Partnership 

for Sustainable 

Communities

THREE YEARS OF HELPING 

COMMUNITIES ACHIEVE 

THEIR VISIONS FOR GROWTH 

AND PROSPERITY
About the Partnership

On June 16, 2009, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, U.S. Secretary 

of Transportation Ray LaHood, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson 

announced that they were forming the interagency Partnership for Sustainable Communities. Guided by 

six Livability Principles (below), HUD, DOT, and EPA are coordinating investments and aligning policies to 

support communities that want to give Americans more housing choices, make transportation systems more 

efficient and reliable, reinforce existing investments, protect the environment, and support vibrant and healthy 

neighborhoods that attract businesses.

Livability Principles

• Provide more transportation choices • Support existing communities

• Promote equitable, affordable housing • Leverage federal investment

• Increase economic competitiveness • Value communities and neighborhoods

The Partnership for Sustainable Communities is about asking communities what they 

need from the federal government, and helping them bring all the stakeholders to 

the table so they can realize their local visions for success. The $240 million in grants 

HUD has provided over the past two years has leveraged $253 million in private 

investment and commitments from local partners, ensuring that communities can plan 

and target their resources with precision, create jobs, and speed economic growth. 

These kinds of tools show that the debate isn’t about government that’s big or small, 

but about government that’s smart. As our local economies become increasingly 

interdependent, it’s clear these kinds of smart government tools are essential to 

creating an economy built to last.

Secretary Shaun Donovan

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

“ ”

Through this Partnership with HUD and EPA, we are breaking down barriers to 

local innovation and coordination in communities across America. We are working 

hard to ensure local leaders have the resources and tools they need to strengthen 

neighborhoods by connecting housing with affordable and sustainable transportation 

choices. These projects mean jobs right now and an economy that will continue to 

grow—that’s what I call a win-win.

Secretary Ray LaHood

U.S. Department of Transportation

“ ”

Bringing our agencies together around these shared goals opens up numerous 

opportunities to protect health and the environment at the same time we’re 

strengthening communities and using resources more efficiently. By coordinating 

targeted federal investments in transportation infrastructure, clean water, and housing, 

we can give our communities the economic and environmental advantages they need 

to compete in the 21st century. This type of smart growth and smart investment can 

help American cities, suburbs, small towns, and rural areas become healthier and 

more prosperous.

Administrator Lisa P. Jackson

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

“ ”

ABOUT THE PARTNERSHIP
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 1

Introduction

Interagency collaboration through the Partnership for 

Sustainable Communities uses taxpayer money more 

efficiently and gets better results for communities. By 

coordinating federal investments in infrastructure, 

facilities, and services, the U.S. Department of Housing 

and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Department 

of Transportation (DOT), and U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) can meet multiple economic, 

environmental, and community objectives with each 

dollar spent.

Since 2009, HUD, DOT, and EPA have been 

coordinating their work to help communities around 

the country better meet their housing, transportation, 

and environmental goals—laying the groundwork for 

an economy that provides good jobs now and creates 

a strong foundation for long-term prosperity. This 

report describes accomplishments of the Partnership 

and the communities it serves on its third anniversary.

American communities face complex challenges 

as they try to strengthen their economies, meet 

changing demand for housing and transportation, 

and protect the environment and public health. The 

Partnership agencies recognized they could better help 

communities by partnering to develop, implement, and 

share successful approaches. Small towns, suburbs, 

cities, and entire regions are planning for sustainable 

communities, and many have asked the Partnership 

to help them turn these plans into reality. Every region 

has different needs and resources, so communities are 

taking different paths to becoming more economically 

and environmentally sustainable and ensuring that 

all members of the community benefit from those 

improvements. One of the Partnership’s goals is to help 

communities engage all residents in developing visions 

and plans for future growth. This inclusive planning 

catalyzes public and private investment and can speed 

implementation of plans.

Since 2009, the Partnership has provided over $3.5 

billion in assistance to more than 700 communities. 

Partnership grant and technical assistance recipients 

are located in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, 

and Puerto Rico. Demand for Partnership assistance 

far outstrips available resources. As of April 2012, 

Partnership agencies received more than 7,700 

applications for assistance, requesting almost $102 

billion. The Partnership has been able to fund 744 

projects with approximately $3.51 billion. (See the 

inside back cover for a map of Partnership grant and 

technical assistance recipients.)

One of the Partnership’s primary goals is to better align 

and coordinate HUD, DOT, and EPA assistance to

communities across the country. The Partnership jointly 

develops programs and reviews grant applications, 

ensuring that grants and technical assistance build on 

earlier funding and meet multiple community goals 

with each investment. Staff in the three agencies’ 

regional offices around the country are replicating the 

national Partnership to make it easier for communities 

to make connections across agencies. 

WHAT ARE SUSTAINABLE 

COMMUNITIES?

In sustainable communities, people can live closer 

to jobs or have easier access to more jobs in a 

wider region thanks to public transit. Sustainable 

communities include a variety of housing types near 

workplaces, schools, parks, stores, and amenities, 

making it convenient to walk, bike, take transit, or 

drive short distances to daily destinations.

SPOTLIGHT ON THE HUD 

SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 

INITIATIVE

Over the last three years, HUD has awarded 152 grants 

INTRODUCTION

in 48 states as part of its Sustainable Communities 

Initiative. The $240 million in federal investments has 

leveraged almost $253 million in private investment 

and commitments from local partners. From rural and 

tribal communities in West Virginia, South Dakota, and 

Washington to cities like Chicago, Seattle, and Kansas 

City, regions are working together to develop local 

solutions to strengthen their economies and create jobs.

In 2010, HUD established a Preferred Sustainability 

Status to support implementation of plans being 

funded through its Regional Planning and Community 

Challenge grants. Applicants with Preferred 

Sustainability Status receive preference for funding in 

other HUD grant programs.
2 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

In addition, the Partnership helps tribal, state, regional, 

and local governments by providing technical 

assistance and giving communities better access to 

information, training, and peer-to-peer learning.

