The National Brownfields Coalition, with support from over 30 national organizations, released a letter in support of the reintroduction of the Brownfields Redevelopment Tax Incentive Reauthorization Act. This bill, introduced by Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ) and Rep. Michael Turner (OH), will allow taxpayers to fully deduct the cleanup costs of contaminated property in the year … Continued
After more than a decade of working to build safer streets, strong Complete Streets legislation has finally been introduced in Congress. The Complete Streets Act of 2019 could catalyze the adoptions of thousands of local Complete Streets policies across the country, based on experience in Massachusetts.
Today, President Trump signed into law a $1.1 trillion budget to continue funding the government for the rest of Fiscal Year 2017, which runs through the end of September.
This legislation overall maintains funding for key federal programs critical to rebuilding neighborhoods and providing attainable housing and affordable transportation options. Here’s what the bill contains for smart growth-related programs
Dru Schmidt-Perkins of 1,000 Friends of Maryland (left) with Tyler Grote of Smart Growth America at last week’s meeting.Last week, members of Smart Growth America’s non-profit coalition gathered in Washington, DC for the coalition’s annual meeting and advocacy day on Capitol Hill.
On Wednesday, coalition members and Smart Growth America staff discussed the new issues and progress made in each member’s region. Staff from Smart Growth America and Transportation for America briefed the members about progress on projects including the National Complete Streets Coalition, innovative transportation policies in Michigan and projects to improve community health in the transportation planning process.
Then member organizations presented about their achievements in the last year and discussed the challenges within each region. The Alliance to Re-Industrialize for a Sustainable Economy (ARISE) Minnesota’s Zachary Zweifler gave an insightful presentation on how they are designing projects to transform former industrial sites into mixed-use developments using non-traditional approaches. And Kaid Benfield, co-founder of Smart Growth America and the author of People Habitat: 25 Ways to Think About Greener, Healthier Cities, shared a few of the major points from his book, which discusses topics as wide-ranging as “green” housing developments that are no such thing, the tricky matter of gentrifying inner cities, why people don’t walk much anymore, and the relationship between cities and religion.
Members of LOCUS: Responsible Real Estate Developers and Investors, representing some of the leading transit-oriented development companies in America, gathered in Washington, DC on June 15 and 16 to meet with each other and visit representatives on Capitol Hill.
LOCUS members met representatives from nearly 40 Congressional offices to discuss how federal transportation investments can better support one of the fastest-growing segments of America’s housing and real estate market: walkable, mixed-use development.
If you or your organization are interested in advocating for sustainable real estate at the federal level, consider joining LOCUS today. Learn more >>