The proposed projects – which would be funded under USDOT’s FY 2012 Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program, or TIGER — seek to make it easier for people to access rail stations using non-motorized transportation modes and to support high-density, mixed-use development in underutilized station areas.

Depending on where it occurs, such development can help to improve the efficiency of the region’s existing transit infrastructure by distributing demand more evenly throughout the system.

Targeting underutilized stations, especially those outside the regional core, can help to fill empty seats on trains operating in reverse-commute directions. Supporting balanced housing and job growth near existing stations can also provide opportunities to “sell the same seat twice”–first to workers commuting to a mixed-use housing and jobs center, and second to people living in the center and boarding the train to commute further along the line. 

A 2010 study by the TPB showed that concentrating 35% of the job growth and 55% of the housing growth expected in the region between 2015 and 2030 in areas near transit stations could boost transit ridership by more than 10% compared to current projections, and increase bicycle and pedestrian trips by more than 15%. This would distribute travel demand more evenly across travel modes, further improving the efficiency of the region’s existing infrastructure.

The seven projects included in the TPB’s 2012 application for TIGER funding address a range of transit stations throughout metropolitan Washington.

In Prince George’s County, Maryland, sidewalk and crossing improvements to complete, expand, and enhance fragmented pedestrian and bicycle facilities near the New Carrollton Metrorail station would provide the infrastructure necessary to support large-scale transit-oriented development envisioned by the County and the State. High-density, mixed-use development at this eastern terminus of Metrorail’s Orange Line would encourage transit use in the outbound, reverse-commute direction, and it would take advantage of multimodal connections to MARC commuter rail, Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, and numerous local Metrobus routes.

Also in Prince George’s County, new sidewalks near the West Hyattsville Metrorail station would provide additional pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to surrounding neighborhoods, increasing mobility for underserved residents living around the station.

In Montgomery County, a proposed pedestrian tunnel under Georgia Avenue near the Forest Glen Metrorail station would make it easier for neighborhood residents as well as employees and visitors of nearby Holy Cross Hospital to cross this major north-south route, which carries upwards of 80,000 vehicles per day.

Near the Fort Totten Metrorail station in the District of Columbia, bicycle and pedestrian improvements would support efficient multimodal traffic circulation in an area where numerous major real estate developments are in various stages of planning and construction.

And in Virginia, projects include installation of bike lockers at eight Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter rail stations in Fairfax and Prince William Counties and the Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, as well as a separated two-way bicycle track, wider sidewalks, and accommodations for a future streetcar route along Army-Navy Drive in Arlington. Proposed pedestrian and bicycle improvements near the Rosslyn Metrorail station would improve access to two of the region’s most heavily used bike trails.

All together, the projects in the TPB’s 2012 TIGER application seek to make strategic investments around 16 of the region’s 86 Metrorail and 52 commuter rail stations. Advancing these projects is one of the ways the TPB is working to improve access to and support development around the region’s existing transit infrastructure.

The TPB Weekly Report is now a regular feature on The Yardstick.

The TPB Weekly Report is an online publication designed to provide brief, timely summaries of recent research, analysis, outreach, and planning by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB). Follow the TPB on Facebook and Twitter.

Connolly lamented “the anti-intellectual, anti-science mentality” that pervades much of Capitol Hill as dangerous for the country and urged environmental groups to get better organized. “[These groups] were nowhere to be seen in 2010,” Connolly noted. In their absence, special interests – many of whom are neutral to the environment at best, hostile at worst – were able to prevail.

Connolly heavily criticized opponents of policies aimed at environmental protection and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. “They’re eviscerating the environment and preventing an honest debate about energy from taking place,” Connolly said. “They’ve managed to make the environment an extremely partisan issue for the first time in history.”

Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) speaking on the policy and politics of climate change

Despite his stark picture of the situation on the Hill, the Congressman offered some hope as well. Connolly pointed out that since the Clean Air Act of 1990, utility prices in his state of Virginia have actually decreased, aligning with recent reports showing that environmental regulations are not the job killers or economy wreckers they are often purported to be.

While “the other side wants people to believe the only solution is drill, baby, drill,” Connolly noted that there are other, more sustainable sources of energy that we need to pursue. “That’s why you guys are here today.”