In 2011, for example, HUD and EPA created a 

capacity-building network to help grant and assistance 

recipients exchange ideas on successful strategies, 

emerging tools, and public engagement plans. The 

National Sustainable Communities Learning Network 

was launched in March 2012 to facilitate peer-to-peer 

learning among the recipients of HUD Sustainable 

Communities Regional Planning and Community 

Challenge Grants, EPA Brownfields Area-Wide 

Planning Grants, and technical assistance from EPA’s 

Office of Sustainable Communities. In February 2012, 

HUD also launched a public, online Sustainable 

Communities Resource Center to provide information 

on local and regional strategies for sustainable housing 

and planning. The Resource Center, which provides 

ready access to innovative practices, cutting-edge 

research, new reports, and other resources, is available 

at www.huduser.org/portal/sustainability/home.html.

The Partnership’s work includes helping urban, 

suburban, and rural communities share their success 

stories. The case studies that follow are models for 

communities that aim to be greener, healthier, more 

economically competitive, and more affordable. 

For more case studies, please visit the Partnership’s 

website, www.sustainablecommunities.gov.

Examples of Competitive Grant and Technical Assistance Programs 

Developed and Reviewed Jointly by the Partnership Agencies

Program Lead Agency Year

TIGER1 I Capital Grants DOT 2009

TIGER II Capital Grants DOT 2010

TIGER III Capital Grants DOT 2011

TIGER IV Capital Grants DOT 2012

FHWA2 Transportation, Community, and System Preservation Program DOT 2011-2012

FTA3 Bus Livability Program DOT 2010-2012

FTA Alternatives Analysis Planning Grants DOT 2010-2012

Smart Growth Implementation Assistance EPA 2005-20124

Partnership Brownfields Pilots EPA 2012

Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Pilots EPA 2010

Greening America’s Capitals EPA 2010-2011

Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities EPA 2011-2012

Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grants HUD 2010-2011

Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grants HUD 2010-2011

Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants HUD 2010-2011

Community Challenge Grants HUD 2011

Community Challenge/TIGER II Planning Grants HUD, DOT 2010

1 TIGER stands for Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery.

2 FHWA stands for Federal Highway Administration.

3 FTA stands for Federal Transit Administration.

4 The Smart Growth Implementation Assistance program became a Partnership program in 2009.
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 3

BRIDGEPORT, CT

Aiming to Be “New England’s 

Greenest City” 

Located on the coast between New York City 

and Providence, Bridgeport was once a bustling 

industrial and shipping center. Over the past 50 

years, the city has been in decline; today, residents 

suffer from higher-than-average rates of asthma due 

to air pollution, and many lack easy access to fresh 

food, jobs, and public transportation.

Each Partnership agency had provided Bridgeport 

with assistance before 2009. DOT funded major 

transit upgrades, including Bridgeport’s Intermodal 

Transportation Center. EPA awarded grants 

and technical assistance, including brownfields5

assessment and cleanup grants, job training grants, 

and career training assistance. HUD provided 

funding to promote affordable housing and 

community development. However, this support 

was not well-coordinated and did not always 

consider the city’s needs as a whole. That approach 

changed in 2009 with the participation of the 

Partnership for Sustainable Communities.

The Power of Partnership

“In 2009, our regional teams began meeting 

monthly to talk about how we could better 

coordinate our assistance across New England,” 

says EPA Regional Administrator Curt Spalding. 

“Could a clean brownfield site in one location serve 

as a catalyst for a new transit center, for example? 

Could nearby affordable housing make it easier 

for lower- income people to get to work, a health 

clinic, or a full-service grocery store? Could a 

section of a city designed to promote walkability 

reduce pollution and improve public health in 

an area suffering from high rates of asthma? The 

Partnership makes it possible for us to look not 

just at one project at a time, but at the cumulative 

impact of our federal support.”

By combining funding and technical expertise, 

the three agencies are working together to help 

Bridgeport achieve its goals for sustainability. In 

2009, Bridgeport received an EPA Environmental 

Justice Showcase Community Grant, which led to 

many improvements in the distressed East End and 

East Side neighborhoods, including a new fishing 

pier and renewed access for residents who had been 

unable to get to the waterfront. In 2010, Bridgeport 

received $11 million in TIGER multimodal 

transportation funding from DOT to build and 

upgrade roads around the East Side’s Steel Point 

Peninsula to prepare for redevelopment.

Bridgeport is also a partner in the New YorkConnecticut Sustainable Communities Consortium, 

a large stakeholder group comprised of city, county, 

and regional representatives that received a 2010 

HUD Regional Planning Grant through the Regional 

Plan Association (RPA). RPA is an independent 

urban research and advocacy group that provides 

leadership and guidance on sustainability, 

infrastructure, and economic competitiveness 

issues in the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut 

metropolitan region.

“The Partnership for Sustainable Communities in 

Bridgeport is an example of collaborative problemsolving and unified government at its best. This 

collaboration has encouraged HUD, DOT, and EPA 

to work together to focus resources not just on 

transportation, housing, or the environment, but on 

how to coordinate all three.” 

—Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch

Steel Point will have pedestrian- and bike-friendly streets that 

connect neighborhoods to public transit, open the waterfront to the 

public, and support commercial and residential development. 

Image courtesy of Bridgeport Landing Development LLC.

5 A brownfield is a property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which 

might be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous 

substance, pollutant, or contaminant.
4 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

As part of this grant, the consortium is studying 

the feasibility of opening Barnum Station, a 

proposed rail station in Bridgeport’s East End, 

on a cleaned-up brownfield. The city hopes the 

station will anchor its East Side redevelopment 

plan, leading to new business investment; mixeduse, transit-oriented development; and affordable 

homes. As part of its extensive public outreach 

strategy for implementing the HUD planning 

grant, the consortium has held seven forums and 

“town halls,” where an estimated 420 residents 

and stakeholders heard about the progress of the 

planning work and provided input. In January 2012, 

residents and stakeholders attended a town hall 

meeting in Bridgeport to learn about the Barnum 

Station feasibility study and share ideas to enhance 

the project.

“The Partnership’s efforts have helped further a 

vision of the future of Bridgeport to become New 

England’s greenest city,” said Bridgeport Mayor 

Bill Finch. “By the federal government coordinating 

resources and technical expertise, we have a chance of 

realizing a vision such as the Barnum Station project.”

Since 2009, the Partnership for Sustainable Communities has 

been working with other federal and local agencies to coordinate 

grants and technical expertise in southwest Atlanta to bring jobs, 

help the housing market recover, and protect the environment. 

