A weekly compilation of news links about and for regional communities pursuing local and regional development.
Published on line since November 11, 2003.
1. LRA plan calls for more compact and regionalized development - Times Picayune - New Orleans, LA, USA
State hurricane recovery leaders unveiled a long-term plan that calls for high-speed transportation, concentrated development in established cities and towns and better regional government planning.
Louisiana Speaks, a long-term community planning arm of the governor's Louisiana Recovery Authority, used case studies from other cities, the plans of other state and federal government agencies, polls of southern Louisiana residents and professional planners to produce the plan.
"It is a road map to Louisiana's future, " Donna Fraiche, a member of the LRA board, said Wednesday.
The $4 million plan, almost entirely financed by private investors, calls on the Legislature to give the Office of State Planning more powers and more money after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
It seeks to persuade parishes to start thinking regionally while persuading residents to give up some individual property rights so fewer homes will be built in flood plains and encouraging developers to focus their efforts in already-established areas.
"The future can and should be by design, and not by default, " said Peter Calthorpe, the project's lead planner.
However, the blueprint lacks specific price tags for recommended projects or the money to carry them out, which LRA board member Sean Reilly said could take up to a decade to secure.
Some of the more immediate projects suggested include:
_A high-speed public transit link between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, possibly started with seed money from the LRA.
…
RC: RPC - New Orleans Regional Planning Commission - District 1
2. Jobs, work force housing called answer to I-15 commute - North County Times - Escondido, CA, USA
Slowing the exponential growth of the Riverside County to San Diego County commute will require creating high-wage jobs north of the county line and building moderate housing to the south, a new study says.
At the same time, because the commute isn't going away, the 65-page report prepared by the San Diego Association of Governments and Western Riverside Council of Governments says the counties must increase Interstate 15's capacity.
Jane Clough-Riquelme, study project manager for the San Diego Association of Governments, said that expanding I-15 won't be enough. She said officials must address the mismatch between San Diego County employment and Riverside County housing that is the reason for the commuting trend.
…
I-15 commuters have been enjoying free flow at the county line for many years. But the eight-lane freeway is the only high-capacity artery that connects Southwest Riverside County's bedroom communities with San Diego County's jobs -- and it is filling fast.
The report says daily traffic volume reached an average of 135, 000 vehicles in 2005 and will hit 200, 000 by 2020. As early as 2015, traffic congestion could cause southbound speeds to plummet at the county line.
Kevin Viera, who managed the study for the Riverside County agency, said commuters don't have to look far to see where all this is headed. In another example of one primary artery connecting the inland county with a job-rich coastal county, Highway 91 through Corona and Orange County is bumper to bumper every day.
"We know that San Diego is always going to be creating jobs. We know that people are always going to be commuting down there, " Viera said. "So we should start looking now at how we can avoid a 91 situation on the 15."
...
3. Big picture in a big region - New Glasgow News - New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Canada
Nova Scotia’s neighbour is looking at a challenge that really should be a focus for all the provinces together in the Atlantic Region.
New Brunswick has received a report from an appointed task force in its goal toward self-sufficiency and less reliance on federal transfer payments. In fact, the result is 91 recommendations in a bid for self-sufficiency by year 2026.
That’s a commendable pursuit and, really, the other provinces in the region are making efforts in this direction in one way or another. Former premier John Hamm and his campaign for fairness and Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams in the push for the Atlantic Accord – the ultimate goal was homegrown revenues to lead toward less dependence on Ottawa.
…
Again, the region is a relatively large area with low population. Like the need for neighbouring municipalities to pull together, this represents a task on a grander scale. It’s the kind of issue the Council of Atlantic Premiers needs to turn into a pet project. Making attractive business and tax policies throughout the region – along with providing competitive services – would be far superior to beefing up certain pockets.
The four Atlantic provinces together could also present a better case to the federal government about its role in improved tax policies and services. Obviously federal number crunchers must see that a long-term blueprint is far better than slipping and sliding along with the transfer scheme.
