[StBernard] Louisiana Speaks October E-Letter

[Westley Annis]

Louisiana Speaks News, Actions & Updates for October 2008 

Louisiana Speaks Plan, CPEX honored by Gulf of Mexico Program
The non-profit Center for Planning Excellence (CPEX) was honored with a 2008
Gulf Guardian Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Gulf of
Mexico Program.  In a ceremony held October 29 in New Orleans, CPEX received
a Third Place Award in the Civic/Non-profit Category for its work on the
groundbreaking Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan.  In honoring CPEX for its
work on the Louisiana Speaks project, the Gulf of Mexico Program praised the
Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan for being "a model for large-scale
comprehensive planning, incorporating issues such as storm protection and
coastal restoration, land use patterns and transportation systems, and
economic development and housing." Click here to read more.
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/static.html?id=801>  

Louisiana Speaks Champion Dangerfield passes away
Louisiana Speaks Champion Dr. Peter W. Dangerfield passed away on September
29. He was 65. Dangerfield was a civil rights activist and the long-time
executive director of Total Community Action, a New Orleans social service
agency.  Total Community Action was founded in the mid-1960s as the lead
local agency in administering President Lyndon Johnson's "war on poverty."
Dr. Dangerfield was named the agency's acting executive director in 1978 and
its permanent director in 1979.  Dr. Dangerfield was born in New Orleans but
grew up in Baton Rouge. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science
from Southern University in Baton Rouge; master's degrees from the
University of Southern California, Loyola University and Tulane University;
and a doctorate in public administration from Southern Cal, with a
concentration in citizen participation in public policymaking. Find out more
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nola.com%2Fn
ews%2Ft-p%2Findex.ssf%3F%2Fbase%2Fobits-33%2F122292482812370.xml%26amp%3Bcol
l%3D1> . 

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Louisiana funds new Toolkits
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Louisiana generously agreed to print 3,000 new
copies of the Louisiana Speaks Planning Toolkit for distribution by the
Center for Planning Excellence and Louisiana Speaks. The books will be used
to help provide technical assistance to cities and parishes across the state
that are pursuing planning projects. Blue Cross & Blue Shield was also a
sponsor of the Center for Planning Excellence's "Livable Louisiana: A Summit
on Smart Growth." For more about the Toolkits, visit the Louisiana Speaks
homepage <http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/> . 

Commission receives grant to study New Orleans-Baton Rouge rail link
The Federal Railroad Administration awarded a $667,000 grant to the Southern
Rapid Rail Transit Commission to evaluate the feasibility of linking New
Orleans and Baton Rouge via passenger rail. The commission will use proceeds
to develop detailed ridership and revenue forecasts, a business plan with
capital and operating costs, an economic impact analysis, and engineering
and environmental assessments. In addition, the Southern Rapid Rail Transit
Commission was recently renamed Southern High-Speed Rail Commission. For
more information or updates on the Southern High-Speed Rail Commission,
visit its homepage
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.southernhsr.
org%2F> . 
 
LRA to FEMA: Cut "red tape," provide temporary housing for Cameron Parish,
others 
FEMA should employ creative solutions and waive guidelines to allow
temporary housing units to be placed in coastal Louisiana, particularly in
Cameron Parish, where some people have resorted to living in tents in the
wake of Hurricane Ike, Louisiana Recovery Authority Executive Director Paul
Rainwater requested last week.  For more, visit the LRA Web site
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lra.louisian
a.gov%2Findex.cfm%3Fmd%3Dnewsroom%26amp%3Btmp%3Ddetail%26amp%3BarticleID%3D4
70> . 

News & Notes 
* David Goldberg, communications director for Smart Growth America is
interviewed in the latest edition of Mother Jones magazine. The full text of
the interview is available here
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.motherjones.
com%2Finterview%2F2008%2F11%2Fsustainability-interviews-david-goldberg.html>
. 
* St. Charles Parish's efforts to develop a new comprehensive master plan
were recently featured in the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Read the full
story here
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nola.com%2Ft
imespic%2Fstories%2Findex.ssf%3F%2Fbase%2Fnews-31%2F1225344781302400.xml%26a
mp%3Bcoll%3D1> . 

Did You Know? 
A 1996 study found that workers in the ten "densest" states were 25 percent
more productive than those in the least dense states. Researchers attributed
most of the difference to the density of economic activity, rather than
other factors, such as population size. In 2000, another study confirmed
these findings and extended them, demonstrating that compact, "accessible"
cities with efficient transportation links were more productive than more
dispersed places.* 
* Source: Smart Growth America Web site
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/redir.html?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.smartgrowtha
merica.org%2Feconomy.html> .