1. High Performing Communities

2. Goal To develop a program or legislation to assist communities across America in a transformation into – low-carbon producing reduced and renewable energy consuming, and efficient and environmentally sensitive places to live, work and play … all while ensuring economic viability.

3. Mission To draft a program or legislation to create a high performing communities program, modeled after the highly successful Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (FWPCA), P.L. 92-500.

4. Why? Special advertising supplement in The Washington Post on Earth Day (April 22, 2009) suggested a number of environmental remedies --- all of which are within the practice of the architecture-engineering- surveying-mapping (geospatial) profession.

5. FWPCA: PL 92-500 Under FWPCA, the Federal government provided grants of 75% of the cost for communities to implement three stages of developing strategies and solutions, led by the innovation of the architectural and engineering profession. These were – (1) a facilities plan, (2) the design of the FWPCA facility, and (3) the construction, operation and maintenance, and start-up of the designed and constructed facility.

6. FWPCA: PL 92-500 This program was a major line of business for private A/E firms for many years. The program was an extraordinary form of assistance to local communities. The program featured national goals and standards, local implementation, Federal assistance, and strong private sector participation that created thousands of jobs and cleaned-up the Nation’s waterways.

7. High Performing Communities 2010 The A/E profession can immeasurably contribute to the health and well being of the Nation, by the development of a program to set national standards and local implementation strategies for CO2 emission reduction, common-sense environmental protection, livable communities, and integrated land-use/transportation planning. Such a program can provide economic prosperity to communities and create jobs.

8. Program would … Develop strategies for communities to: move toward clean energy; reduce the causes of global warming and climate change; design cleaner, less energy consuming buildings through sustainable and energy efficient building envelope design and construction; integrate land use and transportation to cut commuting times, reduce pollution, and lower energy costs; and continue to contribute to cleaner air and water.

9. The program may include … Geographic information systems and collection of data for the framework themes of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) created by Executive Order 12906; An inventory of current infrastructure, energy uses and sources, and industry discharge analysis, as well as an identification of upgrade needs;

10. The program may include … (2) A community visioning process, led by a design professional team, to create a community comprehensive plan; and A construction, operation and maintenance, and implementation plan;

11. The program may include … (3) Comprehensive Planning to -- coordinate land use, housing, transportation, and infrastructure planning processes across jurisdictions and agencies; identify potential state, local and regional partnerships for developing and implementing a comprehensive regional plan; conduct or update housing, infrastructure, transportation, energy, and environmental assessments to determine regional needs and promote sustainable development;

12. The program may include … (4) develop or update a comprehensive regional plan or goals and strategies to implement an existing comprehensive regional plan; and recommend local zoning and other code revisions that may be necessary to implement a comprehensive regional plan and promote sustainable development.

13. Discussion What do you think? What should be in such a bill or program? What would serve the nation? How can this concept assist the Obama Administration’s “ environmentally and economically viable neighborhoods” agenda? How can this concept assist/compliment Senator Dodd’s “ Livable Communities Act,” S.1619?