$95M Grant From HUD to Support Sustainable Local Initiatives.

The CityBizList.com (8/1) reports HUD Secretary Donovan "has made $95 million available to support sustainable local initiatives through the FY 2011 Regional Planning and Community Challenge Planning Grant Programs from HUD's Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities." The 2011 awards are competitive and "will encourage grantees to support regional planning efforts that integrate housing, land-use, economic and workforce development, transportation, and infrastructure developments in a manner that empowers regions to consider how all of these factors work together to bring economic competitiveness and revitalization to a community." The Partnership for Sustainable Communities, "launched by President Obama in June 2009," is "an interagency collaboration" between HUD, the EPA, and the Department of Transportation (DOT) "to provide more sustainable housing and transportation choices for families and lay the foundation for a 21st century economy."