For example, an EPA Environmental Workforce Development 

Training Grant was awarded in 2012 to teach community 

residents construction and environmental cleanup skills. The 

trainees will help rehabilitate foreclosed homes that the city of 

Atlanta and the Annie E. Casey Foundation have purchased with 

a HUD Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grant. The EastWest Streetcar, to be built with funds from DOT’s Federal Transit 

Administration (FTA) and the city of Atlanta, will give southwest 

Atlanta residents easier access to jobs and amenities downtown.

“Such coordination is unusual for government; it’s a great advance to see federal, state, and local agencies working to 

achieve a better outcome for families and children than they could have on their own,” says Gail Hayes, director of the 

Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Atlanta Civic Site. She adds, “Federal agencies joined with city departments to discuss how 

we could use our resources effectively to improve economic, social, and environmental conditions in the southwest 

neighborhoods. Because of this enhanced coordination in all three areas, EPA, HUD, and DOT were able to achieve 

significant progress for communities in need.”

SPOTLIGHT ON ATLANTA, GA: COORDINATING FEDERAL ASSISTANCE

At public meetings, residents expressed their concerns 

about exposure to contaminants from brownfields, 

excessive pollution from nearby highways, and the lack of 

jobs. Here, they comment on a proposed plan. 

Photo courtesy of the city of Atlanta.
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 5

RANSON AND CHARLES TOWN, WV

Two Cities Envision a 

Sustainable Future Together

Ranson and Charles Town are fighting the effects 

of manufacturing closures, as well as increasing 

growth pressures from the Baltimore-Washington 

metropolitan area. In the past several years, Ranson 

has lost more than 1,500 jobs as manufacturers shut 

down, leaving the community with contaminated, 

vacant sites and a downtown in economic decline. 

At the same time, Jefferson County’s population 

has been growing steadily, but with few strategies 

to guide the growth. Joining forces with federal and 

state agencies, Ranson and Charles Town have 

developed a plan for revitalization. The Partnership 

for Sustainable Communities has been a key player 

in moving that plan forward.

The Power of Partnership

The Partnership initially helped the two cities 

implement recommendations from EPA brownfields 

assessment grants awarded in 2001, 2004, and 

2006. These grants paved the way for American 

Public University’s construction of an academic 

center—the first LEED-certified6 commercial 

building in West Virginia—on a former brownfield. 

The university is also transforming a shuttered 

manufacturing facility into a LEED- certified office 

building. According to Ranson’s city manager, 

Andy Blake, the university’s investment will attract 

hundreds of jobs.

“If not for the work done through the brownfields 

grants, we would have been forced to look outside 

the city limits for land parcels large enough to 

expand our campus,” says Wallace Boston, 

president and CEO of the American Public 

University System. “Instead, we have been able 

to compound our commitment to sustainability 

by reclaiming sites and reducing the impact to the 

surrounding countryside.”

To build on this momentum, Ranson and Charles 

Town applied for and received an EPA Brownfields 

Area-Wide Planning Grant, a HUD Community 

Challenge Planning Grant, and a DOT TIGER 

II Planning Grant in 2010. With these funds, the 

two cities began envisioning a sustainable future. 

Coordination of the three grants allowed the 

communities to develop a cohesive plan that uses 

vacant, previously contaminated land for economic 

development, links 

transportation to 

land use, protects 

the environment, 

and provides more 

affordable housing.

The city of 

Ranson received 

technical assistance 

through EPA’s 

Building Blocks 

for Sustainable 

Communities 

Program to 

strengthen and 

articulate the plan. 

EPA worked with 

elected officials, 

stakeholders, and 

the public to identify 

areas for growth 

and analyze existing 

community tools. 

This assistance, 

provided in May 2011, resulted in a clear and 

specific action plan that helped Ranson implement 

the three grants ahead of schedule.

The plan centers on transforming Fairfax Boulevard, 

the main thoroughfare between the two cities. 

A “green corridor” will surround the boulevard, 

providing a walkable, bikeable connection between 

the two cities that provides access to regional job 

“All the stars aligned – transportation, zoning, the 

environment, workforce housing. The Partnership 

allowed us to refine our plans into implementable 

steps to create a sustainable community for 

generations to come.”

—Ranson City Manager Andy Blake

6 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification provides 

third-party verification that a building, home, or community was designed 

and built using strategies to achieve high performance in sustainable site 

development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor 

environmental quality. From the U.S. Green Building Council, www.usgbc.org.

The Green Corridor will surround 

Fairfax Boulevard, making it easier 

for people to walk or bike to jobs and 

community facilities in both towns. 

Learn more at www.ransonrenewed.

com. Image courtesy of the city of 

Ranson.
6 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

centers and community facilities. Ranson and 

Charles Town are using the TIGER II grant, with 

a local match, to redesign the road to become a 

“complete street” designed to be safe for drivers, 

bicyclists, and pedestrians. These funds will also 

help transform a rundown historic building into a 

regional commuter center in downtown Charles 

Town, providing residents and workers with access 

to regional trains and buses.

In April 2012, Ranson’s city council unanimously 

approved proposals to enact a new zoning code 

and comprehensive plan, moving the community 

one step closer to realizing its vision for growth. 

With the Community Challenge Grant and Building 

Blocks technical assistance, the city drafted new 

zoning requirements to develop streets that are 

safe and comfortable for pedestrians, bicyclists, 

and motorized vehicles; bring buildings closer to 

the street; allow a mix of uses; and accommodate 

affordable homes. With the Brownfields Area-Wide 

Planning Grant, the city created a downtown plan 

that will develop six cleaned-up brownfields and 

spur the local economy. Ranson also plans to use a 

HUD Brownfields Economic Development Initiative 

Grant and Section 108 loan to clean up a former 

foundry. The site will be redeveloped as Powhatan 

Place, a mixed-use, LEED-certified development 

that will include a variety of housing types, stores, 

and recreation areas, as well as green infrastructure7

to manage stormwater runoff.

7 Green infrastructure strategies use vegetation, soils, and permeable pavement 

in settings like rain gardens, parking lots, and along streets to mimic natural 

processes by capturing, slowing, and filtering rainfall and stormwater runoff.