4. Mayor proposes sports commission for region - Fort Worth Star Telegram, TX
Mayor Robert Cluck wants to develop a plan to create a regional sports commission that would work to bring major sporting events to North Texas.
The commission could work to lure events such as the NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments and the Olympic trials. It would be headed by city officials, and team and stadium owners.
Typically, cities get their convention and visitors bureaus to market an area for a sporting event, but that would not work here, said Craig Depken, a sports economist at the University of Texas at Arlington.
"The Metroplex is so large, with venues so far away from each other like the Cotton Bowl or the Texas Motor Speedway, you may have no choice but to have some kind of arrangement like a commission, " he said. "It internalizes the benefits. Many cities stand to gain, not just the city that gets the event."
Such a commission could also help lure Super Bowls. Arlington is working with a regional Super Bowl bid committee to bring the 2011 game here.
Many other areas, such as Arizona, Los Angeles, Miami and St. Louis have sports commissions.
…
5. Doyle OKs commission for quality, planning issues - The Capital Times - Madison, WI, USA
Water quality protection and planning in Dane County are under local control once again, after Gov. Jim Doyle approved the formation of the Capital Area Regional Planning Commission on Wednesday.
The new commission has been in the works for more than two years, ever since the old Dane County Regional Planning Commission was dissolved in 2004.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources took over water quality planning for Dane County when the old commission went out of business, but the DNR wanted local officials to come together and form a new body to take over water quality planning issues, key to extending water and sewer lines in the Madison metro area.
Local leaders and municipal organizations worked together to get the new commission up and running, said DeForest Village President Jeff Miller, who also serves as president of the Dane County Cities and Villages Association.
"It is our hope that the new commission will provide the necessary foundation for fair regional representation, discussion and decisions in the delicate balance between continued economic development of our local communities and maintaining water quality, one of our most valued economic resources, " Miller said.
…
Dane County is unique in that it's the only single county in Wisconsin that has its own regional planning commission.
There now are nine regional planning commissions in the state with the creation of the Capital Area commission, but the surrounding counties of Columbia, Dodge, Jefferson, Rock and Sauk Counties still are without regional planning.
…
RCs: Wisconsin Regional Planning Commissions
6. Editorial: Attack on parochialism - Daily News Tribune - Waltham, MA, USA
Massachusetts has 351 cities and towns, each convinced of its uniqueness and proud of its independence. While younger states organize planning and service delivery through counties and other regional entities, we like to keep things local.
But there is a price to pay for this small-scale, close-to-home democracy, and it becomes evident this time of year. It's budget time, and finance committees, town managers, department heads and, ultimately, voters are looking for economies of scale that aren't available to small departments serving small towns.
This time of year, you're more likely to hear a word few officials think about the rest of the year: regionalization.
"This is the right thing to do, " says John Moran, a Natick Finance Committee member who has long championed a regional approach to fire services. "It makes so much common sense that we have to be less parochial and learn how to share. Every town in the MetroWest area is facing the same problems."
For years, leaders have talked about potential savings from combining dispatch services and sharing equipment. Some towns have explored consolidating school districts, though it's been decades since any local districts have done it. Libraries are another area where mergers may make sense.
But even common sense ideas run into resistance …
It will take persistence to identify opportunities for regional cooperation, and to overcome the inevitable bureaucratic resistance. To succeed, municipal leaders from neighboring communities must talk to each other, not just to their department heads, and they must keep talking about the advantages of regionalization even after next year's budget is balanced.
RCs: Massachusetts Regional Planning Agencies
7. Detroit Renaissance Announces 'Road to Renaissance' Strategies Set by Task Forces to Transform the Economy in Southeast Michigan - Earthtimes-org
An unprecedented involvement of community, civic and business leaders culminated today in the announcement of 11 specific strategies for transforming the economy in Detroit and Southeast Michigan.
Community task forces have been on a fast track since December of last year, under an initiative called "Road to Renaissance, " to identify the best ways to achieve rapid and sustained economic growth in Detroit and Southeast Michigan. The specific plans were announced today by Doug Rothwell, president, Detroit Renaissance, the organization which coordinated the regional initiative, as well as the co-chairs of the individual task forces.
