.nsf/Membership.

Rural and small town America face unique housing and transportation challenges.   While urban areas may be plagued with traffic congestion, rural areas more often face issues such as insufficient resources that impact the frequency and connectivity of transit access and service. Widely fluctuating gas prices and greater distances between employment, groceries and health services make good transportation choices essential.

This web training event focused on transportation and housing cost tools that can help illustrate the impact land use decisions have on household budgets and community economic vitality, and how to identify investment and planning opportunities to improve the livability of rural communities.  It will also introduce the Housing and Transportation Affordability Initiative, a joint HUD and DOT venture to develop tools and resources to help planners, consumers, and policy-makers make more informed decisions about where to invest scarce resources.

A new nationwide version of the Housing and Transportation Affordability Index, along with a Location Affordability Index tool, will be available from HUD later in 2012.  Visit http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/sustainable_housing_communities/housing_transaffinitiative for more details.

Workshop Agenda (PDF)

Prosperous, Healthy, Vibrant Rural Regions and Communities (Kathy Nothstine) (PDF)

EPA Programs Supporting Livable and Sustainable Rural Communities (Ed Fendley) (PDF)

GroWNC (Carrie Runser-Turner) (PDF)

New River Valley Livability Initiative (Kim Thurlow) (PDF)

Five Keys to Revitalizing Your Downtown (Cheryl Morgan) (PDF)

Transforming Liabilities into Assets: Clintwood, Virginia (Jim Baldwin) (PDF)

USDA Rural Development: Working for Rural Communities (Joe Woody) (PDF)

Central Appalachian Network: Building a Regional Network for Asset-Based Economic Development (Kathlyn Terry) (PDF)

WNC Forest Products Cooperative Marketing Project (Erica Anderson) (PDF)

WNC Forestry Success Stories (link to videos on YouTube)

Appalachian Prosperity Project (Skip Skinner and Marcia Quesenberry) (PDF)