Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities
Background
The Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities technical assistance program is delivered by EPA staff and EPA-hired consultant teams. Each technical assistance project spans a period of roughly eight months, including inclusive public engagement through a two-day workshop, the involvement of relevant decision-makers and potential public and private sector partners, and a report outlining the workshop process and specific next steps generated that the community could take to achieve its goals. The workshop focuses on the issues and priorities determined by the community.
The benefits each community gets from the process vary by project and are specific to the community. Some common benefits include:
- Engagement with residents and stakeholders around a specific topic, which yields valuable feedback and ideas as well as creating buy-in and community spirit around proposed initiatives.
- Creation of key partnerships and relationships both within the community and with state and federal staff and programs.
- The creation of a locally driven and expert-guided action plan that is both attainable and ambitious.
In past rounds of technical assistance, EPA has focused on topic areas such as infill development, equitable development and green and complete streets, as well as special topic areas like emerging mobility and regional disaster resilience. The tools typically consist of:
- Agendas, presentations and exercises to help facilitate discussion around a given topic.
- A targeted self-assessment, which helps the community and EPA team delve deeper into local issues to identify the most promising areas for progress.
- An action-oriented and inclusive process that leads to an achievable next steps and partnerships.
Once EPA has used a tool in several communities, it may be refined to create a product that any community can use with limited outside assistance. Many of these products are highlighted below.
Applying for Assistance
The Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities program is now accepting letters of interest! Interested parties can learn more about the current round of assistance and find instructions on how to submit a letter of interest here:
Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities 2025 Request for Letters of Interest (pdf)
The deadline to submit letters of interest is December 12, 2024 by 5:00 pm Eastern Time.
The program will provide planning assistance to local governments working in partnership with community organizations to help mitigate the effects of urban heat islands in overburdened communities. Research shows that neighborhoods with populations that are low-income and/or people of color often experience higher temperatures relative to adjacent neighborhoods in the same city.
Selected local governments will work with neighborhood residents alongside federal and state agency partners and consultants to participate in a planning process that helps identify the community's vision, goals and actions to:
- Incorporate smart growth principles.
- Increase green space and improve infrastructure to reduce the heat island effect.
- Improve livability.
As part of this round, OCR will also pilot a related effort to engage area youth in up to three of the five communities. OCR will work with school or neighborhood groups to meaningfully include youth voices in the planning process, introduce them to planning and sustainability career paths, and to ensure they have an active role in implementing the resulting action plan.
If you have questions about the program, please read the Frequently Asked Questions About Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities.
Partner Communities
To date, EPA has conducted over 200 Building Blocks projects in 47 states, as listed below.
Community Stories
2024 Partner Communities
Building Blocks is partnering with EPA's Brownfields program to expand on their efforts to support communities redevelop previously polluted sites. These communities are facing additional issues beyond the footprint of the site itself, including a lack of affordable housing, outdated zoning codes and/or potential displacement of area residents.
Building Blocks will facilitate a flexible and community-led process in partnership with these communities to develop a path forward to revitalize local neighborhoods and towns. EPA’s Office of Community Revitalization selected communities through a targeted outreach effort in a partnership with the Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization and Regional offices across the United States. This technical assistance will help communities:
- Ensure their development decisions address environmental justice concerns in underserved and overburdened communities.
- Preserve their natural resources and community character, while allowing for economic growth.
- Create vibrant, walkable and revitalized neighborhoods.
Together, EPA and the local communities will pursue development strategies that expand upon existing Brownfields efforts and advance clean air, clean water, equitable development and other local goals. Ten communities will receive technical assistance in the 2024 round, focusing on two topic areas
Planning for Equitable Development
- The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, of Akwesasne, New York
- The Shinnecock Indian Nation, New York
- Austin, Minnesota
- Manitowoc, Wisconsin
- Jennings, Missouri
- Cheyenne, Wyoming
- Mandan, North Dakota
- Chiloquin, Oregon
Sustainable Strategies for Small Cities and Rural Communities
- The Passamaquoddy Tribe of Point Pleasant, Maine
- Palouse, Washington
2021 Partner Communities
EPA offered four tools to thirteen communities in 2021.
