Greater Greater Washington的动态

Last night I, and 22 other community leaders, residents, and Citilink staff, had the opportunity to speak before members of Fort Wayne City Council. The topic, the potential impact of budget short-falls and under-investment in public transportation on the lives of residents in Fort Wayne and Allen County. The projected tax levy ranges between $4 and $12 per year, if you have not already reached your property tax cap. While tax increases are often difficult, it truly is an INVESTMENT in our community. Please show your support for approval of the proposed 2025 budget and tax levy. https://lnkd.in/eCsrq-Vp #InvestInPublicTransportation #AccessibleEquitableTransportation #PublicTransportation #ShareYourStory #LetYourVoiceBeHeard #EconomicInvestment #CommunityInvestment #CommunityValue

With a historic 26 measures on Denver's November 2024 ballot, casting an educated vote has never been so important. The Downtown Denver Partnership recently released our Ballot Guide that outlines the seven positions we've taken on measures this election cycle and provides overviews of every question that Denverites will decide on this November. One of our key priorities is reflected on the ballot. Measure 6A asks those who own, lease, or rent property within Union Stations and Market Station in downtown to approve the renewal and expansion of the Downtown Denver Development Authority (DDDA). The DDDA is critical to ensuring our city’s growth and revitalization. The time is now to renew this important tool for Downtown Denver. We can create a future where everyone benefits through catalytic projects like parks and public spaces, housing options, neighborhood and family amenities, and so much more. If you’re eligible to vote on 6A, we hope you’ll join us in supporting the measure and, if it’s not on your ballot, please help us encourage eligible electors to help us pass this measure that is critical to the future of downtown.

I want to bring your attention to an insightful opinion piece by Libby Mettam, which sheds light on the prevalent issue of pork barrelling, and coincides with election commitments made in the recent Rockingham by-election. Specifically, the promise to allocate $10 million of tax payers funds towards the redevelopment of the Mike Barnett Stadium, a project not scheduled to be considered until 2036. While some of these funds have been used to add a new roof and some fans to the stadium is undoubtedly beneficial, it falls significantly short of the grand promises made during the by-election campaign. This discrepancy raises concerns about the government's intention to prioritise immediate community needs and casts doubt on allocating funds for electoral gains. The misallocation of public funds for political advantage necessitates a thorough investigation. The Rockingham community, deserving of fair treatment, should have their interests prioritised above partisan considerations. It is crucial that projects selected for funding genuinely serve the welfare of the community rather than being driven solely by electoral motives and funded by taxpayer dollars. The lack of oversight and comprehensive evaluation in allocating public resources is disconcerting, jeopardising the principles of transparency and accountability within our democratic framework. We must ensure that every dollar spent is in the community's best interest, guaranteeing a fair and unbiased assessment of project proposals. The commitment to the Mike Barnett Stadium redevelopment appears to have been a political ploy to secure votes in the by-election, with no genuine intention to fulfil the promise. Such conduct undermines the principles of leadership and integrity that are essential for the effective functioning of our democracy. I urge the Rockingham community to demand answers and hold those who make false promises accountable. We can strive for a future where public funds are allocated judiciously and projects are selected based on their true value to the community. #Leadership #Integrity #RockinghamDeservesBetter #TransparencyMatters #AccountabilityFirst

I moved back to Winnipeg in late 2018, just days before people here voted strongly against opening our city’s crossroads and gathering place to pedestrians. From both Probe Research Inc. (Canada) polling and anecdotal evidence, it was very clear to me leading up to that vote that Winnipeggers - especially in the suburbs - were going to vote en masse to keep the intersection of Portage Avenue and Main Street closed. Although a dedicated group of volunteers advocated strongly for opening the intersection, they were fighting an uphill battle when it came to swaying public sentiment. Six years later, the ground has literally shifted. We know that those who advocated for opening Portage and Main were right that it will cost a tremendous amount of money to repair the leaking underground concourse beneath the intersection. Mayor Scott Gillingham came out and made this argument a few weeks ago, and a significant proportion of those who voted No in 2018 now support reopening Portage and Main to pedestrians as soon as next year. This is a prime example of why it’s so important to measure who supports and who opposes for your position, as well as figure out how strongly they feel about the issue. And, most importantly, you need to fully understand what could trigger those open to changing their mind to coming over to your side. In the fall of 2018, we ran a statistical analysis on some of the different statements included in an earlier poll about Portage and Main. We found that one of the key drivers of the No vote was fear over how much it would cost to reopen the intersection. Once it became publicly known that it would actually cost a substantial amount of money to keep the intersection closed, this seems to have not only flipped the earlier cost argument on its head, but also moved more than one-quarter of those who voted No six years ago into the support column. As a result, it appears that today a majority of Winnipeg city councillors will vote for something - now with majority support from the public, including commuters from Winnipeg's outer suburbs - that seemed unthinkable six short years ago. On any issue, we can help clients successfully measure the public opinion landscape and help them find paths to majority support for their position. Please get in touch to chat about how my great team and I can work with you to do this. Here's the full results of our poll, by the way: https://lnkd.in/gADv3sq7

