The Vibrant NEO 2040 planning process has been assisted by five volunteer work streams – Economic Development, Environments, Housing & Communities, Connections, and Quality Connected Places. Each one has a specific focus but some are broader than others. In the Housing & Communities work stream, housing issues are an obvious focus but the term ‘community’ is harder to define. The work stream also values the individual communities and neighborhoods in northeast Ohio by promoting the growth of a healthy, safe, and walkable region. The Akron Urban League’s 2013 Urban Issues Luncheon Series covers some of those very issues, like safety and education. The series opens at the Akron Urban League on Wednesday, February 13th with the topic, “In Search of Urban Peace: Addressing Urban Violence”. Click here to register or for more information. Review the Schedule for Fair Housing Forums Read the February Issue of Vibrant NEO Register for The…
livability
08 Feb: Share Your Thoughts on Fair Housing: NEOSCC 2013 Northeast Ohio Fair Housing Forums in March
You are invited to attend! The NEOSCC is currently undertaking a study to evaluate fair housing throughout the 12 Counties of Northeast Ohio. It is known as a Regional Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice. Through a series of Fair Housing Forums, we are reaching out to each of the 12 Counties to listen to your thoughts on this important issue. Listen to preliminary findings of the study. Provide your knowledge, opinions, and feelings about fair housing choice. Please offer your suggestions on how to eliminate impediments to fair housing choice – ways we can work together to further fair housing in Northeast Ohio. State and Federal fair housing laws prohibit discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, familial status, ancestry or military status. Meeting Schedule March 11 9:00am – Summit County, Akron Urban League (President’s Hall), 440 Vernon Odom Blvd., Akron 1:30pm –…
2013 Urban Innovators Speaker Series Time: 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM Date(s): 01-30-2013 to 03-20-2013 Price: Free Reserve now! Seating will be limited to 100 per presentation and reservations are required. Call 330-777-2070 or email info@upakron.com January 30th and February 20th Speaker Series programs will be held at the Andrew Jackson House – Ballroom at 277 E. Mill Street, Akron, OH 44308, the corner of E. Mill and Union Streets. March 20th Speaker Series program will be held at Quaker Square at the corner of E. Mill Street and N. Broadway, Akron, OH 44308 January 30th: Redesigning the Urban Landscape: Developing a Natural Sense of Place – Sabrena Schweyer & Samuel Salsbury, Salsbury-Schweyer, Inc. February 20th: Transforming Vacant Spaces: Creating Value from Vacancy in the Urban Footprint – Terry Schwarz, Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative March 20th: Cohousing: A Unique Approach to Alternative Housing – Sharon Sykora, Ph.D., Slippery Rock University…
In the mid-19th century, industry flourished around the Morris Canal in Jersey City, New Jersey. As transportation technology improved, the canal was filled in and used as a corridor for freight rail and heavy trucks, which led to the establishment of more intensive industries and neighborhoods for workers in the area. By the mid-20th century, however, many industries had abandoned the city, leaving the areas near the canal with obsolete buildings, contaminated soil, and deteriorated neighborhoods. To address the neighborhood decline, Jersey City created the Canal Crossing Redevelopment Area and, in 2009, approved the Canal Crossing Redevelopment Plan. The plan calls for the 111-acre area to be redeveloped as a mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-oriented community designed in accordance with smart growth, new urbanism, and green building principles. The Jersey City Redevelopment Agency (JCRA) took a major step toward achieving the plan’s goals when it was awarded almost $2.3 million in a joint…
Over the next 6 months, Cleveland’s Bike Share Task Force will be taking a look at the feasibility of bike sharing and reviewing recommended business models for operating a system in the city. Building off of recent momentum in cycling and complete and green streets, the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability issued a Request for Proposals in autumn 2012 and has contracted with Toole Design Group (TDG) as the lead consultant for this project. Bike Share Task Force: In anticipation of the feasibility study, the Bike Share Task Force formed to provide a platform to advise the project and to assist with stakeholder engagement. The Bike Share Task Force consists of representatives from many organizations who see the potential benefits of bike sharing in Cleveland: Mayor’s Office of Sustainability ClevelandCity Planning GreenCityBlueLake Institute Bike Cleveland Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Cleveland City Planning Commission Positively Cleveland Midtown Cleveland Ohio City Inc. Downtown Cleveland Alliance/Cleveland Bike Rack…
