FOR LEADERS IN GOVERNMENT, EDUCATION & HEALTHCARE.
SUSTAINABLE CITY NETWORK
VOLUME 25 October 2017
4
BEST OF
e City SustainaWbl ORK NET
THE BEST COMPLETE STREETS POLICIES 8 HOW TRUMP’S POLICIES COULD AFFECT THE POWER SECTOR 12 SENATE BILL PROTECTS TRANSIT, TIGER AND COMMUNITY GRANT PROGRAMS 19 STUDY FINDS POOR NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE MORE MOSQUITOES
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11TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE OCTOBER 2-3 2018
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A two-day sustainability conference for municipal and business professionals. Ideas, plans and best practices. SPONSORED BY:
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contents
4
VOLUME 25 October 2017
How Trump’s Policies Could Affect the Power Sector
8
Senate Bill Protects Transit, TIGER and Community Grant Programs
12
Hospitals, Communities Work Together on ‘Population Health’
14
First Sports and Entertainment ‘Smart City’ Under Construction
16
Campaign Seeks to Lower the Voting Age in Local Elections
23
Reducing Speed-Related Crashes
25
Chattanooga Goes Green with Zero-Emission Car Sharing
28
cover story
THE BEST COMPLETE STREETS POLICIES
19
Study Finds Poor Neighborhoods Have More Mosquitoes [1]
Sustainable City Network Magazine
The Best of Sustainable City Network is a quarterly magazine highlighting the most popular articles posted on sCityNetwork.com, an online trade publication that serves government, education and healthcare institutions in all 50 U.S. states and the provinces of Canada. The magazine is available in print or as a digital download at www.sCityNetwork.com/bestof. The opinions expressed in the magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sustainable City Network or WoodwardBizMedia. SUBSCRIPTIONS Contact 563.588.4492; info@scitynetwork.com www.sCityNetwork.com
For Leaders in Government, Education & Healthcare
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Sustainable City Network magazine is produced by WoodwardBizMedia, a division of Woodward Communications, Inc. GROUP PUBLISHER Karen Ruden PUBLISHER & EXECUTIVE EDITOR Randy Rodgers
Upcoming Online Courses
ASSOCIATE EDITORS Kathy Regan Michael Manning
How to Organize a Successful Farmers Market
BUSINESS MANAGER Maggie Vetsch CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Smart Growth America S&P Global Ratings Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies National Transportation Safety Board Caleb Powell, TDEC CREATIVE DESIGN Eric Faramus Cover Photo: Ingimage Unless otherwise noted, all images used throughout © 2017 Ingimage, all rights reserved. Sustainable City Network 801 Bluff Street Dubuque, Iowa 52001 Visit Us On The Web sCityNetwork.com Printed on recycled paper
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4-Hour Online Course – Nov. 7-8, 2017 Sustainable City Network will present a two-part webinar series in November for any personnel who are responsible for developing a farmers market. Grant McCarty, local foods and small farms educator for the University of Illinois Extension will be joined by Nikki Keltner, Extension program coordinator, and members of the Illinois Farmers Market Association to conduct this informative 4-hour online course. The sessions will be delivered live on Nov. 7 & 8 and recordings will be available for purchase thereafter. Learn more at http://sCityNetwork.com/Farmers
from the editor Welcome to Sustainable City Network Magazine – the Best of sCityNetwork.com! This quarterly magazine is a compilation of the most popular articles on our web site and in our email newsletter, the InBox, which is delivered to more than 40,000 leaders in government, education and healthcare across the U.S. and Canada. Sustainable City Network produces advertiser-supported, non-partisan articles, webinars, trade shows and white papers that provide local institutions with quality, organized and timely information about sustainability projects, plans and best practices. This magazine is another way we fulfill our mission.
Randy Rodgers Publisher & Executive Editor SUSTAINABLE CITY NETWORK www.sCityNetwork.com 801 Bluff Street Dubuque, IA 52001 563.588.3853 randy@scitynetwork.com
OUR MISSION “To make U.S. cities more sustainable through quality and well-organized information.”
In this issue, we highlight a report by Smart Growth America and the National Complete Streets Coalition, which indicates that more U.S. jurisdictions (222) passed complete streets policies in 2016 than in any previous year, and the total number of policies, nationally, has now reached 1,232. In the Best Complete Streets Policies of 2016 report, the organizations rate and assign points to each new policy. Three communities – Brockton, Mass., Missoula, Mont., and Wenatchee, Wash. – all scored the maximum 100 points. Find out how your community can join them. In our cover story, you’ll learn how a complete streets approach integrates the needs of people and place in the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of transportation networks. The report also finds that, while the U.S. Surgeon General has recommended biking and walking as means of addressing the nation’s obesity epidemic, more needs to be done to provide safe, walkable neighborhoods, especially in the often-neglected areas where people of color and older adults reside. In other top stories: Despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to slash environmental and social equity programs, the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee recently approved a fiscal year 2018 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill that reflects a total allocation of $60.06 billion in discretionary spending, $2.4 billion above the current funding levels, and $12.1 billion above the president’s request. The bill disregards much of the president’s proposal to eliminate or underfund key programs, including TIGER, the Community Development Block Grant, and the HOME program, supported by virtually all the committee members. Our Page 8 article by S&P Global Ratings reveals how Trump’s policies could affect the power sector and America’s fight against climate change in the coming years. Other articles in this issue focus on how to work with hospitals on health and sustainability initiatives; a campaign to lower the voting age in local elections; recommendations on how to reduce speed-related traffic accidents; a report that shows low-income neighborhoods have more mosquitoes, and more. The articles in this magazine have been selected by our readers. We’ve packaged them together in this convenient magazine format, available as a digital download or in print at sCityNetwork.com/Bestof. We hope you find value inside.
Persigo WWTP, Grand Junction, CO Unison Solutions Inc., based in Dubuque, Iowa is proud to be part of the team at this municipal plant. The Colorado site produces BioCNG™, a renewable natural gas, up to 500 gasoline gallons equivalent (GGE) per day of RNG. After moving through a 6 mile pipeline to the existing CNG fueling stations it is used to fuel city buses, refuse trucks, street sweepers and general utility pickups. This patented technology, designed and manufactured by Unison Solutions, removes moisture and impurities from the biogas for use in CNG vehicles. Learn more about it at www.unisonsolutions.com [3]
THE BEST COMPLETE STREETS POLICIES THREE POLICIES GET PERFECT SCORES IN SMART GROWTH AMERICA REPORT BY SMART GROWTH AMERICA
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“By passing strong complete streets policies these communities are making a clear commitment to streets that are safe and convenient for everyone” As of the end of 2016, more than 1,000 jurisdictions in the United States have made formal commitments to streets that are safe and convenient for everyone — no matter their age, income, race, ethnicity, physical ability, or how they choose to travel — by passing a complete streets policy, according to a new report issued by Smart Growth America and the National Complete Streets Coalition. More communities passed these policies in 2016 than ever before. Communities adopted a total of 222 new complete streets policies that year. Nationwide, a total of 1,232 policies are now in place, in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia, including 33 state governments, 77 regional planning organizations, and 955 individual municipalities. These policies are the strongest ever passed. When the National Complete Streets Coalition first evaluated complete streets policies in 2006, the median score was 34 and by 2015 the median score had risen to 68.4. In 2016, the median score leapt to 80.8. Before 2012, no policy had scored higher than 90. And it wasn’t until 2015 that any policy scored a perfect 100. In 2016, 51 policies scored a 90 or higher, including 3 policies that scored a perfect 100. These gains are a testament to communities’ commitment to passing strong, impactful policies. Specifically, 13 communities led the nation in creating and adopting comprehensive complete streets policies in 2016: • 1 Brockton, Mass. 100 points • 1 Missoula, Mont. 100 points • 1 Wenatchee, Wash. 100 points • 2 Hull, Mass. 98.4 points • 2 Mansfield, Mass. 98.4 points • 2 Sherborn, Mass. 98.4 points • 3 Bridgewater, Mass. 96.8 points • 3 Brookline, Mass. 96.8 points • 4 Chester, Mass. 96 points • 4 Muskogee, Okla. 96 points • 5 Ayer, Mass. 95.2 points • 5 Wales, Mass. 95.2 points • 5 Binghamton, N.Y. 95.2 points
By passing strong complete streets policies these communities are making a clear commitment to streets that are safe and convenient for everyone. And they do so at a time when our country desperately needs safer options for biking and walking. As a nation we face an epidemic of obesity and its related illnesses. The U.S. Surgeon General has recommended making biking and walking a routine part of daily life to help address this health crisis, yet in too many communities streets are not built to safely accommodate these activities. Smart Growth America’s recent report Dangerous by Design 2016 outlined the enduring problem of pedestrian fatalities in the United States, and highlighted the 46,149 people who were struck and killed by cars while walking between 2005 and 2014. Over that period Americans were seven times as likely to be killed as a pedestrian than by a natural disaster. During the same period, more than 7,000 people were killed while biking. Dangerous by Design 2016 also showed that people of color and older adults are over-represented among pedestrian deaths, and that pedestrian risk is correlated with median household income as well as rates of uninsured individuals. That means people of color most likely face disproportionately unsafe conditions for walking, and low-income metro areas are predictably more dangerous than higher-income ones. Because of this context, for the first time this year the study looked at the income and racial demographics of the communities included in its analysis. The data showed that communities passing or updating a complete streets policy in 2016 were, on average, slightly more white and more wealthy than the United States as a whole. The average racial makeup of these communities was 76.3 percent white, 10.3 percent black or African American, 0.8 percent American Indian, 5.3 percent Asian, 0.1 percent Pacific Islander, 4.1 percent other, and 3.1 percent two or more races. In all, 77 percent of localities that passed policies in 2016 had white populations greater than the national average of 73.6 percent. The median household income of communities who passed or updated a policy in 2016 was $59,347, about 10 percent above the national average of $53,889. Taken together, it is clear that communities are consistently passing stronger and more effective complete streets policies, a significant accomplishment. It is also clear that the challenge now is to help communities of all income levels and ethnicities benefit from this progress equitably.