Launched in 2011, the Building Blocks for Sustainable 

Communities Program provides quick, targeted 

technical assistance to communities. Selected 

communities receive assistance from private-sector 

and non-profit experts through workshops and 

engagement with decision-makers. These projects 

stimulate local discussions about growth and 

development and provide ideas on how communities 

can become more economically and environmentally 

sustainable. The workshops use tools with a proven 

track record and widespread application, addressing 

topics such as:

• Complete streets

• Green building

• Linking land use to water quality

• Matching parking supply and demand

• Using smart growth to improve fiscal and 

economic health

• Making neighborhoods more walkable

EPA has developed new tools and delivered 

assistance to 138 communities in 42 states. In some 

cases, the workshops are part of a coordinated effort 

EPA BUILDING BLOCKS FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES PROGRAM

to support the early stages of HUD regional planning 

or community challenge grants. Other examples of 

outcomes include:

• In Lincoln, Nebraska, developed and adopted 

policies for infill and redevelopment based on 

energy conservation specifications that were 

discussed at a Building Blocks workshop in 

May 2011.

• In Dover, New Hampshire, five options 

emerging from the Building Blocks workshop 

were incorporated into an update of zoning, 

site review, and subdivision approval policies. 

These changes include allowing solar, wind, and 

geothermal energy in all zoning categories in the 

city, as well as street and sidewalks upgrades to 

make neighborhoods more walkable.

• In Bluffton, South Carolina, identified areas for 

preservation and areas for development. Based 

on these priorities, the city created a mechanism 

by which development in the downtown helps 

finance conservation in areas the community 

would like to preserve.
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 7

MONTGOMERY, AL

Preserving History, Strengthening 

Communities on the Civil Rights Trail 

The 54-mile Selma to Montgomery National 

Historic Trail, designated in 1996 by Congress, 

commemorates the 1965 Voting Rights March along 

U.S. Highway 80. In the same year, DOT named the 

route an All-American Road as part of the Federal 

Highway Administration’s (FHWA) National Scenic 

Byways Program. To receive an All-American Road 

designation, a road must have one-of-a-kind features 

that do not exist elsewhere and be considered a 

“destination unto itself.”

The trail begins in the small town of Selma, runs 

through forests and farms, and ends in the historic 

Peacock neighborhood in Montgomery, the state 

capital. FHWA provides funds through its National 

Scenic Byways Program and is a key player in 

interpreting and protecting the historic route. 

Communities near the trail share a deep connection 

to the march and want to preserve its history for 

future generations while reviving the struggling 

neighborhoods surrounding the trail. That effort is a 

story of collaboration among federal, state, and local 

agencies and these communities.

The Power of Partnership

Revitalization began with 18 brownfield site 

assessments by EPA and the state of Alabama to 

determine the best sites for revitalization in the rural 

and underserved communities along the trail. Nine 

community visioning sessions supported by EPA, the 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the National Park 

Service helped draft plans to connect historic points 

of interest in preparation for the 50th anniversary of 

the march. Community outreach sessions conducted 

by the city of Montgomery with HUD Community 

Development Block Grant funds led to a collection 

of plans with strong local support in the city of 

Montgomery and more rural communities.

EPA, FHWA, the National Park Service, and the city 

of Montgomery worked with the state on a green 

infrastructure design to absorb stormwater, which 

will help prevent sewage overflows into Genetta 

Stream in West Montgomery. Instead of maintaining 

underground pipes, the city will “daylight” the buried 

stream, bringing it back to the surface to improve 

drainage. The city also built a greenway around the 

stream to create an attractive community park with 

an entrance to the trail.

HUD Community Development Block Grant funds 

have been used for streetscape improvements, 

affordable homes for police and teachers, and 

repairs to the historic Mount Zion Church, where the 

march ended. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Job 

Corps Program and the city of Montgomery trained 

90 young people in green building techniques to 

build community gardens and renovate homes in 

the Peacock neighborhood. Department of Energy 

Weatherization Assistance Program funds also 

supported this community revitalization effort. EPA’s 

Greening America’s Capitals program provided 

technical assistance to help the city explore options to 

rehabilitate a section of the trail under Interstates 65 

and 85.

“When faced with the challenges of redevelopment, 

the keys to success are a plan that has been composed 

together with many stakeholders, and developing a 

collaborative partnership including the public and 

private sectors. I have no doubt in the successful 

culmination of the efforts to preserve the Selma 

to Montgomery National Historic Trail thanks to 

the support of the Partnership for Sustainable 

Communities and our other federal, state, and local 

partners.” 

—Mayor Todd Strange, Montgomery

Jeff Downes, deputy mayor of Montgomery, and Stan Meiburg, EPA 

Region 4 deputy regional administrator, display West Montgomery 

community plans for Mt. Zion Church, a historic landmark along the 

trail. Photo courtesy of EPA.
8 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange says of the 

trail, “It’s fitting that this stretch of land—that 

demonstrated to the world the great things that can 

be accomplished when people unite to strive for a 

common purpose—is illustrating the dramatic results 

that can happen when federal agencies combine 

their talents and resources with state and local 

governments to transform areas of blight and neglect 

to places of natural beauty and sustainable viability. 

We are proud of what has been accomplished here 

by working together.”

Genetta Park, once an industrial area, will serve as a gateway to the 

Selma-Montgomery Trail. Bringing Genetta Stream, now buried, to 

the surface will create a natural wetland to clean stormwater runoff 

before it is released downstream. Image courtesy of Judd Langham, 

2D Studio, Birmingham, AL.

IMPROVING FUNDING PROCESSES

The Partnership is constantly looking for opportunities to help communities get the funding they need and make sure 

federal programs take community priorities into account. FTA worked with HUD, EPA, and other stakeholders to improve 

the New Starts Program, which provides funding for new rail, streetcar, bus rapid transit, and ferry systems. Proposed 

changes could reduce the time needed to move projects through FTA’s approval process by as much as six months. 

In January 2012, FTA proposed a regulatory change to:

• Evaluate projects using measures that assess a project’s environmental benefits and impact on economic development 

as well as its impact on transportation. This change will allow FTA to consider smaller projects that might better meet a 

community’s needs. 

• Simplify how cost-effectiveness is calculated, reducing or eliminating time-consuming technical requirements that are 

unnecessary. 

• Allow projects to be evaluated based more on local priorities, such as meeting the needs of historically underserved 

populations. 

FTA is reviewing comments on the proposal and aims to publish the final rule later in 2012.

SUPPORTING HEALTHY, SUSTAINABLE, AND EQUITABLE 

COMMUNITIES FOR ALL AMERICANS

HUD, DOT, and EPA are committed to building healthy, sustainable, and equitable communities for all Americans, including 

minority, low-income, tribal, and other vulnerable populations that experience higher levels of environmental pollution and 

other social and economic burdens. The agencies work together to expand community access to funding opportunities, 

increase transparency and meaningful participation, and promote investment in historically underrepresented communities.

