With 80 years of experience in regional planning in the New York metropolitan region, RPA was pleased to offer comments on the HUD-DOT-EPA partnership for sustainable communities. RPA's three historic regional plans balance economic, environmental, and social goals, as the federal partnership aims to do.

RPA's comments focused on five primary points: 1) that the scale of partnerships reflect the geographic scope of integrated housing, transportation and environmental systems; 2) that plans be allowed to take various forms to meet prescribed outcomes; 3) that participation be outcome-oriented rather than within a proscribed process; 4) that plans need for a compelling vision; and 5) that partnerships be required to represent multiple sectors and levels of government.

The Long Island Index has announced an "ideas competition" that challenges participants to develop bold designs to retrofit Long Island downtowns. Open to "anyone interested in shaping the future of Long Island" the competition encourages submissions from architects, urban designers, planners, students and visionaries.

The competition builds off of the collaboration between Regional Plan Association, the CUNY Mapping Service at the Center for Urban Research and the Rauch Foundation, whose efforts resulted in the January 2010 "Places to Grow" report and Long Island Interactive Maps website. "Places to Grow" identifies roughly 8,300 acres of unbuilt land in over 150 village downtowns and rail station areas - prime acreage to accommodate the bold ideas sought by this competition.

The best ideas, designs, images and videos will be selected as finalists and publicized in a broad media campaign. Prizes totaling $22,500 to be awarded to multiple winners. Submissions accepted through June 21, 2010.

To learn more, go to www.buildabetterburb.org.

RPA submitted comments yesterday on the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development's draft Economic Strategic Plan. RPA applauds DECD's efforts but calls for explicit policy objectives to guide state actions, better assessment of long-term costs and benefits, ongoing measurement of indicators that can demonstrate progress toward the State's goals, and stronger commitment to regional planning and governance restructuring. 

The plan, developed in response to a legislative mandate, describes a vision for a Connecticut with a "vibrant, diversified, and resilient economy" that promotes "responsible transit-oriented growth." Included is a proposal to sweep state discretionary municipal grant money into a "Responsible Growth for the 21st Century" fund which would award grants on a competitive basis to communities that plan for transit-oriented development. Other proposals would address the impacts of property tax dependence and would enable interagency policy consistency.

After years of working through the relevant boards and councils, Bridgeport's new citywide zoning map was approved the evening of Monday, November 30.

Along with it comes the adoption of some of the most progressive transit-oriented development zoning for the city's downtown. Using aspects of form-based codes, these new rules for redevelopment will help downtown Bridgeport achieve its goals of being a walkable, livable community that reduces its carbon emissions by avoiding automobile trips and development on the region's fringes.

RPA completed the urban design component of the downtown master plan in 2007 and drafted the corresponding Downtown Village Districts.

Regional Plan Association, the Bergen County Department of Planning and Economic Development and Maser Consulting today announced the schedule for a series of workshop sessions to garner public input for updating the Bergen Countywide Master Plan, the first such update since 1973.