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Southern Maine Partnership for Sustainable Development

Upcoming meetings:

SMPSD Partnership Team - March 16 - 9-11 a.m. at GPCOG

Knowledge-Sharing Session #2 - The second of the brief periodic workshops in our knowledge-sharing and capacity-building part of the southern Maine HUD project is scheduled for 2 to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, February 28, at the Lee Community Hall of the Wishcamper Center at the University of Southern Maine. This session is being co-sponsored by the Maine EPSCoR Sustainability Solutions Initiative and will present an overview of our region's and state's population and housing trends from the recent new Census data and provide an opportunity for the partnership network to hear draft findings from this effort.

In October of 2010, with the Greater Portland Council of Governments (GPCOG) serving as the lead applicant, a 26 member partnership representing organizations stretching from Kittery to Brunswick was awarded a 3 year, $1.6 million Sustainable Communities Planning Grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

HUD, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Transportation have collaborated to offer the grant program in order "to help communities become economically strong and environmentally sustainable" through striving to achieve six Livability Principles:

Provide more transportation choices
Promote equitable, affordable housing
Enhance economic competitiveness
Support existing communities
Coordinate policies and leverage investment
Value communities and neighborhoods

For more information on the federal partnership and program please visit: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/sustainable_housing_communities

Partnership

Members

Bylaws

Knowledge Sharing Network

Session #1 Notice

Session #2 Notice

Partnership Agreement

Meeting Schedule

Partnership Meetings Agendas/Minutes

October 12, 2011

June 16, 2011
May 20, 2011

Executive Committee Mtgs

Agendas/Minutes

February 9, 2012

September 29, 2011

Additional Resources

Map of Geographic Scope

Project Staff

For information contact:

Rebeccah Schaffner-Tousignant, Program Manager

Aaron Shapiro, Project Director

Steph Carver, Land Use Planner

As a result of the award the Southern Maine Partnership for Sustainable Development was formed including the original 26 members and newly joined members. Membership is open to municipalities, educational institutions, foundations, non-profit organizations, and private sector organizations. For more information on the Partnership please see the Partnership resources provided to the right. For information on joining the Partnership please contact Neal Allen, GPCOG Executive Director: 207.774.9891.

The Partnership seeks to develop a regional vision and accompanying action plan, and is committed to actions that will generate policies and plans that together create a coherent basis for structuring a regional decision making body. This body, a Compact, will be tasked with implementing policies and plans. Implementation of the regional vision, policies and plans is intended to facilitate achievement of the Partnership's desired outcomes.

Development of the vision, action plan and Compact is to occur through an interconnected and overlapping multi-phase process.

Phase I will commence the planning process setting the stage for all other tasks to be undertaken and includes establishing responsibilities of the Consortium, data collection, and the securing additional consultants.

Phase II includes visioning, strategy development and developing plans for building on what we have. This phase converts the data collected in the startup phase into trends, identifies and refines a vision, initiates strategy development, and evaluates what we have in terms of existing infrastructure (transportation, water, sewer, etc).

Phase III launches the heart of the public engagement effort and planning for future growth.

And Phase IV, the final phase seeks two primary outcomes: adoption of the strategies, policies and plans developed in earlier phases, and formation of a regional Compact.

For more information, contact Rebeccah Schaffner-Tousignant, Project Manager, or call 774-9891.