CSPDC Executive Director Bonnie Riedesel and 200 local development officials from Appalachia gathered last month at the Development District Association of Appalachia annual conference in Arlington. Topics at the conference ranged from renewable energy as an economic growth opportunity to policy proposals for addressing aging infrastructure to combating the opioid crisis.

At the Conference Awards Ceremony, Mr. William Shelton, former Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development Director and Appalachian Regional Commission Alternate for the state of Virginia was presented with the 2018 John D. Whisman Vision Award. The award honors his efforts to relieve the deep-seated problems of Appalachia, promote systems of federal, state and local cooperation and further the mission of the Appalachian Regional Commission and the local development districts.

One of the more important services provided by the CSPDC to its member jurisdictions is writing grants and finding ways to bring additional financial resources into the region. Over the past 45 years, the CSPDC has worked to help find and create investments for a multitude of public projects and programs including economic and community development, flood mitigation, disaster preparedness training, broadband, water and sewer projects, environmental planning, transportation planning, affordable housing, recreational facilities, and bicycle and pedestrian planning.

For every $1 the CSPDC has received in local dues, it has leveraged approximately $36 in state and federal funds over the last ten years. And over the past four fiscal years, these efforts have brought in more than $27.5 million in new investments to the region.

In the Fall of 2016, the CSPDC procured the services of six firms for its On-Call Consultant Program . The purpose of the program is to offer CSPDC member jurisdictions and other eligible entities access to these firms for professional and nonprofessional services in the areas of transportation, civil engineering, environmental and general planning services. During the past 15 months, contracts for 13 projects valued at close to $500,000 have been issued through the On-Call Consultant Program.

 

One of the projects currently underway is the Valley Site Characterization Project. Draper Aden Associates has been procured to evaluate 15 business/industrial sites in 8 localities. Using the Virginia Business Ready Sites program tier level criteria, the analysis of the sites will include existing land cover, zoning, topography, on-site and off-site infrastructure, transportation and utilities such as water, sewer, electricity, gas and broadband.

The CSPDC, along with the Regional All Hazards Mitigation Plan Committee, have launched an online survey of the region's residents to gauge their perceptions about vulnerability to natural hazards. The survey will also gather input about their willingness to implement preparedness and mitigation measures to protect their families, homes, and businesses.  The responses will be incorporated into the Central Shenandoah Valley Wildfire Protection Plan and the Central Shenandoah Valley All Hazards Mitigation Plan. With all of the natural disasters and human-induced disasters across the country this past year, the survey will be an important way that residents can help first responders understand the hazard readiness of residents in the region.  Please share the survey link with your friends, colleagues, and neighbors here in the Central Shenandoah Valley.

WHSV's Claire Richardson recently produced a four-part series on the Fields of Gold Farm Trail that features farm trail members throughout our region titled Exploring the Fields of Gold Farm Trail. The series features many of the Fields of Gold members, including My Peeps Farm, Mount Crawford Creamery, Barren Ridge Vineyards, and Brothers Craft Brewing. Watch the series HERE. 

The Harrisonburg-Rockingham Metropolitan Planning Organization ( HRMPO) will host a public open house on April 26 from 4-6 PM in the Rockingham County Government Center Community Room.  HRMPO and VDOT staff will share the new performance-based project evaluation methodology and updates to the Long Range Transportation Plan, as well as the newly-evaluated and scored list of Vision Projects for the region. The new methodology closely follows how VDOT and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation score projects in the SMART SCALE process, and is intended to inform regional and local decision-makers of effective transportation investments.

Virginia Military Institute (VMI) has been awarded a $1 million dollar grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation Eastern Federal Lands Access Program to build a new pedestrian bridge for the Chessie Trail over the South River. The original bridge, which was built on a 1914 steel trestle from the days of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad's spur to Lexington, was washed into the river nearly 15 years ago by Hurricane Isabel. There has been no pedestrian crossing on the Chessie Trail since, forcing trail users to detour on a narrow vehicular bridge just upstream. CSPDC staff was part of a grant-writing team to apply for the project. Construction is expected to begin in Spring 2019.