The "Road to Renaissance" initiative focuses on helping the region achieve the following six objectives: 1) become the world's dominant mobility center; 2) develop an aerotropolis; 3) grow Metro Detroit's creative community; 4) expand the region's entrepreneurial capacity; 5) secure a strong future talent base; and, 6) promote globally while communicating locally.
"This is an exciting day for Southeast Michigan, " said Rothwell. "The business plans developed by the "Road to Renaissance" task forces, which consisted of industry and subject experts in each respective area, show what needs to be done to achieve true economic transformation in the region. And, just as important, the plans show great optimism for the future in Southeast Michigan, since the region now has a tangible, achievable approach to revitalize our economy and measure progress along the way."
...
The following are the 11 strategies set forth by the individual task forces:
-- Become the global center for mobility -- co-chaired by Dr. David Cole, Center for Automotive Research, and Stephen Polk, R.L Polk & Co.: 1) Create a Mobility Innovation Center to promote economic development by leveraging the region's existing automotive technology capabilities. The Mobility Innovation Center will create a Mobility Research and Development Cooperative (MRDC) that provides ...
RC: SEMCOG - Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (Region 1)
8. No relief for hospital adversely affected by change in MSA boundaries
CCH – USA
The Secretary did not implement new hospital labor market classification rules effective beginning in fiscal year 2005 in an arbitrary or capricious manner even though the rules had an adverse financial impact on individual hospitals, according to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. The new rules were challenged by a hospital no longer classified with Ann Arbor hospitals under the Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) used in the new rules, even though it had been reclassified to the Ann Arbor MSA under previous regulations.
Individual circumstances
The hospital is physically located within the Toledo MSA, and in 2003 it was reclassified to the Ann Arbor MSA by the Medicare Geographic Classification Review Board (MGCRB) because it met both the proximity and comparable-cost requirements. This reclassification was effective …
Factors in decision
The hospital argued that its treatment was arbitrary compared to the transition period provided in the new rules to help some hospitals adjust to lower reimbursement rates, such as "urban" hospitals that become "rural" under the new MSA definitions. The court held that it was not arbitrary and capricious for the Secretary to provide Lenawee County hospitals with a three-year transition period but not allow the Toledo-area hospital use of the geographic boundary of Lenawee County for its proximity determination during the same three-year time period. Such individualized treatment would be improper, the court said, as Congress deliberately designed a system in which the wage index would not be based on a hospital’s own wage level but rather an average of wage costs in their geographic area.
9. Growing together - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Sarasota, FL, USA
The big map shows the big picture.
The map represents an unofficial depiction of the future growth plans for Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto counties through at least 2020.
The map served as an eye-opener and an ice-breaker when the county commissioners and staffs from the four county governments met last week for the first time in a "Regional Commonalities" workshop. The four-county future land-use map compiled by Sarasota County planners shows extensive coastal development and not a lot of open space as the region grows.
The four-county region is sandwiched between the populous, politically powerful Tampa Bay region to the north and the wealthy Lee-Collier area to the south. Call it the Sandwich Coalition.
Sarasota County Commissioner Shannon Staub, who initially suggested the workshop, said she was pleased with the counties' collaborative tone.
"I think it probably is a first baby step in moving us together to examine the challenges we are all going to face, " she said in an interview last week.
The four counties are already linked as members of the Peace River/Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority. While that partnership has seen its share of controversies, it provides a precedent for regional cooperation to provide water -- an essential public service.
'How Shall We Grow?'
The April 30 workshop started with a presentation from a Central Florida coalition that is reaping the benefits of regional cooperation. Myregion-org started in 1999 and now has a 100-member board composed of diverse representatives of 86 cities, seven counties and numerous businesses.
...