The event Connolly spoke at, which was co-sponsored by MWCOG and Applied Solutions, also featured a panel of officials from Boulder, Colorado, Sonoma County, California, and the District of Columbia discussing innovative ways they are promoting local investment in clean energy.

Picking up on Connolly’s remarks, Jonathan Koehn from Boulder observed that paralysis at the federal level on climate change pushes responsibility on this major issue to the local and regional level (a point we’ve made several times here at The Yardstick).

Koehn, speaking about Boulder’s transition to a locally-run electric utility, noted that Colorado gets about 90% of its energy from carbon intensive fuels. However, the Boulder community has a strong environmental conscience and wanted to reduce their carbon footprint.  And Boulder has discussed power -purchase options with renewable energy generators throughout Colorado and the region.

To achieve aggressive local energy goals, the community recognized there are essentially two paths:  stay with Xcel energy, Boulder’s incumbent Investor-Owned Utility, or “municipalize” and take over control of the local energy sector. And that’s what the community has set its sights on.  In November 2011, Boulder voters granted the city the authority to move forward with the legal and technical work necessary to create what’s being dubbed as the utility “of the next century.”

If the community makes it through the fight with Xcel, Boulder will be in control of providing energy and will be able to determine the energy portfolio and the energy rates they are comfortable with. So far the concept of creating a municipal utility to achieve aggressive local energy goals is garnering considerable attention – from supporters of local control as well as those who support the vertically integrated business model of investor-owned utilities.

Both Sonoma County and the District are developing variations of Sustainable Energy Utilities (SEUs), which are public-private partnerships that fund energy efficiency and clean energy programs. For example, in one of its initiatives, the DC SEU plans on providing rebates to business owners who upgrade lighting systems in light of the U.S. Department of Energy’s ban on T12 fluorescent lamps coming into force July 2012. The District will also provide financial incentives, technical and design assistance, and other services to owners of large buildings who are implementing building and equipment renovations or initiating new construction projects. The DC SEU is focused on the residential community as well, designing a number of initiatives to help District residents save energy and money (find out more about the District’s work here).

Similarly, Sonoma County’s Community Choice Aggregation project will enable cities and counties to form service areas that enable customers to purchase power locally, which can increase the level of renewable energy use and significantly reduce greenhouse emissions within each service area. Amy Bolten from Sonoma County Water Agency (and who also serves as Deputy Director of Applied Solutions) noted that providing a cleaner energy choice for Sonoma County residents and localizing clean energy projects is the overall goal of Sonoma’s program.

According to DC’s SEU Managing Director Ted Trabue, given that 99% of the energy consumed in the District is produced beyond its borders, local production is a priority for DC as well, but reducing energy costs, reducing energy use, and producing local economic growth are the primary objectives for the District. The DC SEU was established as part of the Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008 (CAEA) enacted by the Council of the District of Columbia. The DC SEU is a project of the DC Sustainable Energy Partnership under contract to the District Department of the Environment (DDOE).

Surrey, British Columbia

The two are not directly comparable examples – it is doubtful that Tysons Corner will become more populous than the District of Columbia in the next 10 years (as is likely for Surrey and Vancouver). Secondly, Surrey is much more populated than Tysons Corner. Nonetheless, there are some interesting parallels.

In Surrey, residential development is intensifying. “Housing is fueling growth in the city,” writes Nate Berg.  Building a residential base in Tysons is also a key part of that area’s ongoing transformation. Tysons currently has tens of millions of square feet of office and retail development, over 150,000 parking spots, and less than 20,000 residents. Given those figures, it’s not surprise that the area is a traffic nightmare, but the current plan envisions the gap between the residential population and incoming workers to decrease dramatically.

Tysons Corner, VA

In addition to growth, Surrey is in the process of building a cultural and civic presence for the former edge city:

“ ‘We’re a fairly young city, and we’re building a brand new downtown within an existing city. Where else does that happen? It’s a chance for new and revitalized thinking,’ Model says.

The emerging downtown of Surrey will be home to a new civic center, which will include a city hall, a 1,600-seat performing arts center, a studio theater and the recently completed City Center Library, designed by architect Bing Thom. Adjacent to all this is a new $12 million expansion of Simon Fraser University, a $240 million surgery and outpatient care center, a shopping mall and a station for the region’s SkyTrain transit system.”