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Toward that goal, the coalition is in the process of updating its policy scoring rubric to give more weight to equity considerations as well as implementation. It will make the new standards public later this year, and will begin using the updated rubric to analyze policies moving forward. Complete streets is more than a checklist. It’s a frame of mind. A complete streets approach integrates the needs of people and place in the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of transportation networks. Complete streets redefines what a transportation network looks like, which goals a transportation agency is going to meet, and how a community prioritizes its transportation spending. It breaks down the traditional separation in planning for different modes of travel, and emphasizes context-sensitive, multimodal project planning, design, and implementation. In doing so, a complete streets approach can make streets safer and more convenient for everyone.
Walkable neighborhoods’ price divide is creating a subsequent health divide. As real estate values in walkable neighborhoods climb, lowerincome residents are being forced out to areas without these active transportation options. People’s health is suffering as a result: research has shown that people living in dense cities are thinner and have healthier hearts than people in sprawling subdivisions. For all these reasons and more, communities want to make it safer and easier for people to bike, walk, wheelchair roll, and take transit as well as drive to where they need to go. A complete streets policy is one of the most important ways communities can do this. The good news is that hundreds of communities are using this approach. Read the full report at http://sCityNetwork.com/CompleteStreets2016. n
Photo: Smart Growth America
This growing interest in complete streets comes at a unique national moment. In the United States today, demand for real estate in walkable neighborhoods with diverse transportation choices is at a new high. San Francisco and New York are the most commonly cited examples, but it
is a trend playing out in smaller cities, suburbs, and towns across the country. For perhaps the first time in 60 years, walkable urban places are gaining market share over their drivable suburban competition — and commanding significant price premiums in real estate.
■■ More Policies Than Ever
A new report issued by Smart Growth America and the National Complete Streets Coalition indicates that more U.S. jurisdictions (222) passed complete streets policies in 2016 than in any previous year, and the total number of policies, nationally, has now reached 1,232.
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How Trump’s Policies Could Affect the Power Sector Researchers Study Exiting of Clean Power Plan & Paris Accord BY S&P GLOBAL RATINGS
Editor’s Note The following is a compilation of excerpts from a recent paper published by S&P Global Ratings discussing the implications of President Trump’s “recarbonization” policy on the U.S. energy sector’s coal, nuclear, natural gas, and renewable energy issuers. Garnering support from the rust belt in particular, President Trump’s campaign pledge to reinvigorate coal-fired generation has since led to two momentous commitments: first, the gradual repeal of President Obama’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) and, second, America’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. But what will this mean for generators?
During its successful presidential campaign, the Trump Administration derived much of its support from (and perhaps owes its victory to) blue collar, rust belt residents. These individuals feel they have been left behind not just by the changes in the economy, but by the ongoing transformation of the energy sector in the United States, which has left coal-fired generation (and related extraction industries) in the figurative dust. And while most of the changes in the space are, in the opinion of S&P Global Ratings, the result of shifting economics and increased automation, not adverse regulation, promises made by the Trump campaign were compelling and then-candidate Trump was viewed by some as offering a potential energy renaissance that would cut across sectors and make the rust belt great again. In March, President Trump announced that the Clean Power Plan (CPP) would, over time, be repealed - and, unlike its healthcare brethren, not replaced. Certainly, equipped with a like-minded cabinet, a head of the EPA who was openly hostile to the agency in his prior role, and a Republican Congress, the President has considerable latitude in pursuing any sort of energy and environmental agenda desired; indeed the first two bills of substance that crossed his desk were on environmental rules. But how many of these lofty campaign promises will become bona fide economic outcomes, and what does it mean for various unregulated power sector participants? While that depends on which part of the industry we’re discussing, the consequences could be considerable, and these were hammered home more recently by the June 1 announcement that the United States would leave the Paris climate agreement by 2020.
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“From Paris to West Virginia,” Exiting the CPP Would Set the U.S. on a New Path Regarding Climate Change The CPP was expected to have been the signature environmental achievement of the Obama Administration, but, for the last year or so, it had been tied up in litigation after a surprise Supreme Court decision to stay the implementation of the rule. This decision cast doubt on the future, or at least the start date, of the rule, but the subsequent imbroglio over selecting the replacement for Justice Antonin Scalia (who passed away shortly after the ruling), the election of President Trump and subsequent elevation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, is likely to become the death knell for the CPP. While the CPP would have capitalized on trends already afoot due to market factors and state-level regulation (such as mass coal to gas switching and lower demand growth), the rule would have precipitated an even greater transformation of the power sector, one characterized by ubiquitous renewable portfolio standards, greater building of gas and electric transmission to displace coal-fired assets from even the most ardently pro-coal states, and a revived focus on energy efficiency programs, with states, municipalities, and corporations collaborating to divine lowest cost solutions to carbon reduction. But, what is past is prologue, and if the CPP is not entirely dead, it is on life support due to the aforementioned litigation surrounding it. While the litigation challenging the CPP is still ongoing, it’s evident that the current EPA head is less than inclined to enforce the EPA’s regulations to the same degree as his predecessor, lawsuits from environmentally concerned states and activist groups notwithstanding. The next four years remain a highly critical time period in efforts to decarbonize the global economy under the terms of the Paris agreement, which seems more challenging without American participation (though it remains unclear how quickly the U.S. will actually be able to get out of this agreement).
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Chart: S&P Global
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■■ U.S. Renewable Energy Output
Much of the progress in renewable development to date has come as a result of state-level programs, and S&P Global expects these to be maintained and perhaps strengthen over time, at least in states where decarbonization has already been a priority. Even with a move away from the Clean Power Plan, President Trump may find it difficult to sacrifice renewable energy in favor of coal if he is truly interested in facilitating job growth. While his campaign promises to restore coal jobs will play well in Appalachia and Wyoming, states like Texas and a number in the Midwest are generating increasingly large amounts of power from wind and solar, bolstered by supportive tax credits.
Exiting The Paris Agreement
Pursuant to the Paris Agreement (four years)
A lot of attention was paid to the U.S. Presidential election outcome at the Conference of the Parties 22 (COP 22), which was held in Marrakech in November 2016, and what actions the new President might take - and fears about a withdrawal were realized in June. There are generally seen to be three ways in which the U.S. could exit the Paris Agreement, which include:
• Earliest possible date: Nov. 4, 2020 • Beginning three years after entry into force (Nov. 4, 2019), parties may withdraw by giving one year’s notice. • U.S. law: The President can withdraw from executive agreements on his or her own authority.