Counties Regional Planning Council
DeSoto Central Florida VII
Manatee Tampa Bay VIII
Charlotte, Sarasota Southwest Florida IX
10. U.S. regional communities - sub-State, State or multi-State - in news articles. Highlighted words are Google search terms. In this and the following section, links to websites of organizations are added to the news excerpt when this is the first time an organization has been found. A goal of this newsletter is to find every regional council in the
.10 Need for lines could be offset with more regional generation
Patriot-News - Harrisburg, PA, USA
Our view has been that far fewer new power lines would be needed if every region strove to provide its own electric generation. … New York, Baltimore, Washington and northern Virginia could be looking at "involuntary service curtailments, even rolling blackouts, " by 2011; …
Map Mid-Atlantic Corridors – Piedmont Environmental Council
.11 Regional development group wins national real-estate award
MLive.com - MI, USA
Southwest Michigan First was one of four U.S. organizations honored … for excellence in economic development. … global summit meeting sponsored by CoreNet, a 7, 500-member commercial-real-estate network that includes service providers and economic developers. …
.12 Cities must help search for shelter
Our view: Homelessness problem requires regional cooperation. North County needs an emergency winter shelter for its homeless men, women and children. ... analysis of the regional homeless problem to agree that one exists. And it's hard to help the homeless if you don't show up. ...
.13 Defining native plants
Bangor Daily News - Bangor, ME, USA
Some native-plant purists would argue that only regionally native plants should be used, defining "regionally native" as plants propagated from local ...
.14 Mystery 'Gorilla'
Sioux City Journal - Sioux City, IA, USA
Whatever it is, Siouxland leaders agree the massive development could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the tri-state region. ...
.15 Let states be labs for health reform
Wisconsin State Journal - Madison, WI, USA
The multi-state pilot programs that Feingold envisions would cost the federal government up to $40 billion over 10 years, but Feingold calls for the cost to ...
.16 Wade, regional groups vital
The Thomasville Times - Thomasville, AL, USA
Today, the focus is on regional development, and having partners who work hand in hand with communities to land projects that improve the economy and community. ... "Businesses don't see political boundaries, "
.17 Muncy Council candidates seek regional approach
Williamsport Sun-Gazette - Williamsport, PA, USA
MUNCY — Eight candidates for Borough Council said regionalization is needed so this community, with its historic properties and tree-lined streets, ...
.18 Big Horn County mulls Park County's regional landfill proposal
The Lovell Chronicle, Lovell, Wyoming
A push by the state toward regional landfills has prompted the Park County commissioners to extend an invitation to Big Horn County to take part in a regional landfill system. …
.19 Breaking News: Planning commission to lease Union Station second floor
Worcester Business Journal - Worcester, MA, USA
The Central Massachusetts Regional Planning Commission has leased the entire second floor of Worcester's Union Station. ... City councilman Michael Perotto said the commission's lease helps "to ensure the debt service, and ensure that we can break even" on the station. …
.20 Geospatial Site Helps Towns
Hartford Courant - Hartford, CT, USA
... municipalities in the region with free access to a Geospatial Information System that will help planning, zoning and other services. The Capitol Region Council of Governments launched the system May 1. It can be used by anyone with Internet access and a Web browser. ...
.21 Doubt clouds commuter rail plan
Houston Chronicle - Houston, TX, USA
The TPC is a committee of the Houston-Galveston Area Council that coordinates transportation planning and funding in the eight-county region. ...
.22 Reshaping Cleveland's port
Cleveland Plain Dealer - Cleveland, OH, USA
As regionalism and collaborative approaches to economic development take deeper root here, Greater Cleveland needs at the helm of its port a leader who ...
.23 Report: Iowa's economic growth stronger than rest of Midwest
Radio Iowa - Des Moines, IA, USA
Creighton University's monthly survey of supply managers and business leaders in the nine-state region shows Iowa's numbers rising for the fourth month in a ...
.24 Community car planned
Waltonian - St. Davids, PA, USA
Philly Car Share is a non-profit organization working "to maximize economic, environmental and social benefits of reduced automobile dependence in the Philadelphia region through community-based car sharing." ...
.25 Fayette County distressed again, ARC says
Reactions among Fayette County officials were mixed this week to the Appalachian Regional Commission’s recent decision to place the county back on its list of economically “distressed” counties.