In addition to building the Silver Line and adding housing, creating a cultural and civic sense of place in the urbanized Tysons Corner of the hopefully near future will be key to making it the DC region’s “second city.”

In total, more than 6,000 trips have been made using “rollDC” since February 2010 by people who use wheelchairs or scooters that cannot be accommodated by conventional taxis.

Disability advocates and local planners have long identified accessible taxi services as a missing link in the District of Columbia’s transportation network. In other jurisdictions in the region, up to 4% of licensed taxi vehicles are equipped to accommodate mobility devices. Prior to “rollDC”, none of the 6,500 taxis in operation in the District had such capabilities.

The TPB launched “rollDC” in early 2010 as a pilot program using a grant under the Federal Transit Administration’s “New Freedom” program, which supports initiatives to expand transportation options for people with disabilities.

With the grant, the TPB purchased 20 ramp-equipped minivans to be operated as wheelchair-accessible taxis by two private companies in the District–Yellow Cab Company of DC, and Royal Cab.

The $1.3 million grant from FTA, which included $200,000 in matching funds from the District of Columbia and contributions from the two private taxi companies, also enabled the TPB to develop operating guidelines, a driver training program, and marketing materials for the service. And the grant offsets some of the added costs of maintaining and operating the ramp-equipped vehicles.

Although the TPB’s 2011 customer satisfaction survey returned good reviews overall for “rollDC”, some respondents said they thought that additional taxi vehicles were needed, and that, during peak hours, the wait for taxis was longer than they anticipated. Even with 20 wheelchair-accessible vehicles, the “rollDC” fleet still represents just 0.3% of the taxis on the road in the District.

Coupled with the eight-fold increase in monthly ridership, this lingering disparity between the District of Columbia and surrounding jurisdictions suggests that unmet demand for wheelchair-accessible taxi service in the District remains.

The 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week “rollDC” serivce also provides an alternative to MetroAccess, the paratransit service operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) for people with disabilities who are unable to access the Metrorail or Metrobus system.

Currently, MetroAccess is the one other primary transportation option in the District of Columbia for residents and visitors who need ramp- or lift-equipped vehicles.

While those who use “rollDC” pay full, regular-priced taxi fares–which are usually more expensive than the one-way fares of $3 to $7 charged by MetroAccess–they can avoid the lengthy pre-registration process and one-day advance booking required by MetroAccess. Plus, the direct service provided by “rollDC” can often mean users arrive at their destination faster than by using MetroAccess, which follows a shared-ride model.

The wheelchair-accessible taxi service provided by “rollDC” is not yet a permanent fixture of the District’s transportation system, however. In December 2012, the $1.3 million federal grant currently being used to support the pilot program will be exhausted. Additional funding commitments from the District Council or new regulatory provisions for companies to provide wheelchair-accessible service will be necessary if this critical transportation option is to remain available to District residents and visitors who need it.

The TPB Weekly Report is now a regular feature on The Yardstick.

The TPB Weekly Report is an online publication designed to provide brief, timely summaries of recent research, analysis, outreach, and planning by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB). Follow the TPB on Facebook and Twitter.

Eric Olson is the Chairman of the Region Forward Coalition (RFC) and Vice Chair of the Prince George’s County Council

Frank Principi is the Chairman of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and serves on the Prince William County Board of Supervisors

Q: Do you think this regional level of focus is key to Region Forward’s success?

A: (Olson) The key to achieving our goals for the metropolitan Washington region as a whole is that we must work collaboratively across our jurisdictions to create high levels of synergy, employment, education, economic and environmental sustainability, and transportation integration. These will not happen in silos. Our residents live their lives across our jurisdictional borders, and not just from the suburbs into the downtown core, but across all our lines. Our economy is regional and is competing with metropolitan areas across the nation and across the globe. We will only succeed as a vibrant region when all of its constituent parts realize the benefits of success.

A: (Principi) Right now, inner jurisdictions like D.C. and Arlington may be significantly outperforming the outer suburbs toward a target like the overall share of bicycle trips. At the same time, these jurisdictions may be limited in their ability to preserve green space. That’s why it is important for us to keep a regional perspective as we evaluate our progress toward our Region Forward goals.