For example, when reviewing grant and technical assistance applications, the Partnership agencies screen for engagement 

of populations not traditionally involved in planning, such as low-income people, minorities, people with limited English 

proficiency, youth, seniors, and persons with disabilities. HUD is working with its regional planning grantees to conduct 

“fair housing and equity analyses” that will provide information on regional demographics; residents’ ability to find jobs, 

educational opportunities, and affordable places to live; and the fairness of planned investments. 
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 9

Restoring a Stream and a Community 

The city of Cincinnati and Hamilton County are 

working with the Partnership for Sustainable 

Communities and state and local agencies on a 

revitalization plan focused on what at first might 

seem like an unlikely target—the city’s combined 

sewer system. Built in 1906, the system is often 

overwhelmed in wet weather, when untreated 

stormwater mixes with wastewater in the combined 

system and overflows into water bodies or backs 

up into homes. The city is investing in green 

infrastructure such as rain gardens, reforestation, 

and street and building upgrades to manage 

stormwater. In doing so, it hopes not only to solve 

the sewage overflow problem, but also to revitalize 

the low-income community of South Fairmount.

As part of an innovative settlement with EPA, 

the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater 

Cincinnati is investigating integrated green and 

“gray” stormwater solutions instead of installing 

large drainage pipes (a typical “gray” solution).8

Although both designs can reduce stormwater 

runoff, the green alternative is less expensive and 

more attractive, and can produce more jobs. An 

important goal of the parties is the restoration of 

Lick Run, a stream in South Fairmount that was 

buried as the area developed. The sewer district 

hopes to achieve required runoff reductions by 

daylighting the stream and restoring the stream 

channel. The sewer district will submit this 

alternative approach for the combined sewer 

system to EPA for approval. If the pilot shows that 

combined sewer overflow control goals can be 

met, Cincinnati will be able to proceed with these 

innovative projects.

The Power of Partnership

The Partnership helped focus investment and 

agency collaboration. EPA helped the sewer district 

explore green infrastructure options and, because 

there is little data on the performance of large 

green infrastructure projects, is working with the 

city to monitor pilot projects. The city used HUD 

Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds to 

purchase properties and remove rundown buildings. 

The Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority 

received a HUD Choice Neighborhoods Planning 

Grant to develop a comprehensive neighborhood 

transformation plan for the English Woods/Fairmount 

community. A HUD Community Challenge Grant is 

funding an overhaul of Cincinnati’s zoning code that 

will encourage a mix of land uses, affordable homes, 

and more compact development. In May 2012, 700 

city residents gathered to help develop a form-based 

code9

 to restore the character of city neighborhoods. 

The code changes also will remove zoning-related 

obstacles to watershed-friendly strategies, such as 

reducing impervious surfaces by changing parking 

requirements.

“Cincinnati is demonstrating that there are sustainable 

solutions to challenges that traditionally would have 

been managed only through gray infrastructure. 

The initiative has resulted in rich engagement and 

participation from public and private agencies all 

across the spectrum to ensure these projects leave a 

successful legacy of sustainability and partnerships for 

communities of the future. Together, we’re not only 

addressing combined sewer overflow issues but also 

helping revitalize our communities.” 

 —Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls

TI, OH CINCINNA

8 Gray infrastructure includes conventional piped drainage and water 

treatment systems.

9 Form-based codes are development regulations that control the physical form 

of buildings and public spaces, unlike traditional zoning regulations, which 

regulate uses.

Rain gardens at the HUD-owned St. Francis Senior Apartments 

replaced excess pavement to reduce stormwater runoff. A 

monitoring station, pictured at right, measures runoff levels.

Photo courtesy of EPA.
10 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

The Partnership is also supporting revitalization by 

promoting development that uses transit investments 

to connect housing and job opportunities. “Transitoriented development is really about creating 

walkable, vibrant communities with a diversity of 

people and opportunities, all in close proximity to 

each other,” says Charles Graves, director of city 

planning and buildings.

The Cincinnati Streetcar project, for example, 

partially funded by a TIGER II grant from DOT 

and currently under construction, will add a new 

streetcar line to improve access to major employers, 

the riverfront, and area attractions. Meanwhile, a 

HUD-funded demonstration project will lead to new 

policies that encourage affordable housing and smallbusiness entrepreneurship along the streetcar line.

Greater Cincinnati Works does infrastructure work to prepare for the 

Cincinnati Streetcar. Image courtesy of the city of Cincinnati. 

SPOTLIGHT ON WYANDANCH, NY: 

WORKING TOGETHER TO SUPPORT DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION

The Partnership has been working with Wyandanch, 

New York, in central Long Island, to implement a major 

community revitalization initiative. The town aims to 

transform its economically distressed downtown into a 

transit-oriented, pedestrian-friendly, and environmentally 

sustainable destination. As part of this revitalization effort, 

the town received EPA Clean Water State Revolving Funds to 

install a sanitary sewer system. The new sewer system is key 

to the revitalization effort because Wyandanch lacked this 

essential infrastructure for the proposed redevelopment. 

In addition to ongoing technical assistance from EPA, HUD, 

and DOT, Wyandanch received funding from DOT to study 

the feasibility of building a train station and, later, for the 

actual construction. The revitalization effort will make the neighborhood more walkable, create connections between bus 

and rail, and make it easier for visitors to reach downtown parks and restaurants. The Partnership continues to work with 

Wyandanch to support its vision for economic and environmental sustainability.

The vision for the Wyandanch downtown includes a mix of 

uses and housing types; a connected network of streets, civic 

spaces, and parks; and streets designed for pedestrians and 

vehicles. Image courtesy of Torti Gallas and Partners. 
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 11

Historic Preservation and Green 

Building Meet in New Transit Center 

To prepare for new intercity train service slated to 

begin in 2014, the city of Moline and MetroLINK, the 

regional transit provider, are working to transform an 

old warehouse into the Moline Multimodal Station. The 

station will house Amtrak service that will reconnect 

the Quad Cities to Chicago—and, eventually, to Iowa 

City, Des Moines, and Omaha—and should spark 

development opportunities in downtown Moline. 

