Transforming Federal Policies to Strengthen Regions
Many of the decisions made by state and local governments are directed, even dictated, by misguided federal investment policies. Too often, money flows through issue-specific streams, to units of government too small or too large to adequately address the problem at hand, and without a clear set of measurable goals. Goal-driven, right-sized, and coordinated investment would spur innovation and put Chicagoland and the rest of the nation on a more sustainable, equitable, and economically viable path. MPC and many of its partners are working to reform federal policies through research, advocacy, and on-the-ground pilot projects that generate specific policy reform.
MPC, in partnership with the Center for Neighborhood Technology, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, and the Regional Transportation Authority, produced Advancing Livability Principles: Federal Investment Reform Lessons from the Chicagoland Experience, which outlines the partners’ collective ideas for putting the Obama administration’s joint-agency livability principles into action, and showcases the Chicago region’s successes as models for nationwide implementation of federal investment policies that are goal-oriented, right-sized, and coordinated.
Download Advancing Livability Principles: Federal Investment Reform Lessons from the Chicagoland Experience.
Articles
The fast track to high-speed rail-
- Today, President Obama announced the recipients of $8 billion in high-speed rail grants allocated to 31 states along 13 major rail corridors. The Midwest Region was awarded almost $2.6 billion for four major corridors: Chicago-St. Louis-Kansas City, Minneapolis-Milwaukee-Chicago,…
Disappointed, but still hopeful, in the wake of NSP2-
- The U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced awardees for the second round of Neighborhood Stabilization Program foreclosure recovery funding. While MPC and our partners appreciated the significant allocations to the City of Chicago and Evanston, we also felt a sharp…
Recent federal announcements may bode well for the region-
- “We don’t have enough direct bus transportation. Everything feels just a little bit out of the way,” complained a resident of Chicago’s Near West community. These sentiments were echoed by many others living in Chicago’s Near West, Near North, and Mid-South communities…
MPC by the numbers, 2009-
- From jobless rates to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, from Illinois’ budget gap to foreclosure trends, news reports in 2009 were awash with gloomy figures. It’s been a challenging year, and the numbers don’t lie.
Yet, fortunately, they rarely tell the whole…
MPC supports new federal incentives to leverage business investment in workforce housing-
- As the economy and housing market begin to show signs of recovery, strategies proven to encourage homeownership and community stability are smart investments worthy of additional public and private support. Among these is employer-assisted housing, an innovative employer benefit through which…
Multimedia
Livable Communities Act
S 1619 and HR 4690: Federal framework to promote local competitiveness and sustainability-
- Publication
- (65 KB)
- March 3, 2010
- The Livable Communities Act (S 1619 and HR 4690) would provide a multi-year authorization for federal sustainability initiatives. The bill authorizes $4 billion over four years for regional planning and challenge grants to make communities more livable, and eliminates federal barriers to…
- Improving Housing-Transportation Linkages: Learning from listening sessions in Atlanta and Minneapolis-St. Paul
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- Publication
- (209 KB)
- February 23, 2010
- In March and April, 2009, the Metropolitan Planning Council and the Center for Housing Policy convened stakeholders in Atlanta and Minneapolis-St. Paul to discuss barriers to coordinating housing and transportation investments. This publication summarizes best practices and key challenges raised by…
Advancing Livability Principles: Federal Investment Reform Lessons from the Chicagoland Experience-
- Publication
- (1 MB)
- October 30, 2009
- During a time of historic economic change, the strength of the Chicagoland region – or any region across the nation, for that matter -- depends on smart federal investment strategies. As more and more communities need resources to fund outdated infrastructure, deal with the foreclosure…
- MPC 2009 Annual Luncheon: Connecting the Dots: Metropolitan Chicago's Path to Prosperity
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- Listen to this recording of MPC's 2009 Annual Luncheon, which featured a joint appearance by three members of President Obama’s Cabinet to discuss their interagency Sustainable Communities Partnership and other new federal initiatives to improve the nation's metro regions.
- Metropolitan Planning Council 2008 Annual Luncheon, Metropolitan Mandate: How the Next President Will Maximize Metro Potential
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- At MPC's 2008 Annual Meeting Luncheon, representatives of the two major party nominees for President of the United States presented their candidates' plans and priorities for solving the most urgent issues impeding the nation's regions and cities.
Links
- America 2050
America 2050 is a national initiative to meet the infrastructure, economic development and environmental challenges of the nation as we prepare to add about 130 million additional Americans by the year 2050.
More info »- Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program
- Created in 1996, the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program provides decision makers with cutting-edge research and policy ideas for improving the health and prosperity of cities and metropolitan areas. More info »
More related links »
Collaborators
Partners
Center for Neighborhood Technology
Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning
Regional Transportation Authority
Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings Institution
National Housing Conference
Funders
Allstate Corporation
Boeing
The Chicago Community Trust
Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation
Microsoft
