2011 Sustainable Communities grants announced
US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the recipients of the innovative 2011 Sustainable Communities grants, totaling nearly $96 million, on Monday. Twenty-seven communities and organizations will receive Community Challenge grants and 29 regional areas will receive Regional Planning grants.
The Community Challenge grants are targeted at helping cities and towns to achieve “affordable, economically vital, and sustainable communities,” through reforming zoning and building codes, and replacing local master plans “to promote mixed-use development, affordable housing, the reuse of older buildings and structures for new purposes.” Most local land-use regulations put in place since the mid-20th Century favoring large-lot, single-use zoning.
The Regional Planning grants are targeted at linking land-use and transportation decisions to foster economic development, affordability and sustainability.
These grants, listed in detail below, have the potential help transform communities and regions — and they illustrative what is lost when Congress recently zeroed out the program for 2012.
"This year we are especially proud that we had a particular focus on funding proposals that included more chambers of commerce and economic development corporations as core partners," HUD secretary Shaun Donovan notes. "These grants will be leveraged with local funds more than doubling the investment and, helping to create new visions for how communities and regions plan for housing, transportation, workforce development and the quality of life of their residents for generations to come."
As was the case last year, the demand for both programs far exceeded the available funding. "This year HUD received over $500 million in funding requests from communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico for the $96 million in available funding." HUD reported. "This year’s grants will impact 45.8 million Americans by helping their communities and regions become more efficient and competitive while improving quality of life. Combined with the 87 grants funded last year, this program is providing opportunities for the more than 133 million Americans who live in regions and communities working to shape local plans for how their communities will grow and develop over the next 50 years." See details on grants below:
For more in-depth coverage on this topic:
• Subscribe to New Urban News to read all of the articles (print+online) on implementation of greener, stronger, cities and towns.
• See the October-November 2011 issue of New Urban News. Topics: HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods; Parking reform, transit-oriented parking policy, Obama vs. Congress, West Virginia town revitalizes, suburb remakes its center, ecological dividend, cul-de-sac makeover, thoroughfare manual, and much more.
• Get New Urbanism: Best Practices Guide, packed with more than 800 informative photos, plans, tables, and other illustrations, this book is the best single guide to implementing better cities and towns.
• Get SmartCode Version 9 and Manual, the code book that is having the most impact on zoning reform nationwide, with expert commentary by Andres Duany.
• See the September 2011 issue of New Urban News. Topics: Walk Score, sprawl retrofit, livability grants, Katrina Cottages, how to get a transit village built, parking garages, the shrinking Wal-Mart, Complete Streets legislation, an urban capital fund, and much more.
• See the July-August 2011 issue of New Urban News. Downtown makeover, agrarian urbanism, bike sharing, bike-ped issues, TIGER III livability grants, unlocking remnant land value, selling the neighborhood, Landscape Urbanism vs. New Urbanism, new urban resort, granny flats, The Great Reset.
• See the April-May 2011 issue of New Urban News. Transit-oriented development, “Cycle tracks,” gentrification versus revitalization, HUD grants, economic silver linings, light rail development, pocket neighborhoods, Close-in Maryland housing less expensive, transit outperforms green buildings, Charter Awards, shift to smaller stores