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Pursuant to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (one year) • The UNFCCC is the framework that oversees the Paris Agreement and other international climate protocols. Any party may withdraw by giving one year’s notice. • A party that withdraws from UNFCCC shall be considered as also having withdrawn from the Paris Agreement. • The U.S. would have no input into future UNFCCC negotiations and international agreements after withdrawal. • U.S. law: In practice, presidential withdrawal unlikely to be overruled by courts, even though UNFCCC was unanimously approved by the Senate. Outside the terms of the Paris Agreement and UNFCCC • Withdrawal would violate international law. • U.S. law: It is unclear if the President has the authority to violate international law, but Congress can do so.
Exiting the Clean Power Plan: What It Means The S&P Global Ratings report discusses in detail how exiting the Clean Power Plan might impact each part of the power sector, and especially issuers involved in coal, nuclear, natural gas, and renewable energy. The summary findings are as follows: Coal: the removal of the two regulatory scapegoats will, according to Trump, restore the competitiveness of coal-fired assets. But in reality it’s unclear whether a rollback will benefit coal generators, whose demise is more accurately attributed to the rise of natural gas, rather than any regulatory hindrances. Renewables: while the CPP is an obvious boon, renewables development to date has derived from state-level programs. And this is expected to be maintained (and even strengthened) over time. In fact, some red states in the Midwest – where wind and solar are gaining traction – have benefited from renewables-supportive tax credits. Kansas, for instance, is lobbying to preserve incentives for renewables development (to coal’s detriment). Nuclear: the consequences of Trump’s energy policy are more nuanced. Nuclear will likely benefit from the removal of existing regulations that have increased operational costs. But a watering down of the CPP’s carbon allowances may, in turn, remove the incentive for maintaining nuclear assets
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Natural gas: repealing the CPP will be largely inconsequential for natural gas. Gas-fired generation has grown for economic reasons – not because of any regulatory advantage. In the longer-term, however, there are concerns that slowing energy demand could dissuade further natural gas investment.
Off-Base: The Struggles Of Baseload Generators Both coal and nuclear have stumbled in recent years, and while they have very different attributes, the reasons are actually quite similar. Baseload plants are, by their very nature, price taking generators, because they don’t have the ability to quickly ramp up and down in response to changes in real time pricing activity. And, because they run most of the time, they’re much more dependent on energy margins, which, in unregulated markets, tend to be more volatile and less visible than capacity prices. This has become more problematic as the U.S. grid has transformed. Penetration of renewables and introduction of more demand and energy efficiency products has made net demand less certain, even as supply has grown. A more variable grid certainly supports the development of peaking resources to supplement the renewables, but it can curb around the clock (ATC) pricing to the detriment of baseload generators. The trend is only expected to deepen, as the proliferation of renewable generation continues in key markets, and as battery storage develops further. Still, baseload generators are, in the opinion of the Department of Energy, critical to both energy security and grid reliability, so there may be a respite yet. The 60-day review being conducted by the department is expected to opine on the viability of these assets in the current pricing environment, and what, if anything, can be done to support them. However, the CPP would have meant that there was significant value in nuclear assets, as we would have expected states to assign a value to carbon allowances - this value, presumably, would have pushed up power prices and renewed positive cash flow for nuclear generators. Because they would have had longer term value, and because compliance with carbon reduction mandates would have been nigh impossible without baseload nuclear generators (which presumably would have been replaced with baseload gas, which is carbon intensive), states would have had considerable incentive to keep the nuclear assets open through above market subsidies. That incentive will likely disappear with the CPP, though we reiterate that a decision to close a nuclear asset is generally a permanent one, which could set back any future carbon reduction efforts (if, for instance, a successor president were to re-enter the U.S. in the Paris agreement).
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Recarbonization? Even in the absence of a formal, federal policy driving carbon reduction in the U.S. during the past eight years, carbon emissions have fallen precipitously since their 2005 peak, and we expect they will continue to do so going forward. The significant displacement of coal-fired generation in favor of cheaper gas, advancing biofuel development, lower cost renewables, state level policies, and diminished demand growth are all to thank for lower carbon emission levels. But is there a natural limit to how much further carbon emissions might fall if further policies aren’t enacted, or if current policies are pulled back? Environmentalists in the U.S. (and abroad) are keen to understand how much of this carbon reduction was market driven, and how much was derived from environmental policies of the Obama Administration. This may not be an immediate concern, but with the U.S. still likely to be bound by the Paris agreement, it will be at some point in the next decade - it’s not clear that the current trajectory is sufficient to drop emissions by 28 percent by 2025 as called for in the agreement. • Coal to Gas: To date, the displacement of coal-fired generation by gas-fired generation on economic grounds has been a key contributor to decarbonization. To some degree, we anticipate this will continue. However, around the margins, the progress could be slower. Even with lower gas prices that continue to improve dispatch for gas turbines, a slower rate of closure for coal assets could create a natural ceiling to dispatch. When we had anticipated the CPP taking hold, we expected that certain coal assets would close, not because of the requirement to add expensive environmental technology (as was the case with MATS) but because a carbon cost would have made them even less economical - even some baseload assets. • Renewables: State-level renewable standards as well as extensions of supportive tax credits have bolstered the growth of the renewable industry, and, by extension, have contributed to decarbonization. However, we expect the rate of renewable penetration could slow. While states with current RPS (Renewable Portfolio Standards) are likely to continue them, we had expected the EPA’s plan would have led less progressive states especially to adopt RPS in order to meet carbon reduction mandates; this is likely to be absent now. The wild card continues to be how competitive solar and wind can be absent tax incentives. The cost of equipment, especially solar panels, has fallen precipitously and operating expenses have come down as well.
• Energy Efficiency/Demand Curtailment: While other forms of carbon reduction may slow, we expect that the pattern of demand growth reduction and energy efficiency should continue even under a new administration. The continued flattening of the demand curve has occurred independently of any type of orchestrated federal policy, stemming rather from a weaker link between GDP growth and power demand growth, as well as state level policies. Incidentally, because of the reduced demand growth, market heat rates have contracted, and while marginal units may be losing dispatch (in unregulated markets), more efficient ones are continuing to see high capacity factors (if not high power margins) consequently, more efficient units generating a greater percentage of megawatts may lead to greater carbon reduction. We expect a flat to modestly negative growth pattern in demand over the next two years. • Operational Improvements: As with coal to gas switching, while the legal need for this may have lapsed, the utility of this may rest more on market factors. Diminished gas prices, which now appear to be persistent, have curbed the economic rationale for running coal plants as frequently as they did in the past (independent of any environmental rules); if this is the case, there’s really not as strong an economic reason for improving heat rates and efficiency for coal units, especially for marginal units that are likely to close for economic reasons within the next decade anyway, especially if low power prices and uninspiring capacity market performance persist. In the end, we expect that the Trump Administration will, at least temporarily, slow the progress of decarbonization in the U.S., though ongoing coal to gas switching will continue to have implications. While market forces are likely to continue to lower emissions to some degree, there is probably a limit to the success of this in meeting the U.S. climate change goal by 2025 without a comprehensive plan for carbon reduction, and one is not likely forthcoming during this administration. n
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Senate Bill Protects Transit, TIGER and Community Grant Programs Many of Trump’s Proposed Cuts Disregarded BY SMART GROWTH AMERICA WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Senate Appropriations Committee recently approved the fiscal year 2018 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. The bipartisan bill makes investments in infrastructure, provides funding for economic development projects and helps to meet the housing needs of the nation’s most vulnerable individuals and families. The bill reflects a total allocation of $60.06 billion in discretionary spending, $2.4 billion above the current funding levels, and $12.1 billion above the President’s request. The bill disregards much of the President’s proposal to eliminate or underfund key programs, including TIGER, the Community Development Block Grant, and the HOME program, supported by virtually all the Committee members. Instead of cutting these proven programs, the bill makes more than $800 million worth of programmatic reductions and eliminations, while continuing to fund critical infrastructure, housing and community development programs.
In an effort to reduce and end homelessness, the bill provides $2.45 billion for homeless assistance programs and includes provisions to improve the department’s delivery of housing and services to address vulnerable populations, including veterans, youth and survivors of domestic violence.
