THURSTON COUNTY PARTNERSHIP WINS ALMOST $800,000 HUD SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES GRANT
Partnership's second HUD sustainability grant to promote sustainable economy & community livability in Lacey, Olympia & Tumwater corridor

SEATTLE - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan and HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Mary McBride today announced that the Thurston Regional Planning Council has
won a $763,962 Sustainable Communities Challenge Grant to develop the Capital-Martin Corridor and Neighborhood District Plan to promote sustainable economic development and community livability in the cities of Lacey, Olympia
and Tumwater "as a whole" and neighborhood districts in particular.

This is the second straight year that the Thurston Regioinal Planning Council has won a HUD Sustainable Communities Grant. Last fall, HUD competitively awarded it a $1.5 million regional planning gram in HUD's inaugural round of funding for sustainable communities grants. The Puget Sound Regional Council also won a grant last year. Today, the City of Seattle was also awarded a Sustainable Communities Grant today. More than 30 Puget Sound communities and organizations - from Everett to Olympia - are now participating in HUD-funded sustainable planning collaborations.

A partnership that includes the Thurston Regional Planning Council, the cities of Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater, Thurston County, Intercity Transit, the Thurston County Housing Authority, the Thurston County Economic Development Council, the Thurston County Chamber of Commerce, the Planning Association of Washington, and the Washington State Department of Commerce will develop a coordinated vision, goals, policies and implementation strategies for the three-city, Capital-Martin Corridor with a focus on the revitalization of neighborhood districts through infill and redevelopment. Over the last decade, the corridor has experienced low residential construction and growing commercial vacancies. The Plan will promote more variety in housing, employment and transportation alternatives and attract new residents through lower combined housing and transportation costs.

The Sustainable Communities Challenge Grant awarded to the Council is one of some $96 million in grants awarded by HUD today to 56 projects across the country in two categories - 27 communities and organizations won Community Challenge grants and 29 regional planning collaborations. This year's competition received applications for more than $500 million in funding. 

"Our nation's ability to compete in a global economy and create jobs is dependent upon how quickly and efficiently
we can connect our workers and families to education and employment opportunities," said HUD Secretary Donovan. "This year we are especially proud that we had a particular focus on funding proposals that included more chambers
of commerce and economic development corporations as core partners. These grants will be leveraged with local funds more than doubling the investment and, helping to create new visions for how communities and regions plan for housing, transportation, workforce development and the quality of life of their residents for generations to come. When 52% of the average working family's income is devoted to housing and transportation costs alone, we know that we have a responsibility to fix that and to provide housing and transportation options that can improve their quality of life and economic stability," he added.

"Every community faces unique challenges and unique opportunities," said HUD Northwest Regional Administrator McBride. "Top-down, cookie-cutter grants are ill-suited to helping communities define and achieve what they want their future to look like. That can only happen from the ground up, through a collaboration that has the resources to map a route and the job, housing and transportation development strategies that will get them where they want to be."

"The demand for sustainability grants is very high; we would have needed $500 million to fund all proposals we received this year," said HUD Office of Sustainable Housing Communities (OSHC) Director, Shelley Poticha. "We are confident that the mix of rural and urban proposals that we selected this year will have a great impact in their communities."

HUD's Community Challenge Grants are intended to reform and reduce barriers to achieving affordable, economically vital and sustainable communities. The funds are awarded to communities, large and small, to address local
challenges to integrating transportation and housing. Such efforts may include amending or updating local master plans, zoning codes, and building codes to support private sector investment in mixed-use development, affordable housing and the re-use of older buildings. Other local efforts may include retrofitting main streets to provide safer routes for children and seniors, or preserving affordable housing and local businesses near new transit stations.

As was the case last year, the demand for both programs far exceeded the available funding. This year HUD received over $500 million in funding requests from communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico for the $96 million in available funding. This year's grants will impact 45.8 million Americans by helping their communities and regions become more efficient and competitive while improving quality of life. Combined with the 87 grants
funded last year, this program is providing opportunities for the more than 133 million Americans who live in regions and communities working to shape local plans for how their communities will grow and develop over the next 50
years.

Community Challenge Grants and Regional Planning Grants are also significantly complemented and leveraged by local, state and private resources. This year, HUD's investment of $95.8 million is garnering $115 million in matching and in-kind contributions - which is over 120% of the Federal investment - from the 56 selected grantees. This brings to total public and private investment for this round of grants to over $211 million. These grants are part of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities, which is represents an association between HUD, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to ensure that the agencies' policies, programs, and funding consider affordable housing, transportation, and environmental protection together. This interagency collaboration gets better results for communities and uses taxpayer money more efficiently.

Coordinating federal investments in infrastructure, facilities, and services meets multiple economic, environmental,
and community objectives with each dollar spent. The Partnership is helping communities nationwide to create more housing choices, make transportation more efficient and reliable, reinforce existing investments, and support vibrant and healthy neighborhoods that attract businesses.

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HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and espanol.hud.gov. You can also follow HUD on twitter @HUDnews, on facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD's News Listserv.