GOPC Legislative Update December 2015

By Lindsey Gardiner, GOPC Manager of Government Affairs The following grid is designed to provide you with insight into the likelihood of passage of the legislation we are monitoring. Please note that due to the fluid nature of the legislative process, the color coding of bills is subject to change at any time. GOPC will be regularly updating the legislative update the last Thursday of every month and when major developments arise. If you have any concerns about a particular bill, please let us know.

Updates on Key Bills: 

 HB 303 UPDATE: HB 303 was unanimously passed out of the House chamber earlier this month with 92 affirmative votes. The bipartisan legislative proposal, which will give lenders an additional tool to work with homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure, is expected to be referred to a Senate committee at the beginning of 2016.

 HB 340 UPDATE: HB 340 is among one of the more active pieces of legislation this month and in fact became known as the “Budget Corrections/Christmas Tree Bill”. The bill, which was originally only three pages long, soon grew to 167 pages before it was reported out of the Senate Finance Committee. On December 9^th, the House and Senate chambers agreed to various budget corrections in addition to the initial intent to renew the Local Government Innovation Council (LGIC) until December 2019. GOPC commends the Legislature for coming together to extend the LGIC, which has provided loans and grants for local government innovation projects to hundreds of communities across the state.

For more details and information on legislation that GOPC is tracking, please visit our Previous Legislative Updates.

GOPC’s 2015 Accomplishments & A Look Ahead

Pictured from left: Alison Goebel, Lindsey Gardiner, Lavea Brachman, Meg Montgomery, Torey Hollingsworth, Sheldon Johnson, and Alex Highley.

2015 has been an eventful year around Ohio and has been filled with achievement and promise for GOPC. As a leader in championing revitalization and sustainable growth, GOPC has accomplished a lot in the past year, including:

Led Dialogue on Revitalization and Sustainable Regrowth in Ohio

• Summit on Restoring Neighborhoods, Strengthening Economiesthat brought together national experts, state policymakers, and local leaders to recognize outstanding leadership and practices in revitalizing Ohio’s cities and to discuss new strategies to sharpen the state’s economic edge.

• Roundtable on Rebuilding Neighborhood Markets to further GOPC’s effort to connect small business growth to areas with commercial vacant properties. The Neighborhood Development Center in St. Paul, MN and ProsperUS in Detroit, MI presented their successful models for property reuse.

• Participated in over 15 events as speakers, panelists, or moderators

Successfully Influenced State Policy

• Advanced Two Reforms for a Diversified Transportation System. GOPC is working with leading planning organizations—as well as other regional leaders—to develop and advance policies to support additional funding for public transit systems and multi-modal options throughout the state, as well as investment in existing infrastructure.

• Helped Create Service Stations Cleanup Fund Program. GOPC offered interested party testimony to the Senate Finance Workforce Subcommittee on the Service Station Cleanup Fund. GOPC supported the creation of this program because it leverages initial investment for future economic development.

Published Original Research

• Assessed Current State of Land Banking in Ohio. In May, GOPC released Taking Stock of Ohio County Land Banks: Current Practices and Promising Strategies , which analyzes how land banks operate in the larger context of community revitalization. The report highlights promising county land bank programs that have the potential to greatly contribute to sustainable economic and community redevelopment throughout Ohio.

• Identified Challenges and Initial Solutions for Water & Sewer Infrastructure Improvements. With support from the Ohio Water Development Authority, GOPC recently released an Assessment of Needs for redeveloping sewer and water infrastructure to identify innovative financing options to assist communities with infrastructure modernization. GOPC is working with financing experts and MORPC and will release its Phase II recommendations in late 2016.

• Financing in Opportunity Neighborhoods Report. This report analyzes neighborhoods in Ohio that are showing signs of stability but struggle to attract traditional financing because of credit gaps and other challenges. In this report, GOPC outlines potential interventions and innovative financing tools and strategies that can stabilize the housing market in these neighborhoods.

Provided Education and Strategic Assistance to Ohio’s Communities

• Strategic Advice on the Formation of a Youngstown Center City Organization. GOPC is working the Wean Foundation and local partners to develop a process for creating a Youngstown Center City Organization. The YCCO will catalyze and coordinate economic development and community investment in Youngstown’s Central Business District and adjacent areas.

• Commercial Vacant Property Redevelopment Webinars. GOPC partnered with the Ohio CDC Association to present four webinars as a “how to” for local leaders of legacy cities faced with commercial vacancies. Topics for the webinars included redevelopment planning, identifying successful tools and strategies, and overcoming financial gaps.