The Moline station will include new construction as 

well as green renovation of the historic O’Rourke 

Building on a brownfield site. The project is receiving 

funding and expertise from the Partnership for 

Sustainable Communities, the Illinois Department of 

Transportation, and the city of Moline. 

The multimodal station, which will include the train 

station and the adjacent existing bus station, will help 

residents and visitors travel more easily between the 

Quad Cities and Chicago and other destinations. It 

will contain Amtrak facilities on the ground level and 

private development on the upper floors. Complete 

build-out of the station area will include $100 million in 

housing, commercial office space, parking garages, and 

hotel space. 

The Power of Partnership

“Providing federal funds for facilities like this one in 

Moline can reduce our dependence on oil, relieve 

congestion, and improve air quality,” says Therese 

McMillan, deputy administrator of the FTA, which 

administers a DOT TIGER II grant that funds the 

project. “This facility will let people keep more of their 

hard-earned money in their pocket instead of spending 

it at the gas pump.” Locating homes near the transit 

center also gives residents more options for commuting 

to work and running errands. To provide more 

downtown housing options, a HUD Neighborhood 

Stabilization Grant is being used to rehabilitate the 

nearby historic Washington Square Apartments.

Because the building is in the Moline Downtown 

Commercial Historic District, redevelopment must 

follow historic preservation guidelines to receive a 

tax credit. At the same time, the city’s green building 

requirements call for LEED Silver certification. 

These potentially conflicting requirements could 

deter developers unfamiliar with navigating such a 

complex project. EPA worked closely with FTA, the 

city, and MetroLINK to clear this hurdle. EPA provided 

assistance by developing case studies of successful 

green preservation projects, offering templates for 

Moline to follow. The Delta Institute, an EPA grantee, 

provided a green building readiness evaluation, which 

included a LEED certification strategy. MetroLINK 

and the city provided these materials to developers 

in a workshop that illustrated how to use historic 

preservation guidelines and tax credits while achieving 

LEED certification. This support was instrumental in 

helping FTA move the project forward without delays. 

Construction on the project is expected to begin in 

August 2012.

“If it weren’t for the Partnership, EPA would not 

have been in a position to help us with our TIGER II 

project,” says Heather Roberts, business development 

coordinator for MetroLINK. “We are committed to 

attaining a LEED Silver certification or better on our 

project. This goal was made so much easier because of 

the coordinated discussion between DOT and EPA.”

“Seventeen years working in government and this 

was the first time I had DOT, the Federal Highway 

Administration, the Federal Transit Administration, 

HUD, and EPA in the same room at the same time 

talking about the same projects in a coordinated and 

efficient way.” 

 —Heather Roberts, Business Development Coordinator, 

MetroLINK

MOLINE, IL

The proposed Quad Cities Amtrak Station will ease travel between 

the Quad Cities (Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa; and Rock Island, 

Moline, and East Moline, Illinois), Chicago, and other destinations. 

Image courtesy of Renew Moline.
12 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

DENVER, COCreating a Sustainable and 

Inclusive Neighborhood 

Based on the Denver region’s plan for growth, 

which included transportation as a core element, 

the Denver Regional Transportation District 

(RTD) developed FasTracks, an ambitious transit 

expansion plan. The FasTracks plan proposed 

nine new or extended rail lines, more than 55 

new stations, bus rapid transit, and enhancements 

to existing bus and rail service across the eightcounty region. The business community, local 

governments, environmental groups, and others 

supported FasTracks as a way to make the Denver 

region more livable, affordable, and economically 

competitive. Investing in this new infrastructure 

would attract jobs and support new business 

growth, while the expanded transit would reduce 

traffic congestion and pollution. In 2004, voters 

approved a ballot measure to fund FasTracks 

through a regional sales tax. 

FasTracks’ new transit corridors and stations 

present the Denver region with many opportunities 

for transit-oriented development—walkable 

neighborhoods near transit stations that make 

it easy for people to visit, live, or work nearby 

without having to drive. After FasTracks passed, 

local jurisdictions began planning transit-oriented 

development on land near both existing and 

planned stations and formed partnerships with 

property owners, developers, and neighborhood 

leaders. The La Alma/Lincoln Park neighborhood 

hosts one of many redevelopment efforts now 

underway.

The Power of Partnership

La Alma/Lincoln Park, just south of downtown, is 

one of Denver’s oldest neighborhoods. Located 

next to the 10th & Osage transit station, it has 

a distinctive identity as a culturally diverse 

community with a long tradition of valuing the arts. 

The neighborhood is attractive for reinvestment 

because of its proximity to transit, many nearby 

amenities, and active involvement by residents. 

The Denver Housing Authority (DHA) owns an 

aging residential development near the station. 

Next to both the DHA parcel and the transit 

station were two undeveloped parcels with 

minor contamination. Seizing the opportunity to 

transform the vacant parcels and the DHA site, the 

city and county of Denver, DHA, and RTD formed 

a partnership to create a new vision for what would 

become the Mariposa District.

To ensure that the character and quality of the 

Mariposa development would fit the community’s 

needs and values, more than 120 community 

meetings and group interviews were held with 

residents, community leaders, city agencies, 

businesses, and local government representatives. 

Community members outlined their vision for 

the redevelopment, which included buildings and 

services that met the community’s needs, economic 

self-sufficiency, more jobs and job training, homes 

affordable to people at various income levels, 

safety and security, more education opportunities, 

enhancing residents’ health, and fostering a strong 

sense of community. The result of this intensive 

“The Partnership provided excitement around the 

issue of collaborative planning across disciplines. 

Without it, we wouldn’t have been able to 

attract decision-makers to the table in the areas 

where we had gaps to fill (energy, stormwater, 

and transportation). With the decision-makers 

participating in the visioning and implementation 

exercises, we were able to actually take the plans 

and make them a reality. This is, I believe, due to the 

Partnership’s oversight.”

—Kimball Crangle, Senior Developer, 

Denver Housing Authority

The Tapiz Apartments are a HUD-owned senior housing complex in 

La Alma/Lincoln Park. The building features a mural by a local artist.

Photo courtesy of EPA.
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 13

community engagement was a master plan that 

would guide the redevelopment by looking at 

the neighborhood as a whole, rather than parcel 

by parcel. Based on this vision, the parcels were 

purchased by the city and county of Denver from 

the Regional Transportation District in 2007 and 

then assessed and cleaned up with funding from 

EPA brownfield grants to the city.