?? Today, LISC Policy's Matt Josephs testified before the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, emphasizing the urgent need for Congress to address housing affordability and availability in underserved communities. He advocated for the expansion of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit through the passage of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act; and pushed for the enactment of the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act + more. ? Also ICYM: Matt wrote a blog post reflecting on the State of the Union address, discussing affordable housing, child care, climate solutions and community safety. Read it here! https://lnkd.in/eE7Eg7wz

Village of Hempstead’s State Of The Village Address Mayor Waylyn Hobbs, Jr. recently held his 3rd State of the Village address at Kennedy Memorial Park. Some of the accomplishments the Mayor spoke about included: ????Repaving roads, not just filling potholes and getting a commitment from the County to put over one million dollars aside to repave county roads in Hempstead. ????Completion of a comprehensive study of the entire village water and sewer system. The village will be constructing a state of the art water treatment facility in order to provide quality and healthy drinking water to village residents. ????The village has purchased two new fire trucks and ten vehicles for the Department of Public Works. ????Replacing outdated parking meters. ????Addressing the sewer infrastructure in downtown. ????Securing $5 million dollars to assist qualified homeowner in the village to make repairs on such items as roofs. ????Put in place initiatives that reduced crime in the village, making the village safer than ever. Future aspirations include updating parks and recreational facilities, continue downtown redevelopment to bring young people, healthcare workers, police officers, and such to the village, and increasing the amount of MTA police in the train station area. Mayor Hobbs announced he will be seeking reelection in 2025, noting, “I’m not about enabling people. I’m about empowering people. More challenges exist, but by working together we can overcome every challenge we face.” Click here to view entire State of the Village. https://lnkd.in/ebemaTrM ?

"Decades on, “fair housing” is a bedrock principle in American communities. But the concept has significantly evolved since the term initially emerged in 1968." As we continue to highlight the importance of the Fair Housing Act this month, WakeUP Board Secretary and housing advocate Hattie Gawande takes a look at the history of this act and how it impacts us locally today. Learn more in our latest blog: https://buff.ly/3Ujytft

Not surprisingly the King’s Speech 2024 included reference to greater rights and protections to people renting their homes, including ending no fault evictions and reforming ground for possession. The new draft bill is called the Renters’ Rights Bill, and hopefully should take up the points the property industry had raised on aspects such as court reform during discussions with the previous Government. Planning reform was of course in there too with welcome reference to accelerating the delivery of housing. This will appear in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. #buildtorent #btr #trowershousing #kingsspeech https://lnkd.in/d9XAuMsU

West Sussex councils seek regional powers. The authorities of Horsham, Mid Sussex, Crawley, Arun, Chichester, Adur and Worthing and Brighton and Hove have together responded to the Government's expression of interest for devolved powers for the region. The Councils have identified this aims to increase responsibilities and funding which will "lead to better decisions on issues such as transport, housing and economic development because local leaders better understand the needs of their communities than government departments do". This is a significant step toward regional planning for a region which is increasingly finding it hard to address housing and other needs on a authority-by-authority basis. Watch this space! https://lnkd.in/eRBrjfGb

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE FINANCIAL STRAIN “I think the most important thing to recognize is that Franklin County is the fastest growing county in Washington State. Our population is now just over 100,000 residents. Pasco itself was 50,000 people around 25 years ago, it’s now over 80,000 residents. So that kind of pressure on increased services has put a tremendous strain on our staff hours. Other factors like inflation has affected the cost of doing business. Everything from fuel, products for roads, health insurance premiums, increased wages for bargaining units and unfunded mandates by the state have all had an effect on costs. One of the biggest factors is that state limits the county to a 1 percent increase in property taxes. We collect around 12 million dollars a year in property taxes in Franklin County. That means our budget can only increase $120,000 each year. That pays for one or two employees at the most, when you factor in benefits. That can’t keep pace with inflation. Franklin County is really a small part of your property tax bill. Nearly 90 percent is the school districts, city, fire districts and special assessment. We are around 10 percent of that bill. So it’s a bit misleading when people think our coffers are fat. We get a minuscule part of the sales and property tax compared to the City of Pasco ,” said Gonzalez.