• Continued Outreach to Practitioners and Leaders in Ohio’s Cities.  GOPC met regularly with leaders throughout the state around needed revitalization policies and policy reforms that will assist with neighborhood regeneration and sustainable redevelopment.

Coming in 2016…

In 2016, GOPC will continue working to ensure Ohio has robust, effective policies and practices that create revitalized communities, strengthen regional cooperation, and preserve Ohio’s green space by reducing sprawl. With partners from around the state and nation, GOPC will continue to investigate creative financing approaches to infrastructure improvements and neighborhood revitalization; advocate for a diversified transportation system, and support communities as they invest in themselves and their futures.

We believe GOPC offers strong leadership and unique skills to address critical issues and to ensure a prosperous future for the people of Ohio. And others agree; check out the New Video illustrating GOPC’s role in vital areas!

National Leaders Announce Release of Action Agenda for Historic Preservation in Legacy Cities

Urban Leaders and Landmark Experts Celebrate Newark’s Hahne & Company Revitalization As Example of How Historic Preservation Can Spur Development and Strengthen Legacy Cities Across the Nation Newark, New Jersey—Today, the Preservation Rightsizing Network (PRN) released a new Action Agenda for Historic Preservation in Legacy Cities, which lays out a wide-ranging plan to address urban challenges by advancing new development while protecting communities’ cultural heritage.

Tuesday’s release was accompanied by a public discussion co-hosted by Rutgers University – Newark with over 40 of the nation’s top urban development and historic landmark experts. As part of that discussion, PRN conducted a tour of the ongoing redevelopment of the historic Hahne & Company building, which is being highlighted as a  successful, collaborative approach that combined preservation and economic revitalization – a challenge in many legacy cities like Newark, Detroit, and more.

The Action Agenda for Historic Preservation in Legacy Cities — which can be accessed here — is a nine-point strategy that shapes a new approach to preservation, adapts existing tools and policies used by preservationists, and promotes place-based collaboration, especially in legacy cities like Newark, Detroit, and Cleveland (also known as Rust Belt cities or shrinking cities). By offering new strategies for protecting local cultural heritage, the Action Agenda serves as a guide for preserving the stories of Rust Belt cities and communities and make them more equitable, prosperous, and sustainable in the face of economic shifts. Using examples from Cincinnati, Buffalo, Detroit, and more, the Agenda offers suggested next steps, potential partners from preservation and allied fields, and financing and coalition-building toolkits for urban development and preservation advocates.

Emilie Evans, co-founder of Brick + Beam Detroit, an initiative that connects and supports building rehabbers in Detroit, said: “The Action Agenda provides clear steps legacy cities can take to leverage older buildings and local heritage as powerful assets for revitalization. It bolsters core tenets of Brick + Beam’s mission to support the rehabilitation of Detroit’s incredible older buildings, engage meaningfully with local property owners and tradespeople, and develop practical tools to move reinvestment projects forward.”

The Action Agenda was released in Newark in recognition of the leadership and partnerships demonstrated during the planning and redevelopment of the Hahne & Company building, which had sat vacant for over 30 years. The new development will include a full-line grocery store, affordable and market-rate housing, and a major arts program space and incubator conceived and implemented by Rutgers University-Newark and community partners including local artists, arts organizations, and other arts and culture anchor institutions in Newark.

Rutgers University Chancellor Nancy Cantor said: “The Action Agenda’s clarion call to carry forward the ‘legacy’ of legacy cities by preserving their stories entails an equally powerful call to amplify the voices of diverse new generations in retelling them. That is a challenge to all of us—in Newark and legacy cities like it everywhere—and it is precisely what we have in mind with our university-community collaboratory we are developing in the Hahne & Company building and precisely why we think the name of our collaboratory, ‘Express Newark,’ is so apt. We are thrilled to be working with the Preservation Rightsizing Network to advance this shared agenda.”

The Preservation Rightsizing Network meets annually to bring leading preservationists and allies together and supports local leaders in generating national conferences on historic preservation in legacy cities, including a previous conference held in Cleveland (2014) with another scheduled for Detroit (2016).

President of the Lucas County Land Bank, David P. Mann said: "Faced with unprecedented economic challenges and property abandonment, legacy cities must seize new tools and new strategies in order to preserve all that makes them special. This Action Agenda is a smart step in that direction, not just to help save historic assets, but to ensure that the voice of the historic preservation movement is heard in this important and ongoing conversation."

Cleveland City Councilman Jeffrey Johnson said: “Historic preservation is vital in the revitalization of Cleveland. Our history, as told through the older buildings and neighborhoods, is the foundation on which our community must rebuild.”

