The Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG) is seeking regional partners for the new HUD Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant program. The program, announced last week by HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, is designed to create economically competitive, healthy, opportunity-rich communities. Funding was approved by Congress in HUD’s 2010 budget, as part of a $200 million fund for the agency’s new Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities.
According to HUD, the regional planning grants will be awarded competitively to regional partnerships consisting of state and local governments, MPOs, educational institutions, non-profit organizations and philanthropic organizations.
ACOG serves the greater Oklahoma City region as the designated metropolitan planning organization (MPO), and works on mobility, public safety and livability programs for Central Oklahoma.
Through the grant application process, ACOG hopes to foster long-term relationships between entities in the region who may not have traditionally worked together in the past.
“We are conscious of the connections between housing, land-use, economic and workforce development and transportation through our planning work. A sustainable communities regional plan would address these issues, and improve our quality of life in Central Oklahoma,” said ACOG Executive Director John G. Johnson.
ACOG has already been in contact with some potential partners, including local governments, non-profit organizations, and philanthropic organizations, but wants to make the invitation as comprehensive as possible.
Interested organizations should contact John G. Johnson (jgjohnson@acogok.org) or Nicolle Franklin(nfranklin@acogok.org) at ACOG, 234-2264 for more information and to meet the application deadline of August 23, 2010.