.26 News Analysis: Oakland Begins Sparring Over Economic Development
Berkeley Daily Planet - Berkeley, CA, USA
The four initiatives promoted by the Chamber study are to “strengthen Oakland’s healthcare industry while leveraging the Bay Area’s strengths in biotechnology, ” to “enhance Oakland’s position as an international gateway and logistics hub” …
11. Other in the news: Highlighted words are Google search terms.
.10 Key: Economic Development Association Conference
Scoop-co-nz - New Zealand
National wants to get behind you to do this in the most effective way, by concentrating on what works and what is most effective. Our five policy planks are these:
- We will give a sound and consistent strategic direction to the economic development sector.
- We will trust the regions to play their part without constant government interference.
- We will clear up the clutter of economic development programmes we have at the moment.
- We will focus more strongly on export market assistance, and less on the domestic market, and
- We will focus more strongly on providing information, advice and introductions, and less on providing financial assistance.
.11 Crown of the continent
Bigfork Eagle - Bigfork, MT, USA
National Geographic is working with local partners in the Rocky Mountain border region of Montana, Alberta and British Columbia to create a new kind of map. This “Geotourism MapGuide” will tell the stories and capture the pride that local residents feel for this globally significant region. ...
.12 Big picture in a big region
New Glasgow News, Canada - 8 hours ago
Nova Scotia’s neighbour is looking at a challenge that really should be a focus for all the provinces together in the Atlantic Region. ...
.13 GTA police put the brakes on street-racers
680 News - Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Thirty-eight people have died in street racing accidents since 1999. … Many drivers race in areas near regional boundaries, counting on jurisdictional confusion to get away from police. All of the GTA police services are ...
.14 What can we do to recruit and retain physicians in our region?
Smoky River Express - Falher, Alberta, Canada
Recruiting physicians seems to be an uphill battle for rural areas, including the Smoky River region. Now that the Physician Recruitment and Retention for ...
.15 Manufacturers' confidence up in every region in UK, says study
Earthtimes-org - USA
This is for the first time since February 1995 that business confidence has improved across all the regions in the country, the survey, carried out by ...
.16 High crime eroding Caribbean growth -UN/World Bank report
Stabroek News - Georgetown, Guyana
... that interdiction needs to be complemented by other strategies outside the region - principally demand reduction in consumer countries and eradication and/or alternative development in producer countries....
.17 Minister calls for innovative projects to benefit regional communities
Media Newswire (press release) - New York, NY, USA
… grant applications for non-capital works projects designed to deliver cross-regional benefits to country communities. … from the Western Australian Regional Initiatives Scheme (WARIS) …
.18 Prescott legacy: vast and useless
Telegraph-co-uk - London, England, UK
A fifth set up the eight regional development agencies and assemblies that he intended to be the embryo of regional government for the rest of England. ...
.19 Watching the Scottish Elections
By Pat the Chooks(Pat the Chooks)
These were the regional list ballot for the Additional MSP and the constituency ballot for the local MSP. Both of these ballot papers were on the same sheet of paper. The Arbuthnott Commission recommended that these two ballots, ...
.20 Official says active diplomacy a factor to strengthen regional interaction
IRNA - Iran
… the only way to create stability and tranquility in the region is interaction of the regional countries. ..
.21 Russia’s Beef with Regional Arms Control
By Council on Foreign Relations
May 7, 2007. Russia has suspended its participation in a treaty on conventional arms and voiced opposition to a missile shield in its backyard. Is a new era of mutual hostility in the making? …
.22 A Wholesale Return to Regionalism
Chosun Ilbo - Seoul, South Korea
Referring to the lawmakers who abandoned the Uri Party, the president said, “The inveterate disease of old-style politics, which divided one region against another and promoted collusive ties, has returned.” He added, “You are virtually taking the entire Uri Party and surrendering to regionalism.” …
.23 Mixed reaction to State Budget
Upper Yarra Mail - Pakenham, Victoria, Australia
Of the $23 million, $2 million will go to regional community tourism events, $1.2 million will market regional wineries and food to interstate markets while ...