- Emerging Mobility: Wilmington, Delaware; Houston, Texas; Dubuque, Iowa
- Leveraging Cultural Anchor Institutions: Frederiksted, US Virgin Islands; Eunice, Louisiana; Lake Elsinore, California
- Building Regional Disaster Resilience: Beaufort, South Carolina; Nolensville, Tennessee; Orange County, Florida; Cape Ann, Massachusetts
- Supporting Equitable Development: St. Louis, Mississippi; Fort Pierce, Florida; Paterson, New Jersey
2019-2020 Partner Communities
EPA offered two tools to six communities in 2019 and 2020.
- Strategies for Neighborhood Reinvestment: Kellogg, Idaho; Tucson, Arizona; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Birmingham, Alabama
- Green and Complete Streets: Michigan City, Indiana; Fremont, Nebraska
2018 Partner Communities
In 2018, EPA and the Institute of Museum and Library Services partnered to help local institutions support community revitalization, environmental and public health protection, and other locally-defined goals.
- Explora Museum in Albuquerque, New Mexico, provided STEM education to minority and low-income children.
- Triton College and Oak Park Library in Oak Park, Illinois, addressed community challenges, such as homelessness and food insecurity, that impede college readiness for at-risk youth.
- Illinois Joining Forces in Evanston, Illinois, identified ways in which the communities could fully support military veterans.
- Riveredge Nature Center in Saukville, Wisconsin, collaborated with communities in Washington and Ozaukee Counties to reduce polluted runoff into the Milwaukee River.
2017 Partner Communities
in 2017, EPA offered five tools to twenty-five communities.
- Creating Equitable Development: Brownsville, Texas; Kingston, New York; Lenox, Massachusetts; Miami, Florida; Oglala Sioux Tribe/Pine Ridge, South Dakota; Pueblo, Colorado
- Planning for Infill Development: Apache Junction, Arizona; Fairview Park, Ohio; Raton, New Mexico; Willamina, Oregon
- Sustainable Strategies for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Acadia Parish, Louisiana; Bishop, California; Questa, New Mexico; Randolph, Nebraska; Winona, Minnesota
- Flood Resilience for Riverine and Coastal Communities: Logansport, Louisiana; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Pocomoke City, Maryland; Skykomish, Washington; Wareham, Massachusetts
- Green and Complete Streets: Baltimore, Maryland; Central Falls, Rhode Island; Detroit, Michigan; Hartford, Connecticut; Manatee County, Florida
2016 Partner Communities
EPA offered four tools to sixteen communities in 2016.
- Infill Development for Distressed Cities: Lawrence, Massachusetts; Newburgh, New York; Wichita, Kansas; Las Vegas Area, Nevada
- Supporting Equitable Development: Newport News, Virginia; Montgomery, Alabama; Selma, Alabama; Helena, Montana; Portland, Oregon
- Green and Complete Streets: Camden, New Jersey; Norfolk, Virginia; Cochiti Pueblo, New Mexico; Muscatine, Iowa
- Sustainable Strategies for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Hinsdale, New Hampshire; Anthony, New Mexico; Poplar, Montana
2015 Partner Communities
EPA offered five tools to twenty-two communities in 2015.
- Bikeshare Planning: Baton Rouge, Lousiana; Fresno, California; Passaic County, New Jersey; St. Petersburg, Florida
- Infill Development in Distressed Communities: Canton, Mississippi; Danville, Illinois; Marysville, Washington; Terre Haute, Indiana
- Flood Resilience for Riverine and Coastal Communities: Mobile, Alabama; Newburyport, Massachusetts; New Paltz, New York; Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, California; Scituate, Massachusetts
- Sustainable Strategies for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Damariscotta, Maine; Nederland, Colorado; Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Wisconsin; Steamboat Springs, Colorado
- Supporting Equitable Development: Asheville, North Carolina; Austin, Texas; Cincinnati, Ohio; Polk County, Iowa; Prichard, Alabama
2013 Partner Communities
In 2013, EPA offered nine tools to forty-two communities.