GOPC Legislative Update November 2015

By Lindsey Gardiner, GOPC Manager of Government Affairs The following grid is designed to provide you with insight into the likelihood of passage of the legislation we are monitoring. Please note that due to the fluid nature of the legislative process, the color coding of bills is subject to change at any time. GOPC will be regularly updating the legislative update the last Thursday of every month and when major developments arise. If you have any concerns about a particular bill, please let us know.

Updates on Key Bills: 

  HB 134 UPDATE: HB 134 has continued moving through the legislative process. Last week, the bill was passed out of the House of Representatives with 88 affirmative votes and zero objections. HB 134 is now on its way to the Senate where it will await referral to its respected committee. GOPC will continue to monitor HB 134 and looks forward to offering support as the legislation makes its way through the Senate.

 HB 233 UPDATE: HB 233 was unanimously voted out of the House chamber on October 27^th with 91 affirmative votes. Earlier this month, the bill that proposes to establish Downtown Redevelopment Districts, was referred to the House Ways and Means Committee. GOPC anticipates HB 233 will be received well in committee and we look forward to offering support for the bill as it makes its way through the Senate.

 HB 303 UPDATE: As we reported last month, HB 303 had its first hearing with the House Financial Institutions, Housing and Urban Development Committee on October 20^th. Since then, the committee held a second hearing, where GOPC offered interested party testimony in support of the proposal. Before the conclusion of HB 303's second hearing, a substitute bill was accepted by the committee, which made changes to the Ohio Housing Finance Agency’s (OHFA) authority over the program. It was noted that the change was in agreement between OHFA and the bill sponsors. There were no objections to the sub bill and the committee unanimously approved HB 303 to be sent to the House floor. For more detailed information, please see the HB 303 Comparison Document.

 HB 340 UPDATE: HB 340, which proposes to extend the Local Government Innovation Council (LGIC) for another four years, continues to move through the Legislature at lightning speed. On October 27^th, the bill was unanimously passed out of the House with 91 affirmative votes. Earlier this month, HB 340 was referred to the Senate Finance Committee and just last week, the bill has already had its first hearing. The LGIC expires at the end of December, and GOPC is ready to provide support as it continues through the second phase of the legislative process.

NEW Bills & Explanation of Bill Impact on Economic Development within Ohio:

SB 232 is sponsored by Senator Kevin Bacon (R-Columbus). This bill deals with the consequences of divorce, dissolution, or annulment on a transfer on death designation on an affidavit or deed that designates a spouse as the real property owner’s beneficiary. Currently Ohioans who execute a transfer on death designation affidavit or transfer on death deed are required to amend or revoke either document following a divorce to ensure that their spouse has no claim to their property. SB 232 intends to address the issue that an increasing number of Ohioans are seeking divorce without the advice or an attorney, who would ordinarily advise that they make these changes. GOPC is interested in this bill as it will help ensure properties are transferred to appropriate end-users; therefore, preventing blight within communities.

SJR 3 is sponsored by Senator Joe Schiavoni (D-Boardman). Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 3 calls for state and federal legislation to assist communities across Ohio to improve outdated sewer and water systems. The proposal would allow the state to issue up to $100 million per fiscal year over a 10 year period for sewer and water capital improvements in cities, counties and townships. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) shares Senator Schiovoni’s commitment to giving Ohio communities more resources to pay for critically important water and sewer infrastructure. GOPC believes there is a great need for additional funding to update Ohio’s water infrastructure and we are continuing to explore potential mechanisms for such funding. Please see our recent report titled “An Assessment of Ohio Cities' Water and Sewer Infrastructure and Brownfield Sites Redevelopment: Needs and Gaps.”

For more details and information on legislation that GOPC is tracking, please visit our Previous Legislative Updates.

Upcoming Event on Legacy City Preservation!

On Tuesday, December 8 from 6:00 – 8:30 pm, Greater Ohio Policy Center will co-sponsor an event called Legacy City Preservation: A National Conversation on Innovation + Practice. This free public event in Newark, New Jersey will showcase exciting new approaches to preservation in legacy cities to align with the launch of the game-changing Action Agenda for Historic Preservation in Legacy Cities.

More information is here: http://rightsizeplace.org/actionagenda/

Ohio Cities Boost Downtown Revitalization with Waterfront Parks

By Sheldon K. Johnson, Urban Revitalization Project Specialist In 2010 the Greater Ohio Policy Center, along with the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, published Restoring Prosperity: Transforming Ohio’s Communities for the Next Economy. This report is a comprehensive blueprint for transitioning Ohio into an economy that is export-oriented, lower-carbon, and innovation-fueled. Ohio’s metropolitan areas— encompassing urban, suburban, and rural places— are home to the necessary resources that will lead the state into the next economy. GOPC’s Restoring Prosperity agenda is focused on advocating for state and local initiatives that will leverage these prosperity drivers.

