Grant Announcement: Smart Growth Seed Funding and Community Planning Assistance 2008
Communities across
In order to help meet this growing
need, the Center for Planning Excellence (CPEX), a 501(c)3 non-profit
organization, is offering seed funding and direct community planning assistance
to communities that intend to incorporate Smart Growth principles and techniques
into their planning efforts. CPEX will assist communities through the process
of selecting, hiring, and managing consultants who will, in turn, create
community plans that are consistent with Smart Growth planning principles and
the Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan. In
2008, CPEX will provide seed funding (grants ranging from $10,000 to
$100,000) and direct staff support to two or three selected
communities. In order to apply for these
resources, the interested communities must comply with the application
submission requirements described on page 3.
PROGRAM
DESCRIPTION
CPEX received a grant from the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide seed funding and
community planning assistance to
Examples of planning efforts with
which CPEX could assist include, but are not limited to:
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Comprehensive/Master Plans
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Infill/Redevelopment Plans
§
Neighborhood Plans
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Downtown Plans
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Corridor Plans
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Transportation Plans
In addition to seed funding, the selected
communities will receive direct staff assistance from CPEX in the form of community
outreach and education and as part-time project management to assist the
community and its planner/project manager with the process of selecting, hiring,
and managing consultants who will create community plans that are consistent
with Smart Growth planning principals and the goals of the Louisiana Speaks
Regional Plan.
Smart Growth is characterized by the
following goals:
- take advantage of existing infrastructure investments by
directing development and redevelopment towards existing communities;
- create a range of housing opportunities and choices;
- mixed land uses;
- create walkable neighborhoods;
- foster distinctive, attractive communities with a
strong sense of place;
- preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty, and
critical environmental areas;
- provide a variety of transportation choices;
- make development decisions predictable, fair and cost
effective; and
- encourage community and stakeholder collaboration in
development decisions.
For more information on Smart Growth,
please visit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s web site at: www.epa.gov/smartgrowth.
THE
APPLICATION PROCESS
CPEX plans to select two or three
communities for assistance in 2008. CPEX anticipates announcing the selected
communities in fall of 2008 and working with the communities over a period of 12
months.
CPEX will evaluate applications
based on the criteria listed below. Following an initial review, CPEX will
conduct conference calls with the finalists and make final selections. Please follow the instructions below under
“Submitting the Application” to apply for CPEX funds and assistance for 2008.
Evaluation Criteria
1. Applicant must be a governmental
entity in
2. Government entity must have a
planner/project manager on staff to oversee and lead the planning process. Applicants
must also specify the staff who will work on this project.
3. Applicant must demonstrate an
understanding of and commitment to the principles of Smart Growth.
4. Application must describe a
specific, clearly defined planning project. Applicants must describe the type
of plan they would like to pursue; discuss how it relates to local, regional,
or state growth; describe partnerships in place to help make the project
succeed; past planning efforts that will feed into the proposed planning
effort; and explain how its success would affect the applicant community’s
environmental, social, and economic health.
5. Elected officials – mayors, city
council members, parish commissioners, parish council, etc. – must demonstrate
their support for this planning effort and their commitment to its success. This should be established through the
inclusion of a letter of support from the highest elected official in the
community, as well names of other elected officials or planning commissioners who
support it.
As a proponent of collaborative problem solving, CPEX
supports meaningful public involvement, especially among underserved
populations or non-traditional stakeholders. Applicants are encouraged to reach
beyond political and professional stakeholders and target faith-based groups,
parents, senior citizens, schools, retirement centers, and community service
organizations. Applicants may include a
list of meetings that were held with various stakeholders regarding this
planning effort.
6. CPEX requires a 100 percent match from the applicant in order to demonstrate support and financial
buy-in. However, CPEX encourages leveraging funds from private and
philanthropic businesses. Application
should include the amount of funds being requested and the amount the community
intends to invest in the planning project.
7. Applicants should state their dedication
to align the plan with the vision, goals, and strategies described in the “Louisiana
Speaks Regional Plan.” Please view www.louisianaspeaks.org for more
details on the plan. This only has to be
a statement of acknowledgement and support for the plan.
Geographical Criteria
8.
Although CPEX offers resources to communities throughout
Submitting the Application
To be considered complete and
eligible for review, all applications must include a summary page, project
description, and a letter of support from the community’s highest elected
official. All parts of the application must be submitted together. The
following format is required:
Cover page (no longer than one page)
The cover page should include the project title, contact information for the
project manager, and an abstract of the project.
Project description (no longer than 3
pages)
The grant application must describe the planning project clearly and
specifically, must use no smaller than 10-point type, must be double spaced, and
should have page margins all around of at least one inch. In reviewing the
project description, reviewers will not consider any pages over the 3-page
limit.
The narrative must:
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Provide a concise overview of the
project, including how it ties into larger issues of local or regional growth,
and how it relates to the “Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan” (
§
It also must specifically describe
how CPEX’s assistance would support the project.
§
The description must detail
resources (e.g., staff time, cost-sharing, etc.) that the applicant will contribute
to the project.
§
The narrative must also address how
the application meets each of the criteria listed above.
§
If other project partners or funding
sources are involved, their role and contribution must be clearly defined.
Letter of support from elected
official
Applicants must include a letter of support from the highest elected official
in the government entity making the request (e.g., mayor, parish president,
etc.). Also include a list of other stakeholders who support the project (letters
from these supporters are not required). A list of stakeholder meetings held regarding
this planning effort is encouraged.
CPEX must receive applications by
5:00 PM CDT, Thursday, July 30, 2008. No
late applications will be accepted. Applicants must submit one (1) original and
four (4) copies of their full application. All applications must be submitted
in accordance with the requirements described above.
Please send your application via
mail or hand delivery to:
Camille
Manning-Broome
Center
for Planning Excellence
402
North 4th Street
Baton
Rouge, LA 70802
225-267-6300
For
more information, go to www.planningexcellence.org