- Creating a Green Streets Strategy: Bellevue, Nebraska; Dayton, Ohio; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Lynchburg, Virginia; Maui, Hawaii
- Green Building Toolkit: Boise, Idaho; Vinton, Texas
- Land Use Strategies to Protect Water Quality: Atchison, Kansas; Beaverton, Oregon; Caddo, Louisiana; Dubuque, Iowa; Gun Lake Tribe, Michigan; Jersey City, New Jersey; Lake Zurich, Illinois; Petersburg, Virginia; Washoe Tribe, Nevada
- Neighborhood Planning for Healthy Aging: Chattanooga, Tennessee; Inyo County, California; Pompano Beach, Florida; Seneca Nation, New York
- Parking Audit: Brunswick, Maine; Carpinteria, California; Lawrence, Kansas
- Planning Bikeshare Programs: Bridgeport, Connecticut; Denver, Colorado; Fort Collins, Colorado; New Orleans, Louisiana; Portland, Maine
- Supporting Equitable Development: Atlanta, Georgia; Buffalo, New York; Stamford, Connecticut; Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Sustainable Strategies for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Bowling Green, Florida; Brattleboro, Vermont; Maui, Hawaii; Murray, Kentucky; New Castle, Delaware; Vinton, Texas; Williamson, New York; Yurok Tribe, California; Zolfo Springs, Florida
- Using Smart Growth to Produce Economic and Fiscal Health: Fargo, North Dakota; Lake Worth, Florida; Omaha, Nebraska
2012 Partner Communities
EPA offered eleven tools to fifty-six communities in 2012.
- Complete Streets: Binghamton, New York; Burlington, Vermont; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Modesto, California; Pocatello, Idaho; Roxbury, Massachusetts
- Green Building Toolkit: Dunwoody, Georgia; Niles, Illinois
- Green Streets Strategy: East Lansing, Michigan; Passaic County, New Jersey; Northampton, Massachusetts; Surprise, Arizona
- Linking Land Use to Water Quality: Campton Hills, Lakemoor and Round Lake Heights, Illinois
- Parking Audits: Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Greensburg, Pennsylvania; Hennepin County, Minnesota; Holyoke, Massachusetts; Roanoke, Virginia; Simsbury, Connecticut; Trenton, New Jersey
- Preferred Growth Areas: Dickinson, New England, and Richardton, North Dakota
- Smart Growth Guidelines for Sustainable Design and Development: Asheboro, North Carolina; Hazel Crest, Lansing, and Olympia Fields, Illinois; Salina, Kansas
- Smart Growth Zoning Codes for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Dallas Center, Iowa; Hays, Kansas; Marietta, Pennsylvania; Onondaga County, New York; Onslow County, North Carolina; University City, Mississippi; Van Meter, Iowa; Wakulla County, Florida; Woodward, Iowa
- Sustainable Land Use Code Audit: St. Joseph, Mississippi
- Using Smart Growth to Produce Fiscal and Economic Health: Fall River, Massachusetts; Henderson, Nevada; Kelso, Washington; Northampton County, Pennsylvania; Stony Point, New York; Topeka, Kansas
- Walking Audit: Blue Springs, Mississippi; Contra Costa County, California; Corpus Christi, Texas; Daytona Beach, Florida; Jackson, Michigan; Jersey City, New Jersey; Lewes, Delaware; Newtown Borough, Pennsylvania; Olympia, Washington; Port Arthur, Texas
2011 Partner Communities
In its first year of Building Blocks assistance in 2011, EPA offered eight tools to thirty-two communities.
- Complete Streets: McKinney, Texas; Nashville/Davidson County, Tennessee; Portland, Maine; Wichita, Kansas
- Preferred Growth Areas: Bluffton, South Carolina; Ranson, West Virginia.; Rockport, Texas
- Smart Growth Guidelines for Sustainable Design and Development: Hellertown, Pennsylvania; Kayenta Township, Arizona; Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Syracuse, New York
- Smart Growth Zoning Codes for Small Cities and Rural Areas: Cambridge, Maryland; Essex, Connecticut; Reedsburg, Wisconsin; Spencer, North Carolina
- Sustainable Land Use Code Audit: Dover, New Hampshire; Granville, Ohio; Lincoln, Nebraska; Shelburne, Vermont
- Using Smart Growth to Produce Fiscal and Economic Health: Bemidji, Minnesota; Chelmsford, Massachusetts; Deerfield Beach, Florida; Erie County, New York; Muskegon, Michigan; Pike's Peak Council of Governments, Colorado
- Walking Audit: Helena, Montana; Renton, Washington; St. Louis, Mississippi
- Linking Land Use to Water Quality: Fitchburg, Wisconsin; Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania
Grantee-Led Assistance
From 2012 to 2017, EPA awarded grants to nonprofit organizations to conduct community assistance similar to EPA's Building Blocks program. Learn more about past grantee-led assistance.