Executive
Director's
Update
| | | Miami Valley Continues to Set Tone for Age-Friendliness in Ohio | |
| |  | This past fall season, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that Ohio has officially joined the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities, becoming the newest state to commit to building communities that support residents across the lifespan. This designation recognizes Ohio’s proactive approach to planning for demographic shifts and promoting policies that benefit people of all ages. AARP Age-Friendly Communities are part of a network that helps cities and towns become more livable for people of all ages, especially older adults. These communities focus on improving areas like transportation, housing, safety, health services and social inclusion. While we look forward to the state-level age-friendly engagement that this recent designation will bring, MVRPC is proud of the work of the Institute for Livable & Equitable Communities in continuing to position our very own Miami Valley Age-Friendly Network (MVAFN) as an example for the rest of the state. As of the start of 2026, the MVAFN boasts close to half of all age-friendly designated communities across Ohio (18 out of 41).
Join us! Get in touch with our Del Mar Encore Fellow Arnie Biondo abiondo@mvrpc.org to get your communities involved!
| 2026 Aging in Cities Survey: A Ten-Year Reflection | | |
The U.S. Conference of Mayors, in collaboration with AARP, is conducting a survey on aging initiatives that support livable communities. This survey is intended to capture your thoughts on the initiatives, innovations, and policy solutions you perceive are most important to help make the communities in your cities more livable for all. This information will assist the USCM and AARP in aging focused initiatives.
https://survey.usmayors.org/s3/2026-Aging-in-Cities-Survey
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Board of Directors Meeting Recap
February 5, 2026
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- MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization) Members adopted the following Resolutions:
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Resolution 26-01: Delegating Conformity Determinations for Neighboring MPOs (CCSTCC and OKI) Conformity Actions to MVRPC Staff
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Resolution 26-02: Recommending Adoption of Revision #7 to MVRPC's SFY 2026-2029 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)
- The following information items were presented:
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Southwest Ohio Water Study, Presented by MVRPC Resiliency Program Manager, Elizabeth Baxter
| Our 2026 Board of Directors roster lists each voting delegate and alternate for every MVRPC member jurisdiction. **Please note, this list is subject to change as new delegates are appointed. If your organization's delegate is blank, please contact Savannah Diamond at sdiamond@mvrpc.org | | Register to attend our Next Board Orientation | | |
To help our new board delegates and alternates get acquainted with MVRPC’s mission, goals, and responsibilities, we invite you to attend our Board Orientation.
Whether you're new or in need of a refresher, this session will have something for all Board delegates and alternates. It’s a great opportunity to connect with fellow Board members and staff, ask questions, and gain insights into your role at MVRPC.
The next orientation will be virtual on February 24th at 5:30 p.m.
| | Planning and GIS Services to Continue in Year 2026 | |
MVRPC’s interdisciplinary Community & Regional Planning team provides critical professional planning and GIS services to our member organizations for their successful planning and policy development efforts.
During 2025, the team was proud to have partnered with and involved in a wide range of projects providing various planning and GIS expertise to many of our members. They include: City of Beavercreek; City of Brookville; City of Centerville; City of Dayton; Five Rivers MetroParks; Harrison Township; Miami County; Miami Township, Montgomery County; Montgomery County; Shelby County; and Washington Township, Montgomery County to name a few.
In 2026, we look forward to working with many of our current and new community partners on many important and innovative projects to advance the goal of creating vibrant, healthy, and sustainable communities in our region.
Please visit our webpage to view the highlights of our community planning and GIS activities:
For more information about the planning and GIS services, visit mvrpc.org/regional-planning-services or contact Martin Kim, Director of Community and Regional Planning at mkim@mvrpc.org.
| Southwest Ohio Water Study | | |
MVRPC is partnering with Ohio EPA to understand the current availability, current demand and projected future demand of water use and reuse opportunities across southwest Ohio to support local decision making and future economic opportunities. Ohio EPA as the project sponsor is expecting to study water resources and usage statewide with one study already completed in central Ohio.
The southwest Ohio study is in the early phases of project work being facilitated by consultant support from CDM Smith. The work proposes to identify zones of economic opportunity based on water resource feasibility and availability, will strive to maintain water quality in rivers and streams, and identify innovative approaches to manage the resource while considering future growth.
The SW Ohio project boundaries are identified below. Please note that Fayette and Logan counties were included in the Central Ohio Water Study.
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MVRPC along with OKI Regional Council of governments have been identified as regional partners in this project to support data collection needs and assist the consultant with engagement opportunities. The Water Environment Subcommittee (WESC) at MVRPC will serve as the water resource technical expertise for the engagement process with additional engagement opportunities for local economic development practitioners and industry partners to also inform this work. The project is expected to be completed in November 2026 with a comprehensive dashboard as the outcome to help support a common vision between the agencies charged with protecting the environment, those focused on attracting economic development, and the local political entities and community stakeholders that help inform decisions.
For more information or any questions related to this project please contact Elizabeth Baxter, Resiliency Planning Manager at ebaxter@mvrpc.org or 937-531-6538.
| | Free Ohio Traffic Incident Management (OTIM) Training | | |
On behalf of ODOT’s Office of Transportation Systems Management & Operations, registration is currently open for the February, March and April sessions of this free course. Direct registration links are provided below.
Ohio Traffic Incident Management (OTIM) Trainings:
For persons interested in the Roads Scholar training recognition program (Ohio LTAP), completion of this OTIM Training provides one RS credit, for: Row 4, 5 or 6 of Level I; or Row 9 of Level II (see transcript form in Program Packet).
| | Grants and Funding Resources | | |
On a monthly basis, MVRPC highlights several funding opportunities for eligible cities, counties, and townships on our website that could benefit communities in the Region. We include a description, contact information, and program links. We have also listed other valuable resources for funding opportunities for our regional jurisdictions and organizations. See more at: mvrpc.org/grant-and-funding-opportunities
This month, we are featuring information on:
- 2026 AARP Community Challenge– Deadline: March 4, 2026
- Clean Ohio Trails Fund– Deadline: March 15, 2026
If you have any questions, please contact Kathryn Youra Polk at kyourapolk@mvrpc.org.
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MiamiValleyGovJobs.org is a one-stop website for candidates seeking positions with a public agency in the Miami Valley. This service is provided to MVRPC member organizations and partners at no cost. Posting your positions on MiamiValleyGovJobs.org increases the visibility of your positions and expands your candidate pool. Each job post will be displayed with your organization's logo and a link to your website where candidates can find more information. To post a position with your organization, please email your posting to JobBoard@mvrpc.org.
| | Upcoming Meetings and Events | | February Meeting Calendar | | MVRPC emails are produced through Constant Contact. We have negotiated a group rate for all of our MVRPC members and partners to join Constant Contact. You could save more than you could joining the platform on your own, and even if you are already using Constant Contact, you can apply our discount to save even more. Best of all, the MVRPC communication team is here to help you get started! Visit our unique Constant Contact link or contact Laura Dent, MVRPC Director of Marketing and Public Outreach to learn more at ldent@mvrpc.org. | | | | |