State and local officials asked the Partnership for 

Sustainable Communities to support their plans. In 

2009, DOT Secretary Ray LaHood, HUD Secretary 

Shaun Donovan, and EPA Administrator Lisa 

Jackson visited to kick off the work.

The Mariposa redevelopment shows how the 

three agencies are working together and with 

the community. Funding from the EPA Office 

of Brownfields and Land Revitalization and 

HUD funding from the American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act helped make construction of 

the 100-unit Tapiz Apartments possible, providing 

affordable homes for seniors and disabled people. 

The redevelopment project was a Sustainable 

Communities Brownfields Pilot, under which 

the Partnership organized three workshops that 

brought together community representatives, 

residents of DHA housing, city agencies, EPA, 

SPOTLIGHT ON CALIFORNIA: PLANNING FOR DEVELOPMENT 

AROUND HIGH-SPEED RAIL

The California High-Speed Rail project offers an opportunity 

to create cleaner, cost-effective transportation options and 

development patterns. In 2011, EPA, HUD, FTA, the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA), and the California High-Speed 

Rail Authority (CHSRA) signed an agreement to work together 

to use environmentally sustainable practices in planning, 

siting, designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining 

the high-speed rail system. Many tasks are underway. For 

example, CHSRA and FRA are investing grant money in stationarea planning in several cities, and Partnership agencies are 

helping coordinate new and existing federal, state, and local 

investments. Partnership agencies also regularly collaborate 

with the high-speed rail project team to provide technical 

assistance on planning, energy, water resources, materials, 

and policy and use their networks to bring in other experts as 

needed. For example, the Partnership engaged the National 

Renewable Energy Laboratory, which helped the team create 

a strategic energy plan for powering the rail system with 100 

percent renewable energy. 

The proposed 800-mile system would connect major cities 

with up to 26 stations. Fresno is slated to have the first station. 

Good planning will be essential to making the station an asset 

for the city. Well-planned rail stations can attract vibrant, walkable development with diverse housing, transportation, and 

economic opportunities. The Partnership is working with the Fresno Strong Cities, Strong Communities team to provide 

technical assistance on the station-area planning. Strong Cities, Strong Communities is a White House initiative to strengthen 

local capacity and spark economic growth in communities while ensuring taxpayer dollars are used wisely and effectively. 

EPA, DOT, and HUD regional staff participated in a Strong Cities, Strong Communities-led workshop to begin planning the 

station area. They also provided input on the city’s proposal for station-area planning and are working with the Strong Cities, 

Strong Communities team and the city of Fresno to coordinate federal investments in the station area. 

The High-Speed Rail project would benefit Fresno’s 

downtown redevelopment and provide fast transit options to 

other California cities. The 255-mile trip from Fresno to Los 

Angeles, for example, would take 1 hour and 24 minutes. 

Image courtesy of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. 
14 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

HUD, and DOT to develop more detailed 

implementation plans around specific issues 

like transportation, energy efficiency, and green 

infrastructure. A 2011 HUD HOPE VI grant 

helped fund further implementation activities, 

including an environmentally friendly and 

health-conscious design for Mariposa. New 

construction will use 50 percent less energy than 

comparable conventional buildings, and Mariposa 

will incorporate green infrastructure to handle 

stormwater. “Mixed-income housing, a healthy 

living environment, and transportation choices 

are essential ingredients of sustainability. The 

Mariposa community has all of these elements 

and is a great example of how housing policies 

can improve communities,” says HUD Regional 

Administrator Rick Garcia.

DOT funds helped make the 10th & Osage 

station more accessible for people with disabilities 

and increased the frequency of train service, 

better connecting La Alma/Lincoln Park to other 

parts of Denver. The Mariposa redevelopment 

can be a model for transit-oriented development 

around the new stations built under FasTracks. 

When complete, Mariposa will feature better 

access to a range of transportation choices and 

will replace old, dilapidated public housing 

with more than 800 units of mixed-income 

housing, maintaining the same number of 

affordable units on the site and creating new 

homes at a variety of price points. The extensive 

community involvement has helped ensure that 

the neighborhood will preserve its character and 

sense of place while creating opportunities to 

bring in new residents and businesses.

Creating Livable 

Communities How the transportation decision

making process can support more 

livable community outcomes

Federal Highway Administration 

October 2011

EXPLORING THE ROLE 

OF TRANSPORTATION IN 

LIVABILITY

In 2011, FHWA conducted several regional 

livability workshops around the country to explore 

transportation’s role in improving quality of life. The 

meetings brought together leaders from metropolitan 

planning organizations, transportation agencies, 

city and county governments, public and private 

developers, nonprofit organizations, housing agencies, 

environmental and resource preservation agencies, 

and others. FHWA developed resources to explain 

transportation’s role in enhancing quality of life, 

including videos with local leaders and a booklet 

called “Creating Livable Communities” that provides 

strategies for considering livability objectives in 

transportation investment decisions. These and other 

resources are available at www.fhwa.dot.gov/livability.

Creating Livable 

Communities (available 

at www.fhwa.dot.gov/

livability/creating_

livable_communities/

livabilitybooklet.

pdf) provides 

strategies on how to 

effectively consider 

and incorporate 

livability objectives 

in transportation 

investment decisions. 
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 15

WELLPINIT, WA

Transportation Options and 

Community Planning Lead to New 

Economic Opportunities 

Since the creation of its reservation in 1881, the 

Spokane Tribe of Indians has been seeking to achieve 

its vision of sovereignty through self-sufficiency. 

With a growing population but declining revenues, 

the tribe struggles with high poverty levels, limited 

employment opportunities, few transportation choices, 

and a lack of both infrastructure and housing. These 

interrelated challenges require innovative solutions and 

comprehensive, integrated planning.

To address these challenges, the tribe partnered with 

Native American nonprofit Antithesis Research and the 

Partnership for Sustainable Communities to improve 

environmental and economic conditions. Through a 

2010 HUD Community Challenge Grant, the Spokane 

Tribe is bringing together community, government, 

and business leaders to prepare a community master 

plan to assess the tribe’s needs and create integrated 

solutions for housing, transportation, infrastructure, and 

economic development.