However, I believe that for most of our goals and targets, all 22 of our local cities and counties will be able to make significant contributions. While we have our different geographies and development histories, we are now seeing properly planned, intelligently designed developments spring up all over our region. That’s no accident. These developments, which are based on smart growth principles, work well and are highly sought after. In Prince William County, examples include the three transit-oriented town centers of Potomac Town Center, Belmont Bay, and North Woodbridge.

For example, North Woodbridge improvements will leverage high-speed passenger ferry service on the Occoquan and Potomac Rivers, Virginia Railway Express (VRE), the recently funded widening of Route 1, and the recent widening of Interstate 95, including the slug and future toll lanes. These developments in our county and across the region increase transit use, add housing choices, and spur new business creation, which in turn, will help us as a region move the needle closer to our goals.

Virginia Railway Express

Q: With many targets measuring impacts far into the future, are trend lines the primary indicators of progress?

A: (Olson) Achieving our goals as a region is an ongoing process. We have seen tremendous growth and success in the last decade in parts of our region, and many areas are virtually unrecognizable from the places they were four decades ago. The key to planning a 40-year future that includes a resilient economy, a stronger workforce, a smaller carbon footprint, and healthy, walkable neighborhoods, is ensuring that progress is constantly being made, and having regular regional assessments of our benchmarks.

If we are not creating greater equity for our region’s residents, if disparities grow, and if we are growing farther apart, we will need to change our approach. But I believe today’s elected officials are committed to our region as a whole and that we will succeed in our bold effort to create a stronger set of benchmarks for our overall regional progress.

As gas prices continue drain folks’ wallets and with the DC area having some of the nation’s worst traffic, a great deal of the public understands that having a strong public transportation system, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods, and access to nearby jobs are important for a vibrant community.  I believe our local officials in the region have a good understanding of the need for such communities as well. We need to make sure, therefore, that those are the types of places we’re creating.

Q: As Chair of the COG Board, how do your priorities for the region in 2012 align with the goals and targets of Region Forward? Are there certain areas within the plan that you would like to focus on in during your leadership?

A: (Principi) The economy. At first, when people talked about this recession, they focused mostly on the protective bubble the federal government has provided our region. Even though area residents were struggling and unemployment numbers were increasing, our region was still doing better than almost any other part of the country. In recent months, however, the conversation has shifted. This was spurred in part by the huge automatic spending cuts that will be imposed as a result of the failure of the Congressional Supercommittee. If not prevented, these cuts will have a massively negative impact on the region’s economy.

In addition to the economy, transportation is a perennial issue in metropolitan Washington and that will be no different this year. I’ll work with this year’s Transportation Planning Board (TPB) Chairman Todd Turner to push our region’s transportation needs to the forefront of the agenda.

Q: The region has benefited from the protective bubble that the federal government’s presence has provided and has performed relatively well economically over the past few years. As that protective bubble becomes less certain (with likely reduced federal spending and employment), how can Region Forward help the region proactively prepare for this transition?

A: (Olson) As a coalition of officials representing our metropolitan region, we have come together recognizing that we must work closer together to plan for our collective future, particularly in less certain economic times. This will mean seeking ways to ensure that there is more equity across our region, and across our economic groups, as we grow. We cannot be strong as a whole if significant parts of our population are falling behind in any of the four indicators. We should grow our green economy, technology, health care, and educational research sectors. We need to work from the strengths we have but also become a hub for future research and industry. We need to look at commerce in the years to come, and use our significant institutions of higher education to spin off new technologies and research that will fuel a new economy.

A: (Principi) Part of the initial Region Forward planning process involved a workshop that examined how drastic changes or “Big Moves” would affect the region. One of the four scenarios considered a major reduction of the federal government’s presence in the region. While we probably won’t see the nation’s capital move from D.C. to Kansas City, it is likely that the federal government’s current levels of spending and employment in the region will not be maintained. This year at the COG Board of Directors, we’re going to be incorporating that scenarios work into the creation of an Economic Growth and Competitiveness Plan for metropolitan Washington. This plan will be developed by the COG Board in coordination with the Region Forward Coalition and will move us closer to Region Forward’s goal of a diversified, stable, and competitive economy.

Q: Lastly, moving briefly from the regional to the local level, how do you see Region Forward benefitting your jurisdiction?

