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Councilmember Ali Saleh uses smart growth to build economic resilience in Bell, California

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City of Bell, California. Photo via Joshua Orizaga on Google.

The City of Bell is a small two-square-mile suburb on the outskirts of Los Angeles, CA. Following a political scandal in the early 2000s that left the city almost bankrupt, Bell has made a remarkable recovery. With their finances back on track, it is more important than ever for the city to make fiscally responsible decisions and improve the lives of residents. The city is using smart growth to make that happen.

Councilmember Ali Saleh, a member of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, has been instrumental to the City of Bell’s fiscal stability. Elected in 2011, Saleh first served as mayor and now sits on the City Council. Saleh has supported several smart growth strategies that will improve the economy and the day-to-day lives of residents.

Local Leaders Council

Nominate a developer for the 2015 National LOCUS Leadership Awards

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Nominate a developer!

Do you know a real estate developer or investor who is creating great walkable places and has displayed exemplary public leadership to advance smart growth development? If so, nominate them for the 2015 LOCUS Leadership Awards! We are granting awards in three categories:

Developer/Investor of the Year
Affiliate of the Year (includes Architects, Lawyers, Planners, Engineers, etc.)
Richard Baron Award for Affordable Housing

The LOCUS Leadership Awards recognize real estate developers or investors who have demonstrated exemplary commitment to public leadership for walkable, sustainable development. These awards represent an excellent opportunity to showcase and reward a game-changing developer who is influencing the future of real estate. Last year, LOCUS honored Meea Kang, President and co-Founder of Domus Development LLC for her accomplishments in smart growth affordable housing development in California and across the nation.

LOCUS

Person County, NC plans for residential and economic growth

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roxboro
Uptown Roxboro, NC. Picture via Roxboro Development Group.

Person County, NC’s community’s workshop goal: “To help local leaders and community members identify how Person County can manage growth and economic development in such a way that our strategies for these two issues complement one another and both contribute to the vision set forth for Person County in the Person Futures Strategic Plan.”

On December 2 and 3, representatives from Smart Growth America (SGA) met with county and municipal leaders and residents to provide assistance under the Planning for Fiscal and Economic Health tool, supported by a grant from the U.S. EPA’s Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities program.

Technical assistance

Secretary Foxx challenges mayors to a Complete Streets approach

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Secretary Foxx and Charlotte
Left: Secretary Foxx, photo by USDOT. Right: people walking and bicycling in Charlotte, NC. Photo by James Willamor

Yesterday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx launched the Mayors’ Challenge for Safer People and Safer Streets—inviting mayors and other local elected officials to take significant action to improve the safety of their constituents who walk or bicycle in the next year.

Their first action: attending the Mayors’ Summit for Safer People, Safer Streets this March.

Their second: Taking a Complete Streets approach locally.

Complete Streets

Complete Streets News — January 2015

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The Innovative MPO — A new resource from Transportation for America showcases more than 100 real-world examples and 20 detailed case studies from MPOs leading innovative initiatives. Created as a companion to The Innovative DOT, the report relates how MPOs of all sizes have stretched public resources, leveraged data for smart investments, and advanced regional and economic development priorities. Read more >>

Complete Streets

LOCUS statement on President Obama's 2015 State of the Union address

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In reaction to President Barack Obama’s 2015 State of the Union address, LOCUS: Responsible Real Estate Developers and Investors Director Christopher Coes issued the following statement:

“We applaud the President for recognizing the need to address comprehensive tax reform and invest America’s transportation and infrastructure now. Today, Americans are voting with their feet by seeking out neighborhoods that are walkable, economically accessible and culturally vibrant. Many, however, are feeling the squeeze in their search for affordable housing and transportation options in great, walkable neighborhoods.

LOCUS

Commissioner Ron Beitler on Lower Macungie, PA: A Community at a Crossroads

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macungie Hamilton Boulevard in Lower Macungie, PA, overlaid with an artist’s rendering of proposed changed. Image by Kairos Design Group for Lower Macungie Township.

Creating a better, stronger Lower Macungie Township is about more than just a job for Commissioner Ron Beitler. It’s about his roots and hometown pride, it’s about his future and the future of his family. For Beitler, a vibrant Lower Macungie is deeply personal.

Beitler, a member of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, is a lifelong resident of Lower Macungie, PA, a third-ring suburb of Allentown located on the western end of the Lehigh Valley. Beitler and his wife live in a house less than three blocks away from the house he grew up in, where his parents still live. In fact, most of Beitler’s family members live in Lower Macungie.

Local Leaders Council

Maryland leaders gather to discuss leadership in smart growth at Maryland Association of Counties Winter Conference

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Maryland Association of Counties Winter ConferenceCounty Executive Rushern Baker, Councilmember Roger Berliner, and County Executive Jan Gardner describe the smart growth efforts they are championing.

Over 50 local elected leaders from Maryland, including members of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, gathered on Wednesday, January 7 to discuss smart growth successes and challenges during the Maryland Association of Counties Winter Conference in Cambridge, MD. Smart Growth America and 1000 Friends of Maryland cosponsored the event.

Local Leaders Council
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