Regional Assembly

Regional Plan Association today released images, program materials, video and audio files of the 20th Annual Regional Assembly, "Innovation and the American Metropolis," held on Friday, April 16th at the Waldorf Astoria.

Recap the days' events including keynote speeches by Bill McDonough and Adolfo Carrión and the presentation of the RPA Lifetime Leadership Award to Peter W. Herman by New York State Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch.

Additionally, audio files for each workshop panel are available. More materials, including presentations and transcripts will be posted as they become available. We'll be announcing the releases on Twitter, so be sure to follow us

Regional Assembly 2010 Conference Packet:

Program
Speaker Biographies
Lifetime Leadership Award Tribute Journal for Peter W. Herman

RPA's 20th Annual Regional Assembly, "Innovation and the American Metropolis", took place on Friday April 16th at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in midtown Manhattan. Over 700 delegates attended a packed day of workshops and keynote addresses. Over the coming weeks, RPA will be releasing information from the day's proceedings, including audio and video recordings, photos, presentations and more.

By Frank Hebbert, Associate Planner, GIS

As dedicated readers of Spotlight know, this Friday is RPA's 20th Annual Regional Assembly, "Innovation and the American Metropolis." On April 16th at the Waldorf-Astoria in NYC, a stellar group of speakers will gather to discuss innovation in cities and regionalism, with keynotes and appearances from Adolfo Carrion, Richard Burdett, William McDonough, Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch, David Crane and many more. If you haven't yet registered, sign up now.

One of the recurring questions during preparation for this Assembly has been "but what do you mean by innovation?" Everyone has a slightly different idea of what innovation means for planning, cities, and regions. Each of the eight workshops addresses innovation in the context of important topics: green infrastructure, housing, the economy, energy, infrastructure, community design, urban mobility, and intercity transportation. Read on below for more about two of those panels: Petra Todorovich on the future of intercity transportation, and Corey Piasecki on the emergence of intelligent infrastructure.

But we realize these panels will only begin to address the diversity of innovations on the horizon. Fittingly for this topic, we're opening the question to the crowd. It's time to take stock of the state of innovation in 2010. Give us your thoughts on the profound innovations set to shape our cities. We want to hear your ideas about nurturing innovation, and comments on the obstacles to be overcome. Head to the Assembly website now, and add your voice to the conversation by answering three short questions.

We'll be displaying the collected wisdom of our Spotlight readers and Assembly delegates on screens throughout the Waldorf on Friday. After the dust settles, we'll reflect and respond to your submissions, exploring your views on the innovation landscape ahead. Look out for a special Spotlight edition and some exploratory features on our website in the coming months. Don't miss out on being part of this exciting experiment.

(My answers? The profound innovation ahead will be an accurate price on carbon. Forget hand-held computing or smarter subway cars. I can't imagine anything that will more directly challenge our established value proposition - where we live, how we travel and consequently all aspects of cities. Agree? Disagree? Send in your responses.)

By Corey Piasecki, Associate Planner, New Jersey

The tri-state region is growing yet our critical infrastructure and service systems have been relatively unchanged in the last half century. Many systems provide user information that is unidirectional making these services slower, less efficient, and more costly then their updated counterparts. The size and quantity of the region's public services and infrastructure has made it increasingly difficult to provide meaningful input into the very systems that have the ability to adapt to situations in real-time. Undeniably, however, advances in technology such as smart phones have changed the way we interact with our physical environment and provided a situational awareness that is unparalleled to date.

The information technology revolution offers the promise to increase the accuracy, efficiency, capacity, and usability of many basic services in the urban setting in much the same way that the spread of the personal computer and the internet have resulted in a huge increase in productivity in the workplace. Systems can monitor and provide timely feedback on the consumption of basic services like electricity, water, gas, and waste collection, allowing consumers to make beneficial real-time usage decisions based on penalties or incentives. Sensor networks can monitor vehicle traffic, mass transit, or even gunshot activity, and provide feedback so the proper response or notification to the user can come quickly and effectively.

The Intelligent Infrastructure panel at RPA's 2010 Regional Assembly will examine existing and emerging technologies that provide real-time information and decision-making capabilities based on a bidirectional flow of information that will make both user and service more efficient. Dylan Hixon, RPA Board member and President of Arden Road Investments will moderate the discussion among four infrastructure technology innovators.

RecycleBank co-founder and CEO Ron Gonen is at the forefront of creating a 21st Century Green Economy. Through a network of tagged bins and integrated haulers, this intelligent infrastructure service is able to capture, analyze, and transmit real-time recycling data to individual households while measuring the waste stream diverted from landfill. To date, more than one million participants earning rewards toward food, clothing, travel, and more have contributed to saving more then 310 million gallons of oil.

