House Financial Services Committee Hearing: Perspectives on the Livable Communities Act of 2010[3]

The City of St. Paul has helped develop a broader vision for the corridor, and 10 community development organizations - including LISC - have created a new collaborative--the Frogtown/Rondo Action Network--to implement priority strategies related to housing preservation, small business support, neighborhood jobs and minority contracting, and energy improvements that ensure light-rail benefits for neighborhood residents. The Senate Banking Committee passed the version of the Livable Communities Act included additional funding for the establishment of community regeneration plans that will assist jurisdictions to: * Acquire and repurpose surplus land, buildings and infrastructure, invest in strategic neighborhoods, and optimize the impact of limited resources in the wake of drastic population loss; * Better manage properties in foreclosure or about to face foreclosure; * Incorporate green infrastructure solutions that address regional needs beyond blight elimination, including local food systems, managing combined sewage overflow events, energy production, recreation areas, and transportation corridors; and * Assist in building the capacity of local governments, regional entities, neighborhood-based and other non-profit organizations, business groups and others to lead to long-term sustainability.