in this issue
message from the president
get to know PDCs
in the news
upcoming events/calendar
about vapdc
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message from the president
The revival of the VAPDC News is one year old this month! We are glad to have been able to keep in touch with our stakeholders with news about our activities, plans for upcoming events and a look at some of the activities of our planning district and regional commissions. We look forward to another year of communication and partnership with you.
The start of 2022 proved to be a very busy one for VAPDC. Once again, we were pleased to partner with our friends at the Virginia Association of Counties and Virginia Municipal League for VACo/VML/VAPDC Local Government Day in February. At our afternoon Board meeting that day, we were glad to welcome Bryan Horn (Director) and Bill Curtis (Assistant Director) to the meeting and to begin forging a relationship with these new leaders at the Department of Housing and Community Development. We then had an informative training session with Mirielle Burgoyne (National Association of Development Organizations) on the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
A strong cohort of Virginia PDC folks attended the NADO Washington Conference in March. There was plenty of good programming and a lot of networking opportunities to go around. While there, the Executive Directors Committee met and held a Congressional briefing, and were excited that representatives from eight of Virginia’s 11 Congressional offices and both U.S. Senators’ offices signed on virtually to hear our updates and to have discussion with us. This was an important event for building relationships with our federal representatives.
We are excited to be getting back together for our Summer Conference, which is being held in Staunton July 20-22. By the time we get together, it will have been three long years since our annual summertime gathering was held in person. I hope that the spring and summer months ahead will treat you well and I look forward to seeing you in Staunton!
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Kim Callis
VAPDC President
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The Rappahannock-Rapidan Regional Commission (RRRC), chartered in late 1971, serves the Counties of Culpeper, Fauquier, Madison, Orange and Rappahannock, and the Towns of Culpeper, Gordonsville, Madison, Orange, Remington, The Plains, Warrenton and Washington. The RRRC (Planning District 9) serves its members by providing professional planning and technical resources, a concerted approach to regional cooperation, planning assistance with program delivery, and a forum for the interaction of appointed and elected local government officials and citizen members.
The RRRC prides itself on its ongoing program areas that enhance the livability and quality of life in the region. It coordinates and collaborates on a wide range of transportation planning and service delivery initiatives, including leadership and implementation of the Regional Transportation Collaborative and Mobility Management program. In the environment and agriculture areas, recent efforts include development and implementation of the regional Farm & Food System Plan and RRRC Food Policy Council, the region's Watershed Implementation Plan, development of a regional solar suitability analysis, and grant support for local Best Management Practice infrastructure projects. Its community and economic development services focus on housing development, tourism promotion, and Farm to School liaison activities. The Commission also serves as the lead agency of the Foothills Housing Network, with a primary focus on homelessness prevention and assistance, and operates the FHN Coordinated Entry program providing access to resources for those experiencing housing crises.
The RRRC region is composed of over 1,950 square miles and is home to 184,006 people (Weldon Cooper Center estimate, July 1, 2021). The Chair of the Rappahannock-Rapidan Regional Commission is Meaghan Taylor (Town of Culpeper) and the Executive Director is Patrick Mauney.
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The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) is composed of the Counties of Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa and Nelson, and the City of Charlottesville. The TJPDC (Planning District 10) provides regional vision, collaborative leadership and professional service to develop effective solutions, and serves as a liaison between local and state governments, partnering with the Commonwealth to carry out state initiatives at the local and regional level. The TJPDC will be celebrating its 50th anniversary later this year, having been established in the summer of 1972.
Over the years, the TJPDC has established a number important entities that have worked to enhance the quality of life in the region, beginning with the founding of Jaunt (on demand and para-transit transportation) and the Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA) in the mid-1970’s; establishing the Thomas Jefferson Housing Improvement Corporation in 1989, which later became the Piedmont Housing Alliance (PHA), and the Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless (TJACH) in 2001; and more recently, the Jefferson Area Regional Transit Partnership (RTP) in 2017 and Central Virginia Regional Housing Partnership (CVRHP) in 2019. Among its numerous current projects, the TJPDC is administering a $79 million rural broadband expansion grant and has established a regional cigarette tax board to administer cigarette tax for eight jurisdictions in the broader region. Additionally, TJPDC staffs the Charlottesville-Albemarle Metropolitan Organization (CA-MPO), and administers the RideShare program, the HOME Investment Partnership, and the Housing Preservation Grant for the region.
The TJPDC region is composed of over 2,170 square miles and has a population of 267,273 (Weldon Cooper Center estimate, July 1, 2021). The Chair of the TJPD Commission is Jesse Rutherford (Nelson County) and the Executive Director is Christine Jacobs.
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VAPDC co-hosted, with VACo, VML and the Virginia Municipal Drinking Water Association, a webinar on “Drinking Water Funds for Localities,” which focused on how ARPA funds could best be distributed to local governments to address water infrastructure. More than 150 folks registered for the session, including representatives from 10 of our PDCs.
The VAPDC Program Committee met recently and had a great discussion about possible programming for the Summer Conference in Staunton. The Committee is moving in the direction of planning sessions that focus on innovations in technology as it pertains to the likes of transportation, agriculture, tourism, workforce and unmanned aerial systems. We’ll be working to ink some more detail at another meeting of the group in early May.
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May 2, 2022—Program Committee meeting
TBD in May—Nominating Committee meeting
June 3, 2022—Executive Directors Committee meeting
June 8, 2022—Board of Directors meeting
July 20—22, 2022—Summer Conference, Staunton
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about vapdc
The Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC) is an organization comprised of the 21 Planning District Commissions/Regional Councils in Virginia. The PDCs joined together to create the VAPDC to share best practices and further regionalism across the State. VAPDC works to bring diverse resources together at the regional level in partnership with local, state, and federal entities to strengthen regions and the Commonwealth.
The purpose of the Association is to promote coordination and cooperation among the Commonwealth's Planning District Commissions/Regional Councils to heighten their effectiveness and efficiency; provide mutual assistance and the exchange of ideas; and otherwise promote understanding for how PDCs/RCs can help save their regions and the Commonwealth time and money.
association contacts
David Blount, VAPDC Executive Director
434-422-4820
Connie Long, VAPDC Administrator
757-412-2664
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thank you to our Virginia Partners for 2021 - 2022 |
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Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions | Website
VAPDC | 1340 North Great Neck Rd., #1272-133, Virginia Beach, VA 23454
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