One recommendation from the Restoring Prosperity report was to create a state-level “Walkable Waterfronts” initiative that supports local efforts to revitalize urban riverways and lakefronts. In recent years two Ohio cities celebrated the opening of waterfront parks that seek to boost their downtown revitalization initiatives. In May of 2012 the first phase of the John G. & Phyllis W. Smale Riverfront Park opened in Cincinnati and this past week the Scioto Greenways Park opened in Columbus.

These two projects are fantastic examples of leveraging Ohio’s natural resources as prosperity drivers. Numerous studies show that urban greenspaces are important amenities that have the potential to yield economic benefits in addition to tremendous environmental and social benefits.

Cincinnati and Columbus are only two of the metropolitan areas in Ohio with idyllic waterways. Cities ranging from Toledo to Marietta to Hamilton to Youngstown are built on waterways that present opportunities for recreational use, quality of life enhancement, and economic development. GOPC celebrates the progress being made, but will continue to advocate for walkable waterways throughout the state.

US EPA Case Studies on Vacant Land Feature Ohio Cities

Re-posted from Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation: 

http://yndc.org/news-media/youngstown-featured-epa-vacant-land-case-studies

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 5 recently compiled current practices on vacant lot greening as a resource on issues of stormwater management, construction specifications, job training, property maintenance and funding. This research provides a snapshot of greening practices conducted by 11 spotlight cities including non-profit organizations, municipal offices, land banks and a sewer authority.

Spotlight cities and corresponding organizations include:

• Baltimore, Md. – City of Baltimore, Office of Sustainability.
• Buffalo, N.Y. – Buffalo Sewer Authority.
• Cincinnati, Ohio – Keep Cincinnati Beautiful.
• Cleveland, Ohio – Cleveland Botanical Gardens.
• Detroit, Mich. – The Greening of Detroit.
• Flint, Mich. – Genesee County Land Bank Authority.
• Grand Rapids, Mich. – City of Grand Rapids, Economic Development Corporation.
• Indianapolis, Ind. – Keep Indianapolis Beautiful.
• Philadelphia, Pa. – Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.
• Warren, Ohio – Trumbull Neighborhood Partnership.
• Youngstown, Ohio – Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation.

This research supports U.S. EPA’s Office of Sustainable Communities’ technical assistance to the Genesee County Land Bank in Flint, Mich., on vacant lot greening strategies. Later this year, individual cities will be speaking about their own greening programs in a series of webinars hosted by EPA’s Office of Sustainable Communities. These webinars will provide current practices to other cities seeking to manage their portfolio of vacant properties.

Downloads:

Greening Vacant Lots - Case Studies.pdf

Greening Vacant Lots - Summary Report.pdf

Steubenville Summit Generates Ideas to Reinvigorate Historic Downtown

Guest Post by Evan Scurti, Executive Director of the Jefferson County Port AuthorityThis past October, the City of Steubenville, Board of Jefferson County Commissioners, and the Jefferson County Port Authority took the first step in a long-term journey of sustainable growth and reinvestment in historic downtown Steubenville. "Investing in the Ville--A Real Estate and Business Development Summit" was created through the collaborative efforts of the three local governments, a steering committee of passionate citizens, and sponsorship money and services from local merchants. The event exceeded expectations by welcoming over 100 local and regional developers, investors, building owners, and interested citizens. Organizers agreed that this successful inaugural event is only the beginning of a series of interconnected strategies focused on reinventing the CBD of a historic city that is striving to reposition itself in a new global economy. While the old steel mills employing tens of thousands on both sides of the Ohio River no longer exist as an anchor to support bustling downtowns, there is currently great potential for Ohio Valley growth as new industries like oil and gas extraction emerge. Steubenville's leaders are focused on guiding that growth back to the historic and large urban core of the city.

steubenville

Aerial shot of Steubenville, Ohio

The event featured Keynote Speaker Franzi Charen, Executive Director of the Asheville Grown Alliance, a nonprofit supporting grassroots development and local entrepreneurship efforts in Asheville, North Carolina's downtown. Franzi's message resonated with the Steubenville crowd, as Asheville has also had to adapt to industrial economy changes in sectors like textiles. Through the vision of creative local developers and entrepreneurs, Asheville has diversified its economy and strengthened its tourism trade, which are both goals that Steubenville is beginning to adopt as its own. To help make downtown Steubenville a renewed destination for locals as well as visitors, the City administration has developed an exciting streetscape and civic plaza vision for the heart of the CBD. Consultants' overviews of these plans followed Franzi's address. The event culminated in an inspiring address by a longtime downtown business owner and resident who emphasized the safety and strong potential of the CBD and a walking tour of prime development opportunities that are ripe for new visions.