“Last year, 585 applicants from all 50 states and territories requested nearly $9.3 billion in assistance, demonstrating the need for and popularity of this program. Only 40 of these applications could be funded.”
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: The bill provides $40.2 billion in discretionary appropriations for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, an increase of $1.4 billion above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. (Trump had proposed a 13.2 percent reduction.) Nearly 5 million vulnerable families and individuals are provided with housing assistance through HUD rental assistance programs. To ensure all families and individuals currently served by these programs continue to receive assistance, this bill provides needed increases in funding. Included in the bill is: $21.365 billion for Housing Choice Voucher Program, $1.07 billion above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level; $6.45 billion for Public Housing, $103.5 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level; $11.5 billion for Project-Based Section 8 Rental Assistance, $691 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level; $573 million for Housing for the Elderly Program, $70.6 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level; and $147 million for Housing [ 12 ]
for Persons with Disabilities, nearly $1.0 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level.
The bill includes $20 million for the New Family Unification Program, to prevent youth exiting foster care from becoming homeless, and an additional $55 million is provided for grants and technical assistance to test comprehensive efforts to end youth homelessness in urban and rural areas. The bill also provides $25 million for Rapid Re-housing assistance for survivors of domestic violence, and $40 million for new HUDVASH vouchers.
To eliminate hazardous exposure to lead and protect children from the harmful effects of lead hazard poisoning, the bill increases funding to $160 million for lead abatement grants. This is $15 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. Community Planning and Development: The bill provides $6.85 billion for Community Planning and Development programs, $47 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. The Community Development Block Grant program, which provides communities with resources to address a wide range of development needs, is not eliminated, as request by the President. The CDBG program is funded $3 billion, which is equal to the level provided in fiscal year 2017. HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which provides block grants to states and localities to expand affordable housing, is funded at $950 million, which is equal to the level provided in fiscal year 2017.
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Photo: Domus Development
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■■ Supporting Smart Growth
The U.S. Senate has rejected the Trump Administration’s plan to cut funding for Community Development Block Grants administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, like the one that helped make this affordable housing development in Sacramento, Calif., possible. The La Valentina development is a model for transit-oriented, sustainable smart growth.
U.S. Department of Transportation: The Department of Transportation is funded at $19.47 billion for fiscal year 2018. This is $978 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. Priority is placed on programs to improve the safety, reliability, and efficiency of the transportation system. (Trump had recommended a 13% reduction.) The bill does not eliminate funding for the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant program as requested by the President and the House Appropriations Committee. Instead, the bill increases funding to $550 million, $50 million more than fiscal year 2017 funding level. TIGER is a proven program that funds competitive grants for state and local road, transit, port, and railroad construction projects. “Last year, 585 applicants from all 50 states and territories requested nearly $9.3 billion in assistance, demonstrating the need for and popularity of this program. Only 40 of these applications could be funded” said Senate Appropriations Chairman Susan M. Collins in her opening statement.
The bill fully funds the highway, transit, and safety programs authorized by the FAST Act and funded through the Highway Trust Fund. This includes $45 billion for the Federal-aid Highways Programs. In addition, the bill continues to grant State Departments of Transportation permission to repurpose old, unused earmarks for important infrastructure projects. The Federal Railroad Administration is funded at $1.97 billion, $122 million above the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. This includes $1.6 billion for Amtrak for the Northeast Corridor and National Network, continuing service for all current routes. The bill also provides $250.1 million to fund FRA’s safety, operations, research and development activities. The Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement Grants Program is funded at $92.5 million, of which $35.5 million is for initiation or restoration of passenger rail. The Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Grants program is funded at $26 million and the Restoration and Enhancement Grants program is funded at $5 million. n■ [ 13 ]
Sustainable City Network Magazine
Hospitals, Communities Work Together on ‘Population Health’ Federal Policies Play Role in Fostering Change BY RANDY RODGERS, PUBLISHER & EXECUTIVE EDITOR
JULIA RESNICK is senior program manager at the Association for Community Health Improvement, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association and the Health Research & Educational Trust.
When it all comes down to it, sustainability is really about designing healthy places to live and work for generations to come.
Carol Kawecki, vice president and senior program manager at Healthy Housing Solutions, Inc., based on Columbia, Md., said hospitals are moving in this direction based in part on recent changes to federal policies.
So, it only stands to reason that hospitals can be important allies in that endeavor. After all, who knows better how to promote wellness than the institutions established with that very mission in mind? If your community isn’t already integrating resources from local healthcare institutions into its sustainability plans, now might be the time to reach out.
“In the last decade, and especially since 2011, the national government has moved more – from a health policy standpoint – toward focusing on prevention,” she said. “The National Prevention Strategy was adopted in 2011 and has as a goal to promote the health and well-being of all Americans. One of its strategic directions is building healthy and safe community environments, and another is eliminating health disparities.” Both of these goals integrate nicely with the objectives of smart growth and sustainability, she said.
Julia Resnick, senior program manager at the Association for Community Health Improvement, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association and the Health Research & Educational Trust, said hospitals are more receptive to community engagement than ever before, but sometimes they need a little nudge. “We’re recognizing that we’re a health system now, and we have to be responsible for the health of people, not just treating people when they’re sick, but keeping them out of the hospital in the first place. That is a very different business model, which is frankly quite scary to a lot of hospitals,” Resnick said. She said research suggests healthcare only accounts for about 20 percent of general health and that, according to a nationwide survey in 2015, more hospitals are beginning to align their missions with “population health,” collaborating with community organizations, public health departments and programs that address the socioeconomic determinants of health in a community. “So, if hospitals are really deeply committed to improving the health of the communities they serve, then partnerships with housing and community development, transportation and public safety should all be involved,” she said.
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Kawecki said the U.S. spends $3.7 trillion annually on healthcare, but only about 20 percent of that spending actually results in marked improvements in the length and quality of life. She said “downstream problems” like obesity, depression, asthma, lead poisoning and secondhand smoke can be mitigated by “upstream solutions” like providing access to healthy foods, safe and walkable streets, reduced air pollution and improved housing conditions. U.S. Internal Revenue Service tax code and the Affordable Care Act both require tax-exempt hospitals to conduct community health needs assessments (CHNAs) every three years. These assessments look at a variety of “community-building categories” that include housing improvements, economic development activities, environmental improvements, leadership development, coalition-building, community health improvement advocacy and workforce development, Kawecki said. “The IRS recognizes that these categories are legitimate actions that hospitals can engage in to promote community health,” she said. “It’s important if you are working in any of these areas that you think about how you could engage hospitals in the process.” Along with assessments, nonprofit hospitals also need to conduct community benefits planning and report their activities to the IRS in that same three-year cycle. These reports are open to the public and Kawecki said local sustainability leaders should be reading them to see where they might be able to get involved. Once a municipality gets buy-in from
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the hospital, they can earn a place at the table to help implement smart-growth concepts that meet the community needs identified in the CHNA, she said. Resnick said a hospital’s CHNA needs to include these items: • Review data describing community health • Solicit and take into account input from the community • Identify significant health needs of the community • Prioritize needs for action • Describe strategies to address prioritized needs
She said obesity was the most commonly identified priority need in the latest round of CHNAs, with approximately 70 percent of hospitals including it. Other priorities identified include (in descending order) access to care, behavioral health, substance abuse, diabetes, prevention and screening, chronic condition management, cardiovascular disease, socioeconomic issues, insurance coverage, tobacco addiction and cancer.
Graphic: ACHI
• Approach adopted by hospital authorizing body
■■ Community Health Assessment Toolkit
The Association for Community Health Improvement has recently updated its Community Health Assessment Toolkit. U.S. Internal Revenue Service tax code and the Affordable Care Act both require tax-exempt hospitals to conduct community health needs assessments (CHNAs) every three years.
The Association for Community Health Improvement has recently updated its Community Health Assessment Toolkit. “The state of the field has advanced a lot,” Resnick said. “Community engagement is front and center because everybody benefits from it.” She said hospitals gain a better understanding of their communities and the social determinants that they’re experiencing; they get community buy-in for their CHNA and implementation strategies; and they strengthen relationships with stakeholders. For communities, engagement with hospitals gives them a new perspective, knowledge and experience with healthcare issues, a shared commitment to improvement and a new source of investment in the process. Resnick advises hospitals to establish robust relationships with community stakeholders, not just every three years when a new CHNA is due, but ongoing inclusion throughout the planning and implementation of projects. Depending on a community’s priorities, these relationships might be with law enforcement, schools, housing departments or environmental organizations.