The Power of Partnership

With a 47 percent unemployment rate on the 

reservation, the tribe is focused on supporting 

economic development and helping residents get 

better access to jobs. One strategy is to improve 

transportation choices; in 2008, the tribe completed 

a feasibility study that determined that lack of 

transportation options was the major reason for 

long-term unemployment. The study crystallized 

the problem and put in motion other requests 

for assistance. In 2009, the tribe received an FTA 

Tribal Transit Planning Grant to complete a transit 

development plan.

“The reservation is 45 miles from Spokane, and 

there are no transit systems that connect,” says 

Chamisa Radford, the tribe’s planning and economic 

development director. “If you don’t have a car or your 

car breaks down, you lose your job.” With funds from 

the FTA Tribal Transit Program, the state, and the 

tribe’s fuel taxes, the tribe now operates two bus routes 

and a vanpool service dubbed the Moccasin Express. 

The tribe is working to locate transit centers near 

homes and conduct a marketing campaign to increase 

ridership. Today, the Moccasin Express and two bus 

routes provide reliable transportation for more than 

1,000 riders a month. 

Working with the Partnership, the tribe has identified 

additional community needs, such as addressing the 

reservation’s aging water infrastructure. The tribe is 

receiving technical assistance in 2012 through EPA’s 

Smart Growth Implementation Assistance Program 

to plan for and address water shortages, pipe failures, 

and sewer system maintenance. Improving the water 

infrastructure will give the reservation safer, more 

reliable water and sewer service, which will enhance 

the quality of life for residents and support the 

development of new tribal business enterprises.

“Previously, the tribe had to work with individual 

departments completely separate from each other,” 

says Scott Radford, vice chair of Antithesis Research. 

“There was duplication of work, or the work was not 

as comprehensive as it could have been. Now, water, 

transportation, and housing issues are being addressed 

together at one time.” 

The Partnership has also helped inspire collaboration 

within the tribe, says Chamisa Radford. “We actually 

have grant writers from different departments meeting 

together for the first time, so we can be more strategic 

about which resources to apply for and how to have a 

single project meet multiple needs. We are learning a 

new system, and I see great benefits.”

“The sustainability project has brought a wide variety 

of folks from different walks of life to the same table 

to discuss and lay the foundation for sustainability 

actions for the future.”

—Rudy Peone, Secretary-Elect, 

Spokane Tribal Business Council

The Moccasin Express provides residents reliable transportation 

to jobs and amenities. Photo courtesy of the Spokane Tribe 

of Indians.
16 PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

The Road Ahead

As the Partnership enters its fourth year, HUD, DOT, 

and EPA continue to collaborate with each other and 

with other federal, tribal, state, regional, and local 

partners to consider housing, transportation, and 

environmental policy as they exist in the real world—

inextricably connected. When agencies talk regularly, 

they can help communities solve problems more 

easily—and avoid the problems that come from 

lack of coordination. Community members, political 

leaders, and government staff across the country 

have made it clear that interagency collaboration 

has greatly improved communication, making 

government more efficient and providing better 

results for communities. The Partnership will continue 

to share models of local successes, coordinate to 

make government work better, and help communities 

find innovative solutions to the challenges they face 

now and in the future.

Learn More

Find the latest information on the activities of the 

Partnership for Sustainable Communities at 

www.sustainablecommunities.gov. The site features:

• Announcements about grants and technical 

assistance from each agency.

• Tools, publications, and other resources.

• A map of grant and technical assistance 

recipients.

• Community case studies, fact sheets, and videos.

• Contact information for staff in regional offices.

SUPPORTING SMALL TOWNS 

AND RURAL AREAS

The Partnership has joined with the U.S. Department 

of Agriculture (USDA) to explore opportunities to help 

small towns and rural areas plan for long-term growth. 

The agencies are investing funds more effectively by 

sharing information and coordinating actions. 

For example:

• In western North Dakota, a 2010 USDA Rural 

Business Opportunity Grant helped the region 

identify the impacts of a population increase 

resulting from the oil and gas industry that is 

overwhelming existing housing and infrastructure. 

The community was able to use that work to 

develop a long-term strategy to guide future 

infrastructure investments through a HUD 

Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant.

• In southwest Iowa, a 2010 USDA grant that 

develops markets for locally grown food prompted 

an eight-county region to work with leaders in 

Omaha and Council Bluffs to include local food 

strategies as part of a 2011 HUD Sustainable 

Communities Regional Planning Grant.

• USDA alerted organizations in eastern Arkansas 

about HUD grant opportunities. The East 

Arkansas Planning and Development District 

joined forces with a coalition of state and local 

agencies, nonprofits, and colleges to apply for 

a HUD Regional Planning Grant to help address 

problems of persistent poverty. The grant, which 

was awarded in 2011, will help shape the area’s 

economy for years to come.

In 2011, the Partnership 

and USDA jointly 

published Supporting 

Sustainable Rural 

Communities (available 

at www.epa.gov/

smartgrowth/publications.

htm). This report explains 

how Partnership work can 

help rural communities 

achieve their goals, 

describes programs at 

the four agencies that 

are working in rural 

places, and provides case 

studies of small towns 

and rural regions that 

have implemented sustainable 

approaches with assistance from 

federal agencies. 

Supporting Sustainable Rural Communities

Partnership for Sustainable Communities 

In collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

Fall 2011 

THE ROAD AHEAD
PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES 17 HUD-DOT-EPA Partnership for Sustainable Communities Grants and Assistance 2009 - 2012 LegendDOT TCSP DOT TIGER DOT Transit EPA Brownfields Planning Assistance EPA Smart Growth Technical Assistance HUD Choice Neighborhoods HUD Community Challenge HUD Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant EPA Statewide Technical Assistance Rhode Island EPA Statewide Assistance Updated: March 26, 2012 Note: Some markers have been shifted to improve visibility. Alaska Mid-Atlantic Detail Map Hawaii Puerto Rico As of April 2012, the Partnership agencies have received more than 7,700 applications for assistance, requesting almost $102 billion. The Partnership has been able to fund 744 projects in communities in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico with approximately $3.51 billion, representing fewer than 10 percent of applications.
Office of Sustainable Communities (1807T)

EPA 231-R-12-001 

www.epa.gov/smartgrowth

June 2012

www.sustainablecommunities.gov

Photos on front cover (from left to right): Atlanta, GA; Ranson, WV; Cincinnati, OH; Spokane, WA

Photos on back cover (from left to right): Bridgeport, CT; Moline, IL; Denver, CO; Montgomery, AL