Building on real-time information capture and analysis, GreenRoad CEO Dan Steere works to make vehicle travel safer and more efficient by providing an instant feedback loop for drivers and companies seeking to reduce costs and improve fuel efficiency. The GreenRoad technology, through a simplistic red, yellow, or green indicator helps drivers learn to drive more efficiently while tracking long-term improvements online. Fleets have recorded significant fuel savings and reductions in Greenhouse Gas emissions while minimizing insurance and fleet repair costs.

Leaving the pump behind completely, Houston, Texas is an unlikely contender in the race to become the nation's first electric vehicle capital. NRG Energy has been leading the charge, (pun intended) partnering with the City of Newark and Nissan Motors to create a comprehensive public infrastructure for charging electric vehicles beyond the home. Glen Stancil, Vice President of Strategy and Development, is responsible for leading the company's development and operation of electric vehicle ecosystems.


Reduce, reuse, and recycle isn't always about being green. Shotspotter provides an intelligent infrastructure service that is working to clean up our city streets in a different way. Reducing gun violence in cities has always been a difficult task for police. Gun shots are often hard to locate and typically occur where police are not. Shotspotter is a game changer. By using acoustic sensors and video surveillance, Shotspotter identifies shooters and transmits real time information allowing police to respond with greater accuracy. Shotspotter, President James Beldock has been implementing the system throughout the United States with successes ranging from a 40% homicide reduction in Redwood, CA, to a 43% reduction in Rochester, NY.

Outside of their proprietary systems, the Intelligent Infrastructure panelists will discuss emerging technologies that enhance the accuracy, efficiency, capacity, and usability of many basic services provided in the RPA region. How are intelligent infrastructure services implemented elsewhere? What will it take to implement the technologies in one of the world's biggest markets? What will they cost and how will we pay for them? How can we leverage the smart phone network to optimize our information consumption? Creating real-time intelligent infrastructure networks readily scalable to meet the needs of the RPA region requires sophistication and precision. Can you think of a better forum than the Regional Assembly to discuss how these innovations can change our lives?

By Frank Hebbert, Associate Planner, RPA

Whether it's democracy emerging out of ancient Athens, or algebra emerging out of ninth century Baghdad, cities have been fountains of innovation and creativity since the first city arose in Mesopotamia some five thousand years ago.

Cities not only produce innovation, they innovate themselves and how they function. Streetcars, water and sewer systems, gas and electric supply, elevators, steel-frame construction--all emerged from cities as they attempted to manage themselves better. American cities were particularly spectacular in their pace of innovation and change. The history of American cities is the story of innovation in how we travel, how money is made, the arts, the buildings we inhabit, and the products and ideas we make, sell, and buy.

But that trajectory of innovation has not been universally beneficial or sustainable. We have a mixed record of solving problems equitably and comprehensively, particularly in a timely fashion. New Yorkers, for example, suffered with an inadequate and leaky private water system for half a century until leaders and citizens generated the political will to build a public water system that opened in 1842.

In more contemporary times, we have watched and coped as residential development moved out into the fringes, urban cores collapsed, industry faded. As always, the target keeps moving. The ecosystem we share is out of balance, locally and globally. The latest tall buildings going up are not here. Much of the nation's extensive rail infrastructure is no longer in use, and what remains is slow compared to other nations. For a fast, easily available internet connection--the infrastructure successor to last century's gas and electricity networks--look elsewhere. Those million-strong cities in China are only getting bigger. As international fortunes change, other countries jostle upwards in the indices of manufacturing, finance, and creative output. We are still grappling with how to grow well, and how to grow fairly.

There is great possibility in the abundant technological choices that lie practically at our feet. Whether it's universal wireless access, or sewers that electronically send messages of leaks, the possibilities of producing what might be called the "intelligent metropolis" are endless. What is needed is some grappling with these possibilities, and a movement forward to action. We're in a new chapter of American cities, a time of rebound, regrowth, and new beginnings.

Next year, RPA will convene its annual Regional Assembly to discuss Innovation and the American Metropolis. For this, our twentieth assembly, we will as usual bring the nation's foremost civic, business and public leaders together to discuss how the region can innovate rapidly, successfully, and equitably. For more information, visit regionalassembly.org, sign up for updates and join us on April 16, 2010.

RPA's 19th Annual Regional Assembly took place on Friday, April 17th. Nearly six hundred participants packed the Waldorf-Astoria for a thought-provoking day of keynotes, panel discussions and workshops.

