The latest on the programs and projects of
the Central Shenandoah Planning District Commission.
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Around the Region
January 2020
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All Hazard Mitigation Plan Completed
CSPDC staff recently completed the 2020 update of the Central Shenandoah Hazard Mitigation Plan. This is the second update of the original 2005 Plan. Local jurisdictions are legally required to have a current Hazard Mitigation Plan in place in order to be eligible to receive certain federal mitigation funds. The purpose of the Plan is to identify natural hazards and other vulnerabilities that affect the Region and offer mitigation strategies that will lessen the negative impacts of these hazards on people, homes, businesses, and communities.
The next steps are review of the Plan by Virginia Department of Emergency Management staff and then approval by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Once the Plan has been approved by FEMA, it will be adopted by the 21 jurisdictions in the Planning District. It is hoped that the local adoptions will be completed in the Spring of 2020.
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Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Planning Continues in 2020
Additional funding has been granted by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to the CSPDC and 14 other Bay PDCs to continue the
Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan
efforts in 2020. The CSPDC will continue to provide technical and administrative assistance to local governments and stakeholders as they discuss and determine how to implement watershed best management practices to help
ensure pollution control measures needed to fully restore the Bay are in place no later than 2025.
The DEQ and CSPDC have worked together to develop a scope of work to guide the initiative's efforts through 2020.
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USDA Funds Agricultural Enterprise Center
Feasibility Study
The CSPDC has been selected to receive an $85,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture through their
Local Food Promotion Program
(LFPP).
This grant was one of 42 out of 215 LFPP grants awarded and the only one funded in Virginia.
Grant funds will be used to fund a feasibility study to determine the viability of a certified, commercial, shared-use Agricultural Enterprise Center located in the central Shenandoah Valley. The study also will identify what components will be the most successful and beneficial to
local farmers such as a commercial kitchen, food lab/testing kitchen, flash freeze facility, training space for smart-ag classes and seminars, packaging and distribution operations, and business planning resources. The study will explore physical locations for a facility and structure a comprehensive business plan.
A study team composed of potential users and representatives from businesses and organizations who support local food production will convene in February to begin the study process that is anticipated to
last approximately 18 months.
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Infrastructure Completed for Phase II of Greenhouse Village
Since 2012, Rockbridge County has partnered with Rockbridge Area Habitat for Humanity in the development of affordable housing in the Greenhouse Village neighborhood, a mixed-income community of single-family homes located near Lexington. The project has been completed in multiple phases, and in September 2017 Rockbridge County was awarded a
Community Development Block Grant
(CDBG) for $476,693 in funds for Phase II. The CDBG grant was matched with $1,978,100 in additional funds from other sources. The CDBG funding was used for the development of water, sewer, and street infrastructure which will allow for the construction of 12 new single-family homes bringing the total to
20
new homes built by Habitat in Greenhouse Village. The construction of the infrastructure was completed in fall 2019. Construction on the homes will be completed by Habitat in January 2022.
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Survey Sheds Light on Transportation Priorities
In December 2019, the Staunton-Augusta-Waynesboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (SAWMPO) conducted a survey to determine transportation needs and priorities in the SAW region. Over 200 responses collected will help inform the SAWMPO’s 2045 Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP), which prioritizes transportation projects for funding over the next 25 years. The public will have an opportunity to view and provide comment on the draft LRTP before it is completed by the end of 2020.
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Rails to Trail Forms Committee
A group of elected leaders, local government staff, non-profits, trail advocates, and PDC staff met on November 7, 2019 in the Town of Mt. Jackson to convene the
Shenandoah Valley Rail Trail Exploratory Partnership
.
The Rail Trail is proposed to run for 38 miles connecting eight towns and two counties between the Town of Strasburg in northern Shenandoah County to Broadway in northwestern Rockingham County.
At the meeting, a set of bylaws was approved, Mr. Brandon Davis, NSVRC Executive Director and Ms. Bonnie Riedesel, CSPDC Executive Director were elected chair and vice-chair respectively and Mr. Don Hindman was appointed as the Program Director of the Partnership. The Partnership will reconvene in early 2020 to develop a scope of work for a rail trail feasibility study and master plan, and to begin work with Ursula Lemanski,
who will provide technical assistance and project coordination to the Partnership through the National Park Service via a Rivers, Trails, and
Conservation Assistance Program
.
Visit the
Shenandoah Valley Rail Trail
website for more information.
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VAPDC Winter Conference:
February 6-7, 2020
The
Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions
(VAPDC), Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) and Virginia Municipal League (VML) will join forces again this year for their annual Winter Conference in Richmond on February 6-7, 2020. Participants will attend the 2020 General Assembly session on
County Government Day
and will hear from Governor Ralph Northam regarding his legislative agenda and how it will strengthen Virginia's communities. Sonya Waddell, Vice President and Economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond will also present on state and local economic perspectives.
Registration
for the conference is now open.
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Bonnie Riedesel & Nancy Gourley Recognized at Commission Meeting
Executive Director Bonnie Riedesel was recognized for her 25 years of service with the CSPDC during the December 2019 Commission Meeting. She started her tenure in 1994 as a regional planner and has served as Executive Director since 2008.
Nancy Gourley was also recognized for her six years of outstanding leadership of the
BRITE Bus transit system
. She will be retiring from her role as Transit Manager in January 2020.
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Lexington Hires City Manager,
Jim Halasz
Jim Halasz has been hired as the new Lexington City Manager. He succeeds Noah Simon, who departed the City in April of 2019. Mr. Halasz most recently was employed as the County Administrator of Halifax County. He has extensive experience in Virginia local government management, having served for over six years in Halifax County and over 12 years in the City of Staunton. Mr. Halasz began work in December.
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