“As a community, how are you going to address all the facets that impact each need? If it’s obesity, then what are the schools doing; how is urban planning working so people can get out and exercise; where are there food deserts and grocery stores; can people access affordable fruits and vegetables? Bringing that all together under one plan and tailoring it to the culture of the community is a lot of hard work,” she said. “There’s a reason this pathway is a cycle, because community health improvement isn’t a one-time thing. You need to keep working on it, keep evaluating, and see what’s working and who else needs to be involved,” Resnick said. n■ Resnick and Kawecki participated in a workshop on this topic at the 2017 New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in St. Louis earlier this year.
Developing implementation strategies is both the most difficult and the most important step in the process, Resnick said. “This is the crux of the whole thing. Once you know the needs, then what do you do?” It’s critical that partner organizations stay involved, she said. [ 15 ]
Sustainable City Network Magazine
First Sports and Entertainment ‘Smart City’ Under Construction Pro Football Hall of Fame Teams with Johnson Controls on $700 Million Project How often do you get to build a city from the ground up — every building, street, light pole and operating system? That’s exactly what Johnson Controls is doing with Hall of Fame Village LLC at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. In an 18-year project initiated in late 2016, the two organizations are creating the first sports and entertainment “smart” city, a state-ofthe-art $700 million development being spearheaded by the Hall of Fame and Industrial Realty Group.
Completed in stages through 2040, the one-of-a-kind campus will include a luxury hotel, stadium, upgraded Pro Football Hall of Fame museum, virtual reality amusement area, assisted living facility, sports research and medical center, retail shops and restaurants, indoor sports facility and a youth sports complex. Just as important are the smart technologies that will bring the village to life — technologies related to heating and cooling, fire and security, lighting, the fan experience and scoreboard, and a buildingand campus-wide operating system. The operating system will allow window shades to adjust according to the movement of the sun, lights to dim as more natural light enters rooms, employees to control cubicle
Illustration: Hall of Fame Village
A professional services contract calls for Johnson Controls’ products, services and solutions to be used within the Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village, including the museum. This will provide for the creation of a showcase “smart city” with the company providing a suite of building management systems to assure “world-class” environments
and yield significant operational cost savings over the life of the agreement, according to the partners.
■■ Johnson Controls Hall of Fame
The completion of Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, will coincide with the NFL’s 100th season and subsequent centennial celebration in 2020.
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temperature and security cameras to capture faces of people entering and exiting buildings as identification badges appear on monitoring screens. “Our innovative, integrated, technologies will provide the right combination of safety and security at the Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village in an environment that demonstrates how we connect ‘cities’ that run smartly and reliably,” said Kim Metcalf-Kupres, vice president and chief marketing officer, Johnson Controls. The completion of the village will coincide with the NFL’s 100th season and subsequent centennial celebration in 2020. There are 10 main components to the village project: Hall of Fame Museum State-of-the-art technology will be infused into the sports museum, starting with “A Game for Life” immersive holographic theater, which opened in July, 2016. Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium
This will be a permanent home to tell the stories of the greatest football players, coaches and contributors from historically black colleges and universities, to be completed in 2019. National Youth Football & Sports Complex The complex will include eight turf fields that will be multi-purposed, lighted and equipped with the latest technology and video capabilities. The sports complex will include full amenities, a concourse area and a championship field with 3,000 seats. Three fields opened in 2016, and five more will be complete in 2017. The complex will be completed in spring of 2018. Four-Star Hotel & Conference Center This will be a unique football-themed, upscale hotel that includes a 25,000 square-foot conference center, to be complete in 2019. Hall of Fame Promenade (Retail, Restaurants, Residential) The promenade will feature retail stores and restaurants including the “world’s greatest sports bar,” office, and residential support. It will be complete in 2019.
Illustration: Hall of Fame Village
The venue will be a spectacular sports and entertainment complex that will include a permanent stage built into the stands. Phases I and II will be complete this summer and Phase III will be completed in summer 2018.
Black College Football Hall of Fame
■■ Project Timeline
The $700 million Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, will be completed in stages through 2020.
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Sustainable City Network Magazine
The Center for EXCELLENCE A Coaches University, an Institute for the Integrity of Officiating and an Academy of Corporate Excellence will be complete in 2019. Performance Center The Performance Center will also house an indoor 100-yard football field and a configuration for a basketball arena that will hold 6,000. It will also have 80,000 square feet of flat convention space, scheduled to be complete in 2020. Player Care Center The center will provide a wide range of services and include LEGENDS LANDING, a football themed independent and assisted living active senior care facility for retired Hall of Famers and members of the NFL’s Legends Community along with coaches, officials and administrators. It is scheduled to open in 2020. Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Experience This is billed as “an interactive and immersive virtual reality experience that places fans not only at the game but in the game!” The estimated $120 million amusement park experience is set to open in early 2019. The attraction will also feature a football-themed waterpark scheduled to open in 2020. The village will showcase building automation systems that are being introduced throughout the country as cities undertake technology upgrades and infrastructure improvements, all in an effort to create smart, safe, comfortable spaces that attract and retain residents, workers and businesses.
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The largest project currently under construction in Ohio, the village will have a dramatic impact on the region and state for decades. During its peak year, the project will create more than 13,000 new jobs; and over a 25-year period, the village will generate $15.3 billion in cumulative net new total economic output within Stark County, Ohio, according to an independent economic feasibility study completed in 2015. “This is an extraordinary partnership… that celebrates excellence everywhere,” said David Baker, Pro Football Hall of Fame president. “Johnson Controls and the Hall of Fame share strong values and a vision of improving others’ lives and making the world a better place.” Under the terms of the deal, Johnson Controls will become the “Official Smart City Partner” of Hall of Fame Village, and the company will be the presenting sponsor for the annual celebration in Canton each summer that will be known as the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week Powered by Johnson Controls. The agreement ranks in the top 80 percentile of sports naming rights deals and is the largest ever for the market size. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is an independent 501 (c)(3) not-forprofit institution. The NFL Hall of Fame Committee is chaired by Dallas Cowboys Owner, President and General Manager Jerry Jones. n
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Study Finds Poor Neighborhoods Have More Mosquitoes Identifying Hotspots is Essential to Managing Mosquito-Borne Disease BY CARY INSTITUTE OF ECOSYSTEM STUDIES
MILLBROOK, N.Y. - A new study published in the Journal of Medical Entomology reports that in Baltimore neighborhoods with high levels of residential abandonment are hotspots for tiger mosquitoes (Aedes albopictus).
Photo: BES archive
This environmental injustice may leave low-income urban residents more vulnerable to mosquito-borne disease.
Shannon LaDeau, a disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies and senior author on the paper, explains, “We are interested in how land cover, microclimate, and socioeconomics influence the distribution of tiger mosquitoes. In Baltimore and other temperate cities, the interplay of these factors determines when and where mosquitoes emerge and the extent to which they pose a risk to people.”
■■ Mosquito Havens
Disease ecologist Shannon LaDeau sampling water collecting in discarded toilets..
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Sustainable City Network Magazine
Native to Asia, tiger mosquitoes arrived in the U.S. in the 1980s, likely as stowaways on imported tires. They have quickly spread throughout the South and Northeast, where they thrive in cities. Unlike native mosquitoes, they feed during daylight hours and are known for living in close association with people. Lead author Eliza Little, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University, explains, “Tiger mosquitoes are highly tolerant and can reproduce in very small pools of water; a cap of water will suffice. They are known to transmit diseases such as dengue and chikungunya, with documented cases in Asia and Europe. They also have the potential to spread Zika.” The research team, which included scientists from the University of Maryland and Rutgers University, spent three years monitoring mosquito activity in five west Baltimore neighborhoods. Study sites spanned a gradient of low, medium, and high socioeconomic status neighborhoods. At each site, 33 blocks were identified as predominantly residential, excluding businesses, schools, and large apartment complexes. Block-scale surveillance of mosquito breeding habitat was conducted three times during each season (in June, July, and September). Every three weeks, from May to September, adult mosquitoes were also sampled. Climate data from a NOAA station at the Maryland Science Center was used to track how rainfall influenced the development of larval mosquitoes.