.24 EU Agreement Extends Latin American Research Through 2008
GRIDtoday - San Diego, CA, USA
… linking observatories in Chile and Argentina to partner institutions in Latin America and Europe, while the EELA grid computing initiative is sharing technical resources between the regions to …
.25 Behind scenes of Romania's negotiations with European Commission
HotNews.co - Bucharest|, Romania
The Regional Operational Programme and the Environment Programme prove to be the most advanced in the calendar of the negotiation process with the European ...
.26 Seven Leading Academics Issue 21st Century Corporate Governance and Audit Committee Principles
AScribe (press release) - USA
... newly updated "Governance Principles" and new "Audit Committee Principles" (which can be found online at http://www.kennesaw.edu/cgc/21stcentury_2007.pdf include these guidelines:
- Independent directors must be able and willing to be objective in their judgments. ...
.27 Niagara Region favors landfill over incineration
Solid Waste & Recycling - Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Waste to energy ranked lowest in Watson and Associates’ assessment because of its expense. The preferred option involves utilization of the region’s five existing landfills and negotiation of a long-term disposal contract with Walker Industries. …
.28 Guatemala President Credits Counterpart International for Tourism Development
MaximsNews.com - Ridgewood, NJ, USA
"Counterpart Guatemala has done a wonderful job of listening to their compatriots define the tools they need to build healthy communities and long-term employment by ensuring tourism and what we call 'ethical archaeology' …
.29 The Stockholm-Uppsala Bioregion: Sweden's Life Science Strongholds Join Forces
PharmaLive.com (press release) - Newtown, PA, USA
The new Stockholm-Uppsala Bioregion Association will enable us to aggressively position the region as one of the world's leading life science regions, " says ...
.30 Baynote’s 'Wisdom of Community' Approach to E-Commerce Receives E-Commerce Receives $10.75M Series B Boost
Social Computing Magazine - New York, NY, USA
... software uses the “wisdom of community, ” or the implicit, emergent behaviors of peers, experts and the greater community to guide website visitors to the products, content, and social search results that increase website conversions. ...
.31 Even slow steps to global rule are worth the wait
Border Mail - Albury, New South Wales, Australia
AS everybody knows, democracy stops at the national frontier.
Once you get into the space between countries, it is all about power.
But maybe it doesn’t have to be that way.
There is already a world administration of sorts, in the form of the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organisation and so on, but it is all in the hands of governments.
Some governments are much more equal than others, so none of the global institutions ever acts against the will of the powerful.
(Occasionally they refuse to approve some deed of the powerful, as the UN did briefly over the US invasion of Iraq, but that is all).
And nowhere in all the layers of bureaucrats and diplomats is there any direct representation of ordinary people.
And so, only 62 years after the foundation of the UN, the Campaign for the Establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA) launches this week in five continents.
12. Blogs: Highlighted words are Google search terms.
.10 Cleveland+
By Audient(Audient)
Here is the main site of this pro-regionalism campaign. I love that something is finally being done to market the region as a whole. But looking at that map... there is a part of me that would be just as happy to see these counties be ...
.11 The Rise and Fall of Regionalism
By info-oxroadsouth-com (Ox Road South)
Transportation is a state obligation. It should be funded and solved by the state government. Regionalism is fine for high school sports. It is not a solution for a 21st century transportation network.
.12 Imagine What Pittsburgh Can Do
By Mike Madison(Mike Madison)
Regional Projects will involve large areas of the region or large population groups and be eligible to receive grants up to $50000. These large-scale projects will be chosen by a panel of representatives from the 14-county area and ...
.13 The Rug Removed
By isaac butler
In the early 1990s, the Government of Denmark made a rather radical decision. … In order to address this, the Danish Government made a simple choice: they made playwriting a pretty good living and started giving money away to younger theater companies. The results were (and are) astounding. … I state all of this as an introduction to the issue that I want to explore which is the imminent demise of the non-profit Off Broadway/Regional theatre paradigm in America. Pretty much every single problem in American theatre that we think of as artistic can be traced back to financial factors, …
.14 Commissioner Konop to promote Regionalism and (in) Efficiency Mission
By mholdri
TOLEDO BLADE - As is the case with most newly elected politicians, Lucas County Commissioner Ben Konop was talking about change when he was sworn in last December...With a mission to challenge the existing structures of government for ...