Smart growth development is compact and walkable and provides a diverse range of choices in land uses, building types, transportation, homes, workplace locations, and stores. Such development projects are attractive to private-sector interests because they can find a ready market and compete financially. They appeal to local governments because they can be the building blocks of a growing economy and high-quality, economically sustainable neighborhoods and communities while also helping to create a cleaner, healthier environment. Some of the advantages for developers, communities, and local governments associated with smart growth include: Compact development: Using land and resources more efficiently and redeveloping old or neglected areas while retaining existing infrastructure can create economic advantages for real estate developers and investors, businesses, and local governments. Compact development can generate more revenue per acre because it uses land more efficiently. It can reduce the costs of land and infrastructure for individual projects and the costs…
The neighborhood development group University Park Alliance has been awarded nearly $8 million to continue building Akron’s urban core. University Park Alliance is a non-profit community development corporation dedicated to the importance of ‘place-making’. University Park Alliance describes their Vision: We envision University Park as an exciting opportunity to return to a traditional urban neighborhood where interesting people live, great ideas thrive and community is key. And we see a clear path for getting there. Our strategy is to capitalize on the economic synergy of the great institutions already anchored throughout this geography—including a major university, three excellent hospitals, a bio-tech institute, three brand new schools—and develop a dense, walkable neighborhood with diverse cultural offerings, great healthcare, quality education and plenty of recreational and leisure opportunities. In essence, our mission is to build a ‘sense of place’ between these strong anchors. To do so, University Park Alliance has created a…
Grist.com recently reported on the crusade against blight in areas of northeast Ohio like Youngstown and Cleveland. “Good samaritans in Ohio may be getting a reprieve from potential misdemeanor charges. Today the state House is voting on a bill that would allow people to clean up vacant, blighted properties without fear of a trespassing charge. This measure essentially gives residents more power to improve their neighborhoods, harnessing NIMBY instincts for good. From The Columbus Dispatch: Some residents hesitate to take care of the properties around them because they risk trespassing charges, said Tiffany Sokol, office manager of the nonprofit Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp., which boards up and cleans up vacant properties. The bill would allow individuals to clean up blighted land or buildings that have clearly been abandoned. “Very ugly, nasty places,” [said Sen. Joe Schiavoni (D), the bill’s sponsor]. “These properties are an eyesore, a danger to their neighbors.” The Rust Belt…
In our work at NEOSCC, we are guided by six Livability Principles from The Partnership for Sustainable Communities (an interagency partnership between the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)). One of the principles is to ‘support existing communities’. This principle is said to target federal funding toward existing communities—through strategies like transit-oriented, mixed-use development and land recycling—to increase community revitalization and the efficiency of public works investments and safeguard rural landscapes. The EPA recently released a report examining residential construction trends in America’s metropolitan regions. The report finds that nearly three out of four large metropolitan regions saw an increased share of new housing development in previously developed areas during 2005-2009 compared to 2000-2004. Known as infill housing, this type of development provides economic and public health benefits to metropolitan areas while protecting the local environment. …
Over the past week our website, Facebook and Twitter traffic has been steadily increasing. In light of this we thought it would be an opportune time to give a quick overview of our initiative. In terms of history, funding and organization you can visit our About pages. What we want to cover today is more of the soul of the initiative. We all want our communities to be… Vibrant (full of energy, enthusiasm, and vitality.) Sustainable (not wasteful; making smart decisions that help the region thrive.) Resilient (adaptable, tough and able to bounce back from difficulties.) NEOSCC IS OUR REGIONAL ADVOCATE FOR THESE VALUES/GOALS NEOSCC is a regional coalition funded mainly through a HUD Sustainability Communities Grant to NOACA. It is made up of diverse members from across the 12-county area, including local and county governments, businesses, and organizations from the planning, transit, and higher education sectors. VIBRANT NEO 2040…