There were many highlights: New York Governor Paterson awarding Richard Ravitch with RPA Lifetime Leadership Award, remarks from Port Authority Executive Director and 2009 Regional Assembly Chair Christopher Ward, keynote addresses from Moody's Chief Economist Mark Zandi on the outlook for the economy and Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell on stimulus and infrastructure spending, a provoking plenary panel led by Washington Post editorial writer Jonathan Capehart and featuring U.S. Senator Robert Menendez and five excellent panels about how to address economic impacts facing key areas of the region and nation.

Over the coming week, we will be releasing more information from the day's proceedings, including audio recordings, photos, presentations and more. In the meantime, get a taste of the day from our live twitter feed.

"America 2050: Building the Next Economy" will feature a full day of workshops, conversation and collaboration to build consensus on how to repair our nation's tattered economy. Five workshops will address the specific investments needed in U.S. energy, housing, transportation, water and economic infrastructure to ensure a bright, prosperous future.

The morning plenary program will feature a roundtable discussing Washington's role in shaping our national infrastructure policy. "Beyond Stimulus" will be moderated by Jonathan Capehart of the Washington Post editorial board. Panelists will include Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), David M. Walker, CEO, the Peterson Foundation, RPA President Robert D. Yaro and King County Executive and HUD Deputy Secretary-designate Ron Sims.

The Lunch Program will feature Governor David Paterson's presentation of the RPA Lifetime Leadership Award to Richard Ravitch, Chairman of the Governor's Commission on Metropolitan Transportation Authority Financing. This award will recognize the celebrated role Mr. Ravitch played in restoring New York's decaying transit system during his tenure as MTA Chairman from 1979 to 1983, as well as his recent role as Chairman of the Governor's Commission charged finding solutions to finance the MTA's multi-billion dollar budget gaps.

The program will close with a keynote address from Chief Economist and Co-Founder of Moody's Economy.com, Mark Zandi, who will discuss the outlook for a successful and revitalizing economic recovery.

For a complete chronology of the day's events, click here.

Please contact Rossana Ivanova or call (212) 253-5492 to register.

Regional Assembly 2008: Wrap Up
We've begun to release the video and presentation files from last Friday's Regional Assembly. Thanks to everyone who attended, and we look forward to seeing you again next year.

New Media Files:
Regional Assembly 2008 Website

Regional Plan Association's 17th Annual Regional Assembly, A Bright and Green Future, held at the Waldorf-Astoria this past Friday, May 4, had record attendance, an extraordinary collection of speakers, and a remarkable sense of energy and purpose. Over 600 leaders from the civic, business, and policymaking communities came together to discuss strategies for balancing the region's energy security, competitiveness, and continued growth, with the need to mitigate the impacts of climate change. Assembly presentations and transcripts will be posted on the web in the coming weeks. We hope you will find the material insightful and join us for many more exciting events in the coming year.

More than 500 of the region's business, civic and government leaders learned about the region's preparedness for disaster at RPA's 16th Annual Regional Assembly. Entitled "Come What May: Planning in an Age of Disaster," the event was highlighted by a keynote address from Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, who detailed his transportation agenda for New York State. Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi, Congressman Anthony Weiner and Port Authority Chairman Anthony Coscia were among the featured speakers who described measures being taken to prepare the region for terrorism, hurricanes, sea rise and other potential disasters. Former Transport for London Chair Robert Kiley gave an eye-opening luncheon address about the London bombings and the lessons they provide for New York.

Read Eliot Spitzer's Keynote Address here (PDF 100K)

"Taking a Longer View," a mapping project detailing the hazards facing the Gulf Coast was released in conjunction with RPA's 2006 Regional Assembly "Come What May: Planning in the Age of Disaster". Through GIS mapping, the project observes where the vulnerability and risk can be seen throughout the Gulf region. This project was completed with the help of the University of Texas, Austin and EDAW.

Read the Report (PDF 3Mb).

16th Regional Assembly
"Come What May: Planning in an Age of Disaster" - May 5, 2006

15th Regional Assembly
"Beyond Red and Blue: The Tri-State Region in a Changing National Context" - April 29, 2005

14th Regional Assembly

"Make No Small Plans: The Far West Side and its Impact on the Region" 

13th Regional Assembly
"Shaping the Region for the 21st Century" 

Re-engineering the Region's Centers - April 27, 2001

"The Tri-State Region: World Capital for the New Millennium" - May 3, 2000

9th Regional Assembly
"Bringing Smart Growth to the Tri-State Region" - 

"Creating the Capacity for Growth" - May 5, 1998

"The Road to Recovery" - April 8, 1997