Photo: BES archive
To reveal how landscape features and vegetation influence mosquito prevalence, target neighborhoods were mapped using block-byblock surveys and Landsat satellite imagery. During ground surveys, researchers counted trees, abandoned buildings (officially condemned or with 148 boarded-up entry), parks, vacant lots, grassy areas, and trash with the potential to serve as breeding habitat.
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■■ Garbage Removal
Effective mosquito control depends on the removal or regular maintenance of smaller container habitats..
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High vegetation cover was found in both low and high income neighborhoods, but its impact on mosquito abundance differed. More mosquitoes were found in lower socioeconomic areas because vacant lots and abandoned buildings provide more breeding sites. Infrequent garbage removal is another issue, giving rise to semi-permanent dumping sites that attract mosquitoes.
Photo: Shannon LaDeau
The correlation between a neighborhood’s socioeconomic status and mosquito abundance wasn’t static. In low-income areas, rain-filled trash, abandoned and decaying properties, and overgrown lots create mosquito breeding habitat. In ■■ Sampling Fence Posts
University of Maryland student Kris Austin surveying for larval mosquitoes. Even small containers holding water such as fence posts and bottle caps can provide breeding habitat for tiger mosquitoes.
■■ Study Map
Map of study area in Baltimore, MD: street segments surveyed for neighborhood attributes, parcels sampled for juvenile mosquitoes, and location of BG-Sentinel traps for adult surveillance.
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higher socioeconomic areas, mosquitoes are supported by residents who water their plants and lawns during the summer. LaDeau explains, “In a city like Baltimore, hot, dry conditions should cause mosquito populations to decline. Instead, in higher income neighborhoods, residents water their yards and enable mosquito populations to survive. That said, overall, our surveys found much larger mosquito populations in lower income neighborhoods.” “This study highlights the dual needs for personalized mosquito control on a lot-by-lot basis and public education across different socioeconomic neighborhoods to implement effective control strategies,” Little notes. Adding, “Our work can also inform urban greening strategies. There can be unintended consequences when green spaces are added to cities without first removing mosquitosustaining containers.” By understanding the environmental conditions that give rise to mosquito populations, researchers can better predict and manage mosquitoes in urban areas, reducing environmental injustices and protecting public health. LaDeau concludes, “This summer, if you want to reduce mosquito numbers, one of the best things you can do is reduce water-holding containers in your community. After a rainfall, do a quick survey of your yard or neighborhood and address sites where water pools. Planters, clogged gutters, neglected pet dishes and bird baths, and trash all provide great tiger mosquito breeding grounds.” n■ This study was made possible, in part, by support from the National Science Foundation, the Parks & People Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Institutes of Health. It is a contribution to the Baltimore Ecosystem Study Long Term Ecological Research (BES LTER) Program.
Abandoned properties are susceptible to unintentional rewilding – when infrastructure decays and plants take over. Mosquitoes thrive in the hospitable microclimate created by vegetation, which also provides a sugar food source and safe resting area.
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Photo: BES archive
■■ Vegetation Microclimate
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Campaign Seeks to Lower the Voting Age in Local Elections Massachusetts Students Rally Local Councils to Seek Rule Change In most U.S. states, 16- and 17-yearold citizens are considered old enough to drive on local roads, work in local businesses, attend local schools and pay local taxes. Now a nationwide campaign is pushing to give these young people the right to vote in local elections as well.
AARON NELSON 19, of Ashfield, Mass., is a cofounder of Vote16 Hilltowns, an effort to lower the local voting age from 18 to 16 for municipal elections.
“Lowering the local voting age will help spur renewed attention to civic education in our schools, instill a habit of voting in our youth, and invigorate engagement with our local governments and communities,” wrote teens Aaron Nelson and Max Carr in an op-ed column published recently in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, a local newspaper in Northampton, Mass.
The two young men recently convinced the Massachusetts towns of Ashfield, Shelburne and Wendell to petition the state legislature for permission to lower the voting age from 18 to 16 in municipal elections. They pointed out that in Takoma Park, Md., the first city in the nation to allow 16- and 17-yearMAX CARR olds to vote, 40 percent turned out for 18, of Shelburne, Mass., is also a co-founder of Vote16 their first election in 2013, with no Hilltowns. contested races on the ballot. That, they noted, was a better turnout than the percentage of voters who participated in the 2014 U.S. midterm elections, which reached a 72-year low of only 36.4 percent. A 2016 study conducted by Vote16USA, a national campaign organized by Generation Citizen advocating for a lower voting age, found 16and 17-year-olds in Takoma Park accounted for 2.7 percent of the voting age population, but 4.9 percent of the ballots cast. Hyattsville, a neighboring city, made the same change in 2015 and saw similar results. State law allows cities in Maryland to pass this type of charter amendment with a city council vote, rather than having to put the issue before voters as a referendum.
“In the elections since the changes, both cities have seen 16- and 17-year-olds who are registered to vote turn out at higher rates than older voters, but the overall number of 16- and 17-year-olds who are registered to vote remains low,” the study found. “Interviews with students, teachers, and policymakers indicate that lowering the voting age has been generally embraced by the communities, but the actual effects of the policy change are still playing out. Some political candidates and elected officials have increased their interactions with high school students, and some young people have become more active in local politics. School and district policy around civics classes has not been officially changed, but classroom teachers welcome the opportunity to make civics lessons more relevant to students’ lives. “As these changes are extremely recent, it will take many more years to properly evaluate the consequences of lowering the voting age on the municipal level in these communities,” the report noted. “Proponents of lowering the voting age cite numerous reasons for considering such a move: it can create habitual voters at a younger age, it can incentivize schools to teach civic education, 16- and 17-year-olds are demonstrably mature enough to make informed votes, and they deserve to have a meaningful voice in matters that affect their local communities.” Nelson, 19, and Carr, 18, are attending college this fall. They became advocates of lowing the voting age in their respective home towns of Ashfield and Shelburne, Mass. They started petitions and eventually won the support of their town councils. As the word got around, another nearby town, Wendell, Mass., also passed a resolution to lower the voting age to 16 for local elections. After creating their own web site, Vote16Hilltowns.org earlier this year, they began getting more publicity for their campaign, which continues to drum up support throughout the region. Now, they’re taking their fight to the statehouse, trying to convince the State of Massachusetts to allow the three communities to implement the change. “When we first mention the idea of 16- and 17-year-olds voting, many people have questions and concerns,” the two wrote in their op-ed. “These, broadly, boil down to two issues: do 16-year-olds have the capacity to vote, and why should we want them to? “Both have clear answers. In the first case, researchers have found 16-year-olds to be just as capable of voting as 18-year-olds. Though parts of the brain are still developing at 16, Rutgers University [ 23 ]
Sustainable City Network Magazine
■■ Case in Point
Two Maryland cities, Takoma Park in 2013 and Hyattsville in 2015, have successfully extended municipal voting rights to 16- and 17-year-olds, as highlighted in a recent study by Vote16USA. Several nations, including Austria, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, and the United Kingdom have extended voting rights to 16-year-olds for national, regional, or local elections. Additionally, more than 15 states already allow 17-year-olds to vote in primaries to nominate candidates for president, Congress, and governor, according to FairVote.org.