.15 Power of Three
By UWSEM webmaster(UWSEM webmaster)
On that day, regional cooperation trumped partisanship and parochialism. The Expo set a benchmark for how work can be done. On that day, at that moment, the region got together and did very well. Moving from a single event, ...
.16 Comment on Regional branding by Jim Cossler
That simply is the best possible graphical depiction of what a model of true regional cooperation ought to look like. And it’sa graphic that could actually engender a real ground swell of support for a campaign that wasn’t all that well ...
.17 Community survey for Town Hall 'usual suspects'
By DRP(DRP)
TUCSON -- As part of the overall Tucson Regional Town Hall process... the results from a series of surveys will be utilized in conjunction with the Tucson Regional Town Hall to help shape actionable goals intended to make the Tucson ...
.18 It Doesn't Rank
Even the regional online community I help host, Philly Future has little posted. Philadelphia's larger community of aggregated local bloggers are talking, but maybe not with each other, and mostly to their own independent communities. ...
.19 Facing workforce weaknesses
By Ed Morrison(Ed Morrison)
In Payson, AZ, the local economic development organization has produced a serious report on the skill weaknesses in the current workforce. Barbara Ganz, the EDPro leading the Payson Regional Economic Development Corporation, ...
.20 A Change of Heart by Akindele Akinyemi
By madwriter9(madwriter9)
I realize that since I believe in regionalization that I do not have to stay stuck in Detroit. Black people are all over the place in Michigan. I am not committed to Detroit but I am committed to urban Michigan. ...
.21 Late to the Party,
By Roger Sutton(Roger Sutton)
His assumption of regional origin as such a defining characteristic of writers that it needs to be nurtured by regional newspaper coverage seems evidence of someone who is ignoring the Internet, and what it's doing to social geography, at his peril. (Or maybe it's just smugness that he lives in New York.) …
.22 Is this ASAP’s point of view?
By Jim Duncan
In search of Albemarle’s “optimal population, ” ASAP believes in part:
There are limits to growth locally as well as globally. Smart growth is needed in the short term, but at some point bigger is not better. Through education, research, advocacy, and policy formulation, ASAP is working to identify our regions (sic) optimal population and build sustainable communities here in Central Virginia. …
.23 A Manifesto for the National Park Service
National Parks serve as bellwethers of environmental change - change caused by development and industrialization – change that occurs locally, regionally and globally. National Parks and other protected natural areas provide spaces for ...
.24 Comment on November Ballot to Test: Are Seattlites Still Suckers
The Antiplanner
They want to build a big new light rail line so we can “become a world class city”, and they want authority for a regional planning commission that, I’m sure, will do its best to make housing unaffordable.
By Main Street Journal
The meeting was attended by Shelby County Mayor AC Wharton, representatives from the office of Mayor Herenton, members of the City Council and Shelby County Commission, the Memphis Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Airport Authority, ...
.26 Defending Pittsburgh
By IOZ(IOZ)
... 130 municipalities, many operating their own little police forces and fire departments, competing for funds, sucking off Pittsburgh's money-bleeding mass transit system, rebuffing efforts at regionalism in favor of old fiefdoms. ...
By weitzenegger
This handbook for LRED practitioners is based on GTZ’s recent experience in supporting Local and Regional Economic Development (LRED) in South Africa. ...
13. Announcements and Regional Links
.10 DATABASES - Regional Intelligence Unit - Information 2 Intelligence
This page contains details of the various databases and toolkits held by the Regional Intelligence Unit and other applications which the RIU utilises.
.11 Driving Questions: Developing a National Transportation Vision
A new book by Northeastern University Professor Joseph M. Giglio provides public and private sector decision makers with a comprehensive perspective on the nation’s surface transportation challenges and identifies fundamental questions that must be addressed before choosing appropriate tactics and technologies to transform our transportation system into one that meets the country’s current and future needs.