A: (Olson) As a Prince Georgian, I see the tremendous assets in my county – the 15 under-developed Metro stations, the University of Maryland, NASA-Goddard, the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Bowie State University, Joint Base Andrews, and more. I see the 60 percent of my County’s residents leaving Prince George’s daily to commute to work. I know that by focusing more jobs and investment on the eastern side of our region, that it will help alleviate traffic, it will create more of a balance in prosperity, and it will even create more reverse commutes, which can help stabilize WMATA by selling more Metro seats on trains that are currently empty traveling outbound.

By focusing on our overall regional goals, it will allow the eastern half of the metropolitan area to do more for the region in the long run, it will strengthen our overall workforce, our competitiveness among regions, and our place in the world.

Beltsville Agricultural Research Center

A: (Principi) For a fast-growing county like Prince William, all of the Region Forward goals are important.  Our residents want better transportation and housing choices, a clean environment, vibrant economy and safe communities. In the long term, according to forecasts by the Council of Governments, Prince William County will gain over 200,000 new residents between 2005 and 2040, an over 60% increase in our population. The goals and targets in Region Forward help focus us on better managing this growth into our activity centers and around our transit stations.

Region Forward also challenges us to think boldly about our big challenges. For example, to meet our Accessibility goals to reduce vehicle miles traveled and better connect our region’s activity centers, I have been a strong proponent of high-speed ferry service along the Potomac River from Woodbridge, VA to Washington, DC. I’ve also been involved in the early discussions examining the feasibility of extending Metrorail from Springfield to Woodbridge. I think we must stay committed to working across our jurisdictional borders and identifying the big ideas that will shape a better future for all residents of the D.C. region.

Housing in metro Washington can be an extremely frustrating subject, given the region’s exorbitant costs. For many folks that cost becomes simply too much to bear. In the direst cases, this can result in temporary or permanent homelessness.

The Homelessness Resource Center and the National Coalition for the Homeless both attribute the related factors of dwindling affordable housing supply and rapidly rising housing prices in urban areas in the U.S. as principal drivers of homelessness. There are, of course, several other factors that contribute to homelessness, including issues involving mental health, substance abuse, unemployment, domestic violence, etc.

The overall rate of homelessness in metro Washington has remained fairly stable the past few years, a sign of the region’s relative economic strength compared to the rest of the country during the recent recession.

However, ending homelessness, not keeping it constant, should remain the target. And some troubling trends have also emerged in metro Washington – such as the increase in families who are homeless – which should keep the pressure on leaders and communities to focus on ending homelessness.

Every year, MWCOG organizes a point-in-time count of the entire region’s homeless population to highlight the overall figures and specific trends of the population (read last year’s report here). Last year, this blog featured the reactions of two housing planners who took part in the count, recounting what they saw and how they felt (search “Reactions” here on Region Forward).

This year, we are sharing participant reaction again. The following is a portion of Michelle Albert’s recounting of the experience (Albert serves as the Homeless Outreach and PATH Coordinator for the city of Alexandria):

In Alexandria, the point-in-time outreach volunteers represent a cross section of the larger community. This year, 34 volunteers worked across four 4-hour shifts. Thirty-one volunteers assisted with outreach and another 3 organized materials and set up food and incentive items. The 34 volunteers consisted of 14 DCHS employees, 7 police officers, 4 Sheriff’s Deputies, and 9 members of the community. Officers and deputies drove teams of civilian volunteers to designated locations and utilized their knowledge of the community to locate homeless individuals.

Three-to-four person teams began outreach efforts at 4 pm January 25 and worked through the night until 8 am January 26. Teams searched approximately 50 pre-identified locations and continued searching additional locations at their discretion, again utilizing law enforcement’s and social workers’ knowledge of the community. Preliminary results indicate that approximately 20 unsheltered individuals were located in Alexandria, down from 31 people in January 2011. Records from the 2011 count indicate that at least five of the individuals counted last year are now sheltered and therefore they are not part of this year’s count.

During the count, teams distributed food, clothing, blankets, sleeping bags and toiletries. Generous financial and in-kind donations from local businesses, shelters, Alexandria Detox and the faith-based community made this possible. Of special note, the city’s outreach activities resulted in shelter and services being provided to a 70-year-old Marine Veteran who had been living in a tent near Potomac Yards after having a stroke in October 2011.