researchers found that voting engages the brain’s ‘cold cognition’ abilities, or the ability to think in low-pressure, deliberative situations. The researchers found that this capability, as well as overall civic knowledge, was similar between American 16- and 18-year-olds. Additional evidence from other countries, including Scotland, Austria and Germany, and U.S. cities that currently allow 16-year-olds to vote, demonstrates that 16-year-olds are as capable as 18-year-olds, and retain voting independence from their parents,” Nelson and Carr contended in the column. According to Vote16USA, the teens in Massachusetts aren’t alone. It cites active campaigns in Fresno, Sacramento, San Francisco and Berkeley, Calif., as well as in Boulder, Colo., Washington, D.C., and a statewide effort in Illinois to extend suffrage to 16- and 17-year-old citizens. In San Francisco, a ballot measure earned 170,000 votes in November to finish at 48 percent, just short of passing. Organizers say they’ll fight to get the question on the ballot again in 2020 and they’re efforts have inspired campaigns in other cities around the country. “What we’re really most interested in,” Nelson said, “is helping communities create more engaged and effective citizens… and being a catalyst for civic education.” Amanda Wessel, a politically active student from Takoma Park, Md., seemed to agree. [ 24 ]
“I learned in government class that voting is habit forming and it’s so important to start young, before you go to college,” Wessel told researchers from Vote16USA. “I want people to vote, the democratic process to work better, and I want people to know their vote matters,” she is quoted as saying. Nelson and Carr said giving young people the right to vote helps create livelong voters, better citizens and a healthier democracy. FairVote, a nonpartisan organization that has championed electoral reforms since 1992, has also endorsed the idea, according to FairVote. org. “While one’s first reaction might be to question the ability of young voters to cast a meaningful vote, research shows that 16- and 17-yearolds are as informed and engaged in political issues as older voters,” the organization maintains. “It is time that they are empowered to put that knowledge to good use at the polls, and make voting a habit in their formative years.”“It is very simple, actually. If the government wants a deep subsidy housing program for low income people then the government needs to provide deep subsidies,” Kaiser said. “When the government does not do that, it creates problems.” n
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Reducing Speed-Related Crashes NTSB Calls for Action to Reduce Traffic Fatalities BY THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD
Editor’s Note The following are excerpts from a new report on a study by the National Transportation Safety Board, which found that speeding is a factor in 31 percent of all traffic fatalities. Read the full report at http://sCityNetwork.com/Speed.
Speeding — exceeding a speed limit or driving too fast for conditions — is one of the most common factors in motor vehicle crashes in the United States. In a recent safety study, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) examines causes of and trends in speeding-related passenger vehicle crashes and countermeasures to prevent these crashes.
Why the NTSB Did This Study From 2005 through 2014, crashes in which a law enforcement officer indicated a vehicle’s speed was a factor resulted in 112,580 fatalities, representing 31 percent of all traffic fatalities. Speeding or speed has been cited as a safety issue, or a causal or contributing factor in 49 major NTSB highway accident investigations since 1967. Although recent speeding-related NTSB investigations have primarily involved large trucks and buses, most speeding-related crashes involve speeding passenger vehicles. In 2014, passenger vehicles constituted 77 percent of speeding vehicles involved in fatal crashes, and 78 percent of all speedingrelated fatalities involved a speeding passenger vehicle. This study leverages prior NTSB investigations, together with other research, to address the national safety issue of speeding among passenger vehicle drivers. In this study, the NTSB used a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to summarize the risks of speeding, describe the scope of the problem, and promote the use of proven and emerging speeding countermeasures. This included a literature survey; analyses of speeding-related crash data; and interviews with national,
state, and local traffic safety stakeholders. The stakeholders were representatives from transportation and highway safety agencies, law enforcement agencies, automobile manufacturers, research institutions, advocacy groups, equipment vendors, personal auto insurance providers, and professional associations. This study assessed speeding among passenger vehicle drivers in a broad sense, as a factor that contributes to crashes and injury severity. Several, of many, potential solutions to the issue of speeding-related crashes are discussed. The solutions do not address every cause of speeding or type of speeding-related crash, but they are intended to be widely applicable to a significant portion of these crashes.
What the NTSB Found Speed — and therefore speeding — increases crash risk in two ways: (1) it increases the likelihood of being involved in a crash, and (2) it increases the severity of injuries sustained by all road users in a crash. The relationship between speed and crash involvement is complex, and it is affected by factors such as road type, driver age, alcohol impairment, and roadway characteristics like curvature, grade, width, and adjacent land use.
■■ Here’s Your Sign
The NTSB found that speeding increases crash risk in two ways: (1) it increases the likelihood of being involved in a crash, and (2) it increases the severity of injuries sustained by all road users in a crash.
In contrast, the relationship between speed and injury severity is consistent and direct. Higher vehicle speeds lead to larger changes in velocity in a crash, and these velocity changes are closely linked to injury severity. This relationship is especially critical for pedestrians involved in a motor vehicle crash, due to their lack of protection. [ 25 ]
Sustainable City Network Magazine
Typically, speed limits are set by statute, but adjustments to statutory speed limits are generally based on the observed operating speeds for each road segment — specifically, the 85th percentile speed of freeflowing traffic. Raising speed limits to match the 85th percentile speed can result in unintended consequences. It may lead to higher operating speeds, and thus a higher 85th percentile speed. In general, there is not strong evidence that the 85th percentile speed within a given traffic flow equates to the speed with the lowest crash involvement rate for all road types. Alternative approaches and expert systems for setting speed limits are available, which incorporate factors such as crash history and the presence of vulnerable road users such as pedestrians. Speed limits must be enforced to be effective, and data-driven, highvisibility enforcement is an efficient way to use law enforcement resources. The success of data-driven speed enforcement programs depends on the ability to measure and communicate their effectiveness. However, law enforcement reporting of speeding-related crashes is inconsistent, which leads to underreporting of speeding-related crashes. This underreporting leads stakeholders and the public to underestimate the overall scope of speeding as a traffic safety issue nationally and hinders the effective implementation of data-driven speed enforcement programs locally. Automated speed enforcement (ASE) is also widely acknowledged as an effective countermeasure to reduce speeding-related crashes, fatalities, and injuries. However, only 14 states and the District of Columbia use it. Many states have laws that prohibit or place operational restrictions on ASE, and federal guidelines for ASE are outdated and not well known among ASE program administrators. Point-to-point enforcement, which is based on the average speed of a vehicle between two points, can be used on roadway segments many miles long. This type of ASE has had recent success in other countries, but it is not currently used in the United States. Vehicle technologies can also be effective at reducing speeding. Intelligent speed adaptation (ISA) uses an onboard global positioning system or road sign-detecting camera to determine the speed limit; it then warns drivers when they exceed the speed limit, or prevents drivers from exceeding the speed limit by electronically limiting the speed of the vehicle. Although passenger vehicle manufacturers are increasingly equipping their vehicles with technologies relevant to speeding, these technologies often are not standard features and require the purchase of certain option packages. New car safety rating systems are one effective way to incentivize the manufacture and purchase of passenger vehicles with advanced safety systems such as ISA. Finally, the current level of emphasis on speeding as a national traffic safety issue is lower than warranted. Current federal-aid programs do not ensure that states fund speed management activities at a level commensurate with the national impact of speeding on fatalities and injuries. Also, unlike other traffic safety issues with a similar impact (such as alcohol-impaired driving) there are no nationwide programs to increase public awareness of the risks of speeding. Although the U.S. [ 26 ]
Department of Transportation (DOT) has established a multi-agency team to coordinate speeding-related work throughout the DOT, this team’s work plan does not include means to ensure that the planned actions are completed in a timely manner.
Recommendations As a result of this safety study, the NTSB makes recommendations to the U.S. DOT, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, 50 states, the Governors Highway Safety Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the National Sheriffs’ Association. As a result of this safety study, the NTSB makes the following safety recommendations: To the U.S. Department of Transportation: Complete the actions called for in your 2014 Speed Management Program Plan, and periodically publish status reports on the progress you have made. To the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: Identify speeding-related performance measures to be used by local law enforcement agencies, including — but not limited to — the numbers and locations of speeding-related crashes of different injury severity levels, speeding citations, and warnings, and establish a consistent method for evaluating data-driven, high-visibility enforcement programs to reduce speeding. Disseminate the performance measures and evaluation method to local law enforcement agencies. Identify best practices for communicating with law enforcement officers and the public about the effectiveness of data-driven, high-visibility enforcement programs to reduce speeding, and disseminate the best practices to local law enforcement agencies. Work with the Governors Highway Safety Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the National Sheriffs’ Association to develop and implement a program to increase the adoption of speedingrelated Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria Guideline data elements and improve consistency in law enforcement reporting of speedingrelated crashes. Work with the Federal Highway Administration to update the Speed Enforcement Camera Systems Operational Guidelines to reflect the latest automated speed enforcement (ASE) technologies and operating practices, and promote the updated guidelines among ASE program administrators. Work with the Federal Highway Administration to assess the effectiveness of point-to-point speed enforcement in the United States and, based on the results of that assessment, update the Speed Enforcement Camera Systems Operational Guidelines, as appropriate. Incentivize passenger vehicle manufacturers and consumers to adopt intelligent speed adaptation (ISA) systems by, for example, including ISA in the New Car Assessment Program. Collaborate with other traffic
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safety stakeholders to develop and implement an ongoing program to increase public awareness of speeding as a national traffic safety issue. The program should include, but not be limited to, initiating an annual enforcement mobilization directed at speeding drivers.
