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EPA to Provide Three New York Communities with Smart Growth Assistance

Release Date: 03/09/2012
Contact Information: John Martin (212) 637- 3662, [email protected]

(New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that the city of Binghamton, the town of Stony Point in Rockland County, and Onondaga County will receive technical assistance through the Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities program. The assistance will be provided by EPA-funded private-sector experts, who will conduct workshops in each community. The technical experts will work with the communities on actions they can take to improve the economy, the environment, and quality of life.

Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities is a project of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities among the EPA, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The interagency collaboration coordinates federal investments in infrastructure, facilities, and services to get better results for communities and use taxpayer money more efficiently. The partnership is helping communities across the country create more housing choices, make transportation more efficient and reliable, reinforce existing investments, and support vibrant and healthy neighborhoods that attract businesses.

• The EPA will provide Binghamton with a “Complete Streets” workshop. This workshop will teach local government officials and community members how to set investment priorities, draft policies, and implement changes to make their streets safe and appealing to all users, including drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit riders.
• The EPA will provide Stony Point with a “Using Smart Growth to Produce Fiscal and Economic Health” workshop. The city will use the assistance as a springboard for community residents to incorporate smart growth concepts into the daily operations of government and private development processes.
• Onondaga County will receive assistance with Smart Growth Zoning Codes for Small Cities and Rural Areas. This assistance offers solutions that the county can make to their zoning codes and planning documents to promote development that protects quality of life.

Today’s announcement marks the second round of Building Blocks assistance. Thirty-two other communities were named in the first round in April 2011. This year, the EPA selected 56 communities from 350 applicants through a competitive process in consultation with EPA’s regional offices, HUD, DOT, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

More information on the Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities: https://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/buildingblocks.htm

More information on the Partnership for Sustainable Communities: http://www.sustainablecommunities.gov

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