Participating in the point-in-time count provides volunteers with education as well as chance to help individuals and families experiencing homelessness. In addition, it allows law enforcement to be ‘the good guys’ who give out sandwiches and sleeping bags instead of tickets and trespassing notices. As a result, people experiencing homelessness are more likely to be cooperative during any future contact. As more people volunteer to assist with the outreach portion of the count, awareness increases, information is spread, and education is provided which allows the community to develop a more mindful approach to addressing the issues surrounding homelessness.

While much of that narrative certainly remains true, over the past few months a new discussion has also developed, one that is focused on the regional economy’s reliance on the federal government. Given that federal spending is poised to decline in relative terms, the very sector that shielded the Washington area economy may soon become its vulnerability.

The current state of affairs in Detroit, with its high unemployment and poverty rates, is an example of what can happen when a region relies too heavily on any single industry. No one is predicting that federal spending and hiring will drop off as precipitously as did the American auto industry, however, Detroit’s apparent lack of preparedness for the decline of its central economic force provides for a powerful incentive for other regions to be proactive.

A proactive metropolitan Washington is exactly what the new MWCOG Chairman Frank Principi seems to have in mind. In a commentary for Capital Business, Principi outlines how he plans to use his year at the helm of the regional organization to develop an Economic Growth & Competitiveness Plan for Metropolitan Washington.

The Washington Post’s Steven Pearlstein, who has been at the forefront of this discussion with a series of columns on the need for the region to diversify its economy, recently spoke to the Region Forward Coalition about this and other issues as they continue to work on implementing the Region Forward plan.

A few of the themes that Pearlstein focused on included the ongoing needs in metro Washington for more affordable housing and more regional cooperation.

Noting that exurban sprawl is both a symptom and cause of our high-cost region, Pearlstein singled out high housing costs as a particular concern. Referencing a recent study on the region’s severe shortfall of housing necessary for the region’s future workforce, Pearlstein noted that high housing costs contribute to increased prices of other goods and services produced in the region which ultimately hurts our competitiveness.

Also, quipping that “treating the Potomac River like the Potomac Ocean is silly,” Pearlstein encouraged the region’s leaders to continue to pursue increased cooperation, especially in terms of economic development. Taking the potential relocation of the FBI from the District to the suburbs as an example, Pearlstein noted that this opportunity seems ripe for Prince George’s County and its goal of increasing development near its Metro stations and that other jurisdictions should support the County’s bid, not compete with it.

And it’s not just our ever-expanding waist lines that cause problems. As noted this week in The Chronicle of Higher Education, additional negative health consequences of sprawl include “asthma caused by particulates from cars and trucks, water contamination from excessive runoff, lead poisoning from contaminated houses and soil, and depression exacerbated by stressful living conditions, long commutes, and a lack of access to fresh food.”

That’s quite a list; however, there are a couple of points of good news. First, this issue is starting to get more public attention – PBS is running a 4-hour series called “Designing Healthy Communities” to highlight the association between land-use and health. Secondly, this is one health issue in which the solution is easy to identify: we simply need to design our cities and towns better. Good urban design can reduce the health disparities that exist in our region.

What does that design look like? Walkable, bikeable communities in which folks can get to many of their daily destinations without having to sit in a car. It’s telling that the cities with the highest rates of walking and bicycling – the District of Columbia is now ranked second! – also tend to find themselves atop “healthiest cities” rankings.

The development of walkable and bikeable communities requires – in addition to the immediate on-the-ground improvements like bike lanes and sidewalks – transit, mixed-use development, and density. In other words, they require urbanism. Seeing as suburban areas continue to grow throughout the region and the country, it’s good news for health that urbanism is no longer the sole domain of central cities, as DC’s neighbors are proving.

(For the most-read posts from the first half of 2011, read these three editions of The Smorgasbord: one, two, and three)

Not enough housing. Not the right housing. Stephen Fuller and Lisa Sturtevant of the GMU Center for Regional Analysis blog about their findings which show that the region is not producing nearly enough housing and not the right type of housing to meet the needs of the future. As a follow up, regional planners suggest funneling future housing development near existing and planned transit. That’s the kind of housing people really want anyway.