To the 28 states without automated speed enforcement laws:
Establish a program to incentivize state and local speed management activities.
Amend current laws to remove operational and location restrictions on the use of automated speed enforcement, except where such restrictions are necessary to align with best practices.
To the Federal Highway Administration: Revise Section 2B.13 of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices so that the factors currently listed as optional for all engineering studies are required, require that an expert system such as USLIMITS2 be used as a validation tool, and remove the guidance that speed limits in speed zones should be within 5 mph of the 85th percentile speed. Revise Section 2B.13 of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices to, at a minimum, incorporate the safe system approach for urban roads to strengthen protection for vulnerable road users. Work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to update the Speed Enforcement Camera Systems Operational Guidelines to reflect the latest automated speed enforcement (ASE) technologies and operating practices, and promote the updated guidelines among ASE program administrators. Work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to assess the effectiveness of point-to-point speed enforcement in the United States and, based on the results of that assessment, update the Speed Enforcement Camera Systems Operational Guidelines, as appropriate. To the seven states prohibiting automated speed enforcement: Amend current laws to authorize state and local agencies to use automated speed enforcement.
Authorize state and local agencies to use automated speed enforcement. To the 15 states with automated speed enforcement restrictions:
To the Governors Highway Safety Association: Work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the National Sheriffs’ Association to develop and implement a program to increase the adoption of speeding-related Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria Guideline data elements and improve consistency in law enforcement reporting of speeding-related crashes. To the International Association of Chiefs of Police: Work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Governors Highway Safety Association, and the National Sheriffs’ Association to develop and implement a program to increase the adoption of speeding-related Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria Guideline data elements and improve consistency in law enforcement reporting of speeding-related crashes. To the National Sheriffs’ Association: Work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Governors Highway Safety Association, and the International Association of Chiefs of Police to develop and implement a program to increase the adoption of speeding-related Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria Guideline data elements and improve consistency in law enforcement reporting of speeding-related crashes. n
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Sustainable City Network Magazine
Chattanooga Goes Green with Zero-Emission Car Sharing CARTA Deploys Its First 20 EVs BY CALEB POWELL, TDEC
The city of Chattanooga, Tenn., is home to many firsts when it comes to sustainable transportation.
LISA MARAGNANO is executive director of the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) in Chattanooga, Tenn.
From being one of the first cities in the nation to offer free rides on electric buses, to starting one of the first electric vehicle ride-share programs, the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) is paving the way for innovative and cleaner transportation.
CARTA initiated the downtown electric shuttle system over 25 years ago and claims one of the largest fleets of electric buses in the United States. They also operate three public parking garages, the Chattanooga Parking Authority, and own and operate the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway. In 2014, CARTA entered into a funding and partnership agreement with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure and to create a new transportation alternative through an electric car-sharing system. TVA awarded CARTA a $3 million grant to get the project started. Just like any large scale project, the first phase funded the system design, development, reporting, siting, construction, operation, and management of an electric vehicle charging system, with 20 locations in the Chattanooga area. Phase two of the project included the development and placement of an electric vehicle car-sharing system, which is operated from the new vehicle charging stations across the community. CARTA has now launched an integrated public Level 2 charging and electric vehicle car-share network. Consisting of 56 charging ports across 20 locations, the new system runs alongside the existing public transit system. The energy use that is required for the system is compensated by the installation of three new 80 kW solar power generators that are integrated into the local power grid. TVA is sponsoring the program to help entice more motorists to try driving electric vehicles. This could help the federal utility gain new business and help level TVA’s load by recharging car batteries during lowdemand periods. The electric vehicle charging infrastructure was installed and is owned, operated, and maintained by CARTA. It is built upon the Chargepoint [ 28 ]
CT4000 Dual-port system and each unit is covered with a prepaid, 5-year maintenance and data plan to ensure continued performance and reliability. CARTA partners with the city of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority, Erlanger Health System, CHI Memorial Hospital, the University of Chattanooga Foundation, Southern Adventist University, CBL Properties, United Methodist Neighborhood Centers, Kinsey Probasco Hays, and the Chattanooga Theatre Center. With these partners, CARTA maintains lease agreements at no cost. Green Commuter, a Los Angeles headquartered benefit corporation, was selected by CARTA to launch the state’s first all-electric public car-share system with the initial deployment of 20 Nissan LEAFs in Chattanooga, taking advantage of CARTA’s public charging network. The Nissan LEAFs serve the central business district, key employment and residential centers, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Southern Adventist University. Service is available to qualified drivers 18 years and older, with special fleet packages available for corporate partners. Reservations and vehicle access are obtained through a mobile app available for both IOS and Android phones. In October, the system opened for public use, offering on-demand hourly and daily rentals. Green Commuter is responsible for daily operations, maintenance, marketing, and sponsorship of the system, and received compensation to subsidize the system launch and ensure continuity of operations through June 30, 2019. Another partner in the program is a Chattanooga consultant, the Prova Group LLC. The company’s CEO and principal, Philip Pugliese, designed and deployed the Bike Chattanooga bicycle-sharing program. In addition to the Green Commuter application, the entire public charging network is visible through many online and mobile applications, including Chargepoint, Plugshare, and the Transit App. Green Commuter and CARTA are working to further integrate across these platforms for access and payment solutions. There is an initial application fee of $25 and an annual membership fee of $50 to be able to take advantage of the electric vehicles, with an hourly rate option of $9 per hour for members. Consistent with the goals of the TVA mitigation projects, the system components contribute directly to the reduction of greenhouse gases and may also affect SO2, NOx and Hg. On top of the emissions decrease brought on by the electric transit system, the new electric vehicle car-share project reduces the need for everyone to have
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their own cars and lowers the amount of CO2 introduced into the environment. The total emissions reduction has equaled more than 530 tons of CO2 since the implementation of this program. CARTA was even nominated and won this year’s Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Award in the category of Clean Air due to the emissions reduction and success of the project. CARTA is committed to transporting people in an environmentally friendly way that protects air quality, agency officials said. Car-sharing offers numerous environmental and economic benefits to Chattanooga residents and employers, and promotes sustainable transportation and land use. When asked about the status of the finished project, CARTA’s executive director, Lisa Maragnano stated, “The electric vehicle carsharing system is working as planned and is readily scalable, with potential for additional sites in the future. The project enables more people to take advantage of public transportation, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and provides the community a cheaper, more sustainable way to commute.”
CARTA was established in 1973 after purchasing the assets of Southern Coach Lines, which had operated the city’s bus service since 1941. The transit agency’s 11-member board of directors has since gained a reputation for aggressively pursuing sustainable solutions to public transportation. CARTA has been involved in numerous research projects including the testing of tires for minimizing rolling resistance, solar panels on the buses, gas turbines, alternative battery chemistries, inductive charging, hydrogen auxiliary power units and consulting for national and international government agencies interested in electric bus technology, according to the authority’s web site. n Caleb Powell is an environmental specialist with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Office of Sustainable Practices. He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental sustainability and energy technology from Middle Tennessee State University.
Photo: TDEC
Once members of the community realize the positive impacts brought about by the new system, they will take advantage of it more often, allowing for the project to update and become an even more vital part of Chattanooga, Maragnano said. Through the installation of
distributed renewable generation, plug-in electric vehicles replacing conventional vehicles, and enabling shared vehicle solutions to offset single commuter vehicles, this project has created an environment to promote the adoption of clean energy technologies and produce sustainable emissions reductions.
■■ Zero-Emission Transportation
The Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) recently deployed 20 new electric cars into its car-sharing program. With the help of a $3 million grant from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), CARTA installed 56 charging ports across 20 locations throughout Hamilton County, Tennessee. The electricity used by the system is offset by three new solar power generators with a capacity of 80 kW.
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