14. Subscription
.10 US OKs regional development zone - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (subscription) - Milwaukee, WI, USA
When Deng Xiaoping wanted to catapult China out of its third-world status 29 years ago, the Chinese leader designated a handful of special economic zones meant to attract foreign investment.
Milwaukee effectively has borrowed a page out of Deng's economic-policy playbook.
On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security approved the creation of an economic-development zone in southeastern Wisconsin that's meant to attract foreign investment by offering United States residency rights to qualified investors.
But the foot-dragging pace and bureaucratic delays by the federal agency, which took nearly three years to give its approval, likely would have infuriated the hard-charging Deng.
The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, which sponsored the program, never bothered to conceal its aggravation with the Department of Homeland Security, which needs to approve each of the nation's Immigrant Investor Pilot Programs.
"It was ridiculous, " said Robert Kraft, a Milwaukee businessman who co-chairs the MMAC's China Council.
At Kraft's urging, the MMAC began its application at a time when China's economic ascent was leading to factory shutdowns across the Midwest. The MMAC filed its application on July 1, 2004.
"While we've had a focus on China, it's not exclusive to Chinese investors, " MMAC President Tim Sheehy said.
To lure entrepreneurs from around the world, the program offers visas to foreigners who invest at least $1 million - or $500, 000 in areas that have high unemployment or are rural - and create at least 10 jobs within the seven-county metro region.
Homeland Security has dubbed metro Milwaukee's zone the MMAC Regional Center. Recruiting can begin for the regional center immediately.
…
.11 Agreement will team colleges to help grow western Wisconsin - River Falls Journal (subscription) - River Falls, WI, USA
An agreement to be signed on Thursday will tie four of the region's public colleges and universities together to help grow business in both the St. Croix and Chippewa Valley regions.
The agreement is called "Educational Partnership for Regional Development" and will allow the schools to work together to help businesses in the region.
"Those of us in the St. Croix and Chippewa valleys have known for quite some time that we are committed in our collaboration to develop the 'IQ Corridor' that spans I-94, " said Don Betz, University of Wisconsin-River Falls chancellor.
The agreement will be signed at a ceremony in the atrium of Millennium Hall on the UW-Stout campus in Menomonie at 9:45 a.m. The guest speaker will be Mary Burke, Wisconsin Department of Commerce secretary.
The four schools involved include the UW-River Falls, UW-Stout, UW-Eau Claire and Chippewa Valley Technical College.
"We recognize we are key players in the economic development of the region, " said Mark Kinders, a UW-River Falls' spokesman.
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15. Google News for “Regional Community”
Other menu sections available from this link include: Regional Development; Regional Council; Regional Commission; Regional America; Regional Asia; Regional Europe; Regional Competition; Regionalism; Intergovernmental and other search terms. They can be sorted by date or relevance. These are among the 50 search terms I use to produce this newsletter.
My name is Tom Christoffel. I've worked in the field of intergovernmental cooperation since 1973. As a consequence, "I see regions work." Regional Community Development News is published weekly based on news reports as of Wednesday.
Making visible analysis and actions at multi-jurisdictional regional scales is its purpose. "Think globally, act locally" was innovative in its time. Today the local scale is often too small to address today's needs and opportunities. "Think local planet, act regionally, " is my candidate paradigm. (No one said we're only allowed one paradigm.)
We can see that “regional communities” are organized locally and now act both to avoid tragedy in the commons and gain benefits. An effective multi-jurisdictional regional community has DNA: it is geographically Defined; has a common Name and its Alignment is inclusive of smaller communities and participatory in larger communities. So, by scanning this compilation, reading articles and checking organizations - you too will be able to see the regional communities that already exist.
News references are found using the Google News search service. Media article links are “fair use” to transform globally scattered reports to make regional approaches visible. Links go to the publisher and do not compete with it. Such publishers are likely to have related stories and thus be seen by new customers. “Regional” is an emerging news category. There is no charge for this service and no profit is made from its use, though any user can become more aware of the topic itself.
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Thomas J. (Tom) Christoffel, AICP Making regions visible for Leaders and Problem-solvers. www.regionalintelligence.com or www.regions.ws