PlanMaryland and Region Forward: Maryland Planning Secretary Richard Hall outlines how these two plans will help create a sustainable metro Washington region.

Moving on for a brief international perspective, rates of driving are down in Western countries (yay!), but before claiming victory, it’s important to note that they’re also increasing rapidly in emerging/developing countries. Our land-use decisions in the West definitely have an impact on climate change, but it will be the growth patterns of huge developing countries like India and China that really determine our climate future.

What’s the role for nation-states in an increasingly metro-driven economy? This post raises the provocative question: are today’s city-states becoming the dominant form of economic entity in the world?

Metro makes a “business case” for transit: In a three-part series, Justin Antos from WMATA summarizes key findings from a study that demonstrates the economic value that Metro brings to the region. Hint: it’s a lot. Part one, two, and three.

Stormwater management isn’t a sexy topic. It is, however, incredibly important economically and environmentally. Maintaining a balance between promoting development and improving water quality is an especially tricky task for a growing region like ours.

Sad, but true: Even if we completely stop emitting greenhouse gases tomorrow, the emissions of the past 100 years will continue to generate climate change. It’s inevitable. This is simply a fact; it’s not an excuse for inaction. On the contrary, we should be working feverishly to dramatically reduce our emissions, a goal of Region Forward, in order to minimize further impacts. This two-part series outlines how the region can adapt to some of the effects of climate change. Part one and two.

Lessons for a growing, vibrant region from a struggling one: One may question whether recession-proof metro Washington really has anything to learn from the Detroit region. The answer: yes. A series of posts looked at an issue that the region will be confronting in the coming years: balancing the desire to maintain economic growth in light of likely reduced federal spending and employment. Detroit knows all too well how overreliance on one sector can leave you vulnerable. One promising area to focus on in economic diversification: clean energy efficiency. It makes business sense even if you happen to be one of those climate change deniers.

Sticking with the Motor City, two regional housing planners muse about their takeaways from a conference in Detroit focused on infusing equity concerns into various elements of urban planning, including housing, transportation, the environment, etc. Part one, two, three, and four.

In the meantime, there’s a few current news stories that focus on issues we’ve blogged about this year. We thought we’d share these stories for some additional perspective on these issues:

“Cities Face Tough Choices as U.S. Slashes Block Grants Program” This New York Times piece outlines the impacts that reduced Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) funding is having on cities and their residents. Back in April, when Congress was debating whether to cut CDBG funding, Alicia Lewis warned that short-sighted cuts would have very negative results for productivity and prosperity.

Good news and bad news for redevelopment in Southeast Washington, DC. Mayor Vince Gray’s economic development team is “wooing” Microsoft to build a campus at St. Elizabeths in SE Washington as part of the city’s revitalization efforts for the area. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is already confirmed to relocate its headquarters there, though it was recently announced that the DHS move would be delayed by 5 years. In April, regional planner John Mataya wrote about the efforts to build innovation cluster in SE Washington.

“[Indian] Government Plans New Urban Hubs Around Big Cities” This piece from The Times of India delineates some of the Indian government’s plans for handling its immense and rapidly growing urban population. India’s on track to overtake China as the most populous country in the world in the few decades, exactly at the same time that the world’s population is becoming majority urban for the first time in history. How countries like India and China manage their incredible growth is a key element in international efforts to combat climate change. If they manage it well, utilizing smart growth principles, they can emerge as leaders in this new urban world. If not, sprawl could proliferate on a scale that would make LA’s or DC’s traffic congestion pale in comparison.

The full impact of bag taxes. Montgomery County is set to implement its 5-cent tax on paper and plastic shopping bags beginning January 1, 2012. The move is aimed to reduce pollution and raise revenues and is modeled after the District’s bag tax that was introduced in 2010. While some have criticized the District’s tax for not raising enough revenue, back in May we encouraged people to consider the aims of the tax and to realize that lower revenues, in this case, is actually a sign of success.

Geoengineering – using technological solutions to modify the earth’s climate (or at least shield it from the effects of climate change) – is beginning to move from a somewhat fanciful theoretical concept to something we may actually have to consider, especially if the US and other major nations continue to drag their feet on emissions reductions. That’s a scary thought, given how little we know about what the side effects of geoengineering may be. Back in March we warned about the dangers of relying on technology alone to solve our climate problem.