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Transit Supportive Toolkit
PSRC has released a Transit Supportive Planning Toolkit designed to help communities incorporate transit-supportive elements into local plans. The toolkit highlights strategies to coordinate land use and transportation, support multi-modal mobility, and connect people to transit. PSRC will host a brown bag on the Toolkit on May 15, 2014 at PSRC. Contact Gil Cerise for more information.
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Implementation Solutions
The East Corridor Implementation Support Project wrapped up in January with nine reports detailing strategies and models to implement local planning for socially and economically vibrant transit communities. Each report tackles the challenges and opportunities of different aspects of implementation, such as business retention and attraction, bicycle and pedestrian connectivity, and stakeholder involvement and outreach. While the work focuses on future East Link stations in the BelRed and Overlake areas of Bellevue and Redmond, the reports' lessons and tools are applicable throughout the region. Contact Mary Pat Lawlor for more information.
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Fair Housing Report
PSRC and the Fair Housing Center of Washington have completed a Regional Fair Housing Equity Assessment as one of the core deliverables to come out of the Growing Transit Communities work program. The report contains 1) data and analysis on demographics and segregation in the region and the relationship to opportunity, housing, and transportation investments, 2) an overview of fair housing complaints and enforcement, and 3) recommended strategies to affirmatively further fair housing in the region. Contact Michael Hubner for more information.
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Compact has 26 Signatories; New Regional TOD Advisory Committee
 Twenty-six partners across the region, including local governments, public agencies and institutions, and nonprofit organizations and coalitions, have pledged ongoing collaboration to create equitable transit communities by signing the Growing Transit Communities Regional Compact. Many additional partners are expected to sign the Regional Compact in the months to come.
By signing the Compact, partners demonstrate support for the goals of attracting growth to transit communities, providing more housing choices, and increasing equitable access to opportunity. Compact signatories will develop individual work plans to implement the actions of the Growing Transit Communities Strategy to achieve these goals.
As a signatory to the Compact, the Puget Sound Regional Council kicked off its implementation plan by creating a standing Regional TOD Advisory Committee to provide ongoing guidance to agencies and organizations on implementation, coalition building within the region, and support for state and federal legislation and funding needed to create and sustain thriving and equitable transit communities in the region. The Regional TOD Advisory Committee will launch in April 2014.
The final draft of the Growing Transit Communities Strategy is now available online, including the main document of recommendations and the final Growing Transit Communities Regional Compact. Also available are Transit Community Profiles for the 74 study areas that detail existing physical and social conditions in the community and identify implementation strategies most appropriate for meeting the community's needs.
For more information on the Regional Compact and the Regional TOD Advisory Committee, please contact Ben Bakkenta.
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Growing Transit Communities Strategy Wins Livable Communities Award
 At its March 20 annual luncheon, state-wide smart growth advocacy organization, Futurewise, awarded the Puget Sound Regional Council with its
Award for Local Government Excellence in Programs, Policies, and Regulations
for the Growing Transit Communities Partnership. It is one of five
Livable Communities awards for 2014 given to agencies, organizations and businesses that exemplify smart land use principles to create healthy communities.
Futurewise has been a key partner in the Growing Transit Communities Partnership. The organization participated on all six of the GTC stakeholder committees and has secured grants to help implement the Growing Transit Communities Strategy, focusing on social equity and community needs assessments in station area communities. The Puget Sound Regional Council is honored to be recognized for this Livable Communities award and happy to have worked so collaboratively with Futurewise throughout the Growing Transit Communities process.
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Supplemental Round of Equity Grants Focuses on Implementation
A special extension of the HUD regional planning grant has allowed thirteen community-based organizations to receive grants through an additional funding round of the Equity Grant Program. This one-time funding opportunity focuses on implementation of earlier equity grant work. Community-based organizations will use the grant resources to identify next steps to advance community priorities.
The final round of the grant program will build on the enormous success of the first ever Puget Sound Equity Summit at Highline Community College on November 8-9, 2013. The event brought together nearly 400 people from across the region, representing community organizations, policy makers, philanthropy, and others. Through community-led workshops, strategy sessions, and plenaries, participants built on community activities underway to identify next steps and shared equity strategies in the areas of education, jobs, health, transit and more.
Final reports from previous grantees are now available online. A video that highlights the work of the Equity Network, the Puget Sound Equity Summit, and the grant program is also available online.
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