Event organizers have agreed that this should be the beginning of an annual effort to celebrate successes, invite and brainstorm building reuse ideas, track the CBD's vacancy rate, and reassess the overall downtown plan. Downtown Steubenville is a special place with a large, impressive built environment. Local leaders are showing great commitment to current and future generations by engaging in the best kind of smart economic development--rebuilding and reusing the infrastructure and wonderful buildings erected by past generations. We firmly believe in, and will work toward, this event growing into a regional movement to renew one of Ohio's most unique places with enormous potential.

Ohio Dept of Transportation Wins TIGER Grant

GOPC congratulates the Ohio Department of Transportation for successfully winning a highly competitive grant from the federal Department of Transportation. Ohio’s $6.8 million TIGER grant will help more than 30 rural transit systems improve their operations and service provision. ODOT will use the grant to support rural systems in transitioning from pencil and paper scheduling to electronically scheduling rides, providing communications equipment so drivers and dispatchers can talk while a vehicle is on the road, which will allow for more efficient services, and help rural transit systems be more competitive for future rural transit grants. GOPC applauds ODOT’s leadership and commitment to helping Ohio’s rural transit systems provide high quality and expanded service.

Highlights of the award and the project can be found at this link on page 34: http://1.usa.gov/1im51zW

Despite Some Access to Transit, Ohioans Face Difficulties Commuting to Work

By Torey Hollingsworth, Graduate Intern As a Master’s student in the City and Regional Planning program at Ohio State, I get to spend even the time I’m not at Greater Ohio thinking about policies and practices that affect Ohio’s urban areas. I also get to spend a lot of time examining our cities’ pasts, which not only helps give a better sense of how we got where we are today, but can also give ideas about where we can go in the future.

As part of a recent assignment, I read the 1954 Comprehensive Plan created for Dayton. There are a number of interesting things in it – early steps toward mass suburbanization, discussions of the routes of the federal highway system through town, and maps outlining areas slated for urban renewal. But one thing struck me more than any other: according to data collected for the plan, less than one percent of people living in the city of Dayton in 1952 lived more than a quarter mile from a transit line. Less than 10 percent of people living in the entire region lived outside of the quarter mile radius from bus or trolley lines as well.

Although exact comparisons to today aren’t available, a Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission report shows that 36.3 percent of Montgomery County residents lived outside of the quarter mile buffer in 2008.^[1] When the radius was expanded to three-quarters of a mile as it was in The Brookings Institution’s 2011 Report “Missed Opportunity: Transit and Jobs in Urban America,” fewer than one percent of city residents and 33 percent of metro residents fell outside of the buffer in 2010.[2]

I expected that transit access would not be nearly as widespread as it was in the 1950s, but these numbers surprised me – the coverage of transit lines has not reduced as significantly as I would have expected since the 1950s. Despite significant growth in the area considered “urban” and dramatic reductions in ridership, the percentage point drop in population living within a reasonable radius of transit lines has been relatively modest.

Dayton in 1959. Photo Courtesy: Dayton History Books Online

What has changed dramatically, however, is how well transit lines are helping people get to work. According to Brookings’ analysis, only 34 percent of jobs in the Dayton area were accessible within 90 minutes on public transportation. Other Ohio cities do not fare better – Columbus and Toledo tie with Dayton at 34 percent, while the other cities trail behind: Cleveland at 29 percent of jobs, Cincinnati at 28 percent, Akron at 25 percent, and Youngstown at just 14 percent.[3] In the 1950s, jobs were concentrated largely in the central business districts, so transit lines running downtown were convenient, easy ways to get to work. Today, jobs are springing up along the peripheries where transit lines are less likely to go.

This quick look back at Ohio’s cities’ historic transit infrastructure underscores the value of mass transportation for economic and workforce development – transit options can be vital for helping workers, especially lower wage ones, access jobs. It is also a good reminder about the need for a number of the policies that GOPC advocate - including smarter and more robust transit options and promoting sustainable development, including new places of employment, in our existing urban centers.

[1] http://docs.mvrpc.org/lrtp/2008/CHAPTERX.pdf

[2] http://brook.gs/1My01GD

[3] http://bit.ly/1KL6eY1