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In this issue:
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Online: www.RRRegion.org
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Regional Commission Welcomes New Planners
Regional Long Range Transportation Plan: Phase I Completed
Commissioner Robert Anderson Receives Award from VAPDC
Commuter Services To Unveil New Logo and Website
Rappahannock River Basin Summit to be held October 30
Disability Services Boards Hold Joint Meeting
Consolidated Human Services Mobility Plan in Development
Virginia Stormwater Regulation Update
Warrenton Commuter Bus Proposed
Regional Stat: Regional Building Permit Trends
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Above: The 2007 RRRC Living Towns Planning Workshop
was held at the Schoolhouse in the village of Sperryville on May 31.
See http://www.rrregion.org/planningworkshops_sperryville for more details.
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Regional Commission Welcomes New Planners
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At its August 22, 2007 meeting and Annual RRRC Board/Staff Retreat, Commissioners
reaffirmed their commitment to transportation planning as their continuing number one
regional priority, progress toward which, took another substantive step forward with the recent
hiring of new Regional Planner II, Harriet Parcells.
Ms. Parcells, formerly Executive Director of the American Passenger Rail Coalition, with
extensive experience both in transportation and transit related issues, completed her
undergraduate training at Cornell University, and has a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning
from the University of Southern California.
In similar fashion, the Commission and its ongoing environmental planning efforts also stand to
benefit greatly from the expertise of recently added new Regional Planner II, Matthew Criblez.
Mr. Criblez, long-time planner and current Regional Environmental Manager with the Virginia
Department of Conservation and Recreation, has an undergraduate in Park Management and
Planning from Ohio State University, and a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning from
Virginia Tech.
Last but not least, a familiar name to many in area government, in conjunction with her past civic
involvement and non-profit successes, RRRC is likewise very pleased to announce the recent
transition of Cathy Zielinski, from previous contract employee to Part-Time Project Manager,
responsible for heading up the Commission’s Workforce Affordable Housing Committee,
among other duties.
Ms. Zielinski, active throughout the area in human services delivery for the past fifteen years,
most recently as Project Coordinator for the Rappahannock-Rapidan Eldercare Coalition, now
Aging Together, holds a law degree from George Washington University and a Masters in Public
Administration from Virginia Tech.
Please join with us in welcoming all three to the Regional Commission!
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RRRC Regional Long Range Transportation Plan: Phase I Completed
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Members of the RRRC Rural Transportation Technical Committee recently completed phase one of the Regional Commission's Regional Long Range Transportation Plan. This phase represents the first of four planned phases in the Long Range Transportation Planning process, funded through the Virginia Department of Transportation's Rural Transportation Work Program.
Phase one consisted of data collection and inventory, ranging from
transportation network inventory to land use identification to socio-economic
data collection. Members of the Rural Technical Committee discussed
regional transportation priorities reflected in the map shown at right.
Other phase one deliverables included growth area and environmental
justice mapping, along with multi-modal transportation discussions
involving air and rail transportation in the Rappahannock-Rapidan
region.
Phase two of the Regional Long Range Transportation plan kicked off
with the RRRC Rural Technical Committee's September meeting and will
involve analysis of transportation capacity, safety and demand, as
well as transit-demand mapping. More information can be found at http://www.rrregion.org/longrangeplan.
RTC meetings are held the first Wednesday each month from 2pm
to 3:30pm at the Regional Commission offices and are open to
the public.
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Click
on the Map Above for a .pdf version
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Commissioner Robert Anderson Receives Award from VAPDC
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Long-time Regional Commissioner, and
current Chairman of the Rappahannock County Board of Supervisors,
Robert Anderson, was presented with the Regional Leadership Award
from the Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC)
in July at the VAPDC conference in Virginia Beach.
Mr. Anderson was recognized for "Furthering Regional Cooperation by
providing solid and dependable leadership and support for regional
planning as evidenced by his extensive and long-tenured service in
civic, appointed and elected offices within the Rappahannock-Rapidan
Region of the Commonwealth of Virginia."
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Commuter Services To Unveil New Logo and Website
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Commuter services is preparing to shortly
unveil a new logo and corresponding website, designed to provide easily
accessible and frequently updated information to area commuters.
The new website will offer an online ridesharing application, park
and ride lot information, carpool and vanpool matching assistance
information, and serve as a convenient single point of access to the
Commission's Commuter Services program for area residents and commuters.
Stay tuned!
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Rappahannock River Basin Summit to be held October 30
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The Rappahannock River Basin Commission is hosting
the 2007 Rappahannock River Basin Summit on October 30, 2007 at the
University of Mary Washington's Stafford Campus. Objectives of the
summit are to familiarize attendees with state and federal water quality
initiatives, discuss how water quality expectations can be addressed
through a cooperative regional approach, and to provide recommendations
for addressing water quality expectations relative to local needs.
The Regional Commission is serving as one of the sponsors for the
summit in cooperation with neighboring PDCs and other state and regional
agencies. More information can be found at http://www.rappriverbasin.org.
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Disability Services Boards Hold Joint Meeting
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The Culpeper County Disability Services Board and the Rappahannock-Rapidan Disability Services Board held a joint meeting on July 24th at the Regional Commission offices. Board members had an opportunity to meet counterparts on both DSBs and to discuss present and future opportunities to work together to strengthen the region's capacity to provide services and information to members of the disabled community.
Board members met with Debe Fults, Executive Director of the disAbility Resource Center, a Center for Independent Living in Fredericksburg, who shared information about the center's mission, services and potential for expansion into the region. DSB members held a follow-up meeting with Ms. Fults to discuss the role that the DSBs can play in assisting the DRC to expand their services into the region and are looking at funding possibilities and potential office space to house a satellite Center for Independent Living in the region.
For more information about either the Rappahannock-Rapidan or Culpeper
County DSB and their respective efforts, please contact Patrick Mauney
at 540-829-7450 or plmauney@rrregion.org.
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Consolidated
Human Services Mobility Plan In Development
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Transportation has long been identified as one of
the greatest unmet needs in this region for older adults and individuals
with disabilities. This issue was the subject of a white paper produced
jointly by RRRC and Aging Together last year. Of course, this is not
just a local problem. Nationally, between 25 percent and 30 percent
of individuals do not have access to an automobile. In addition to
the elderly and disabled, this number includes low-income families
or individuals who cannot afford their own vehicles or aren't able
to drive for other reasons. Lack of transportation is often cited
by human services organizations and employment programs as a barrier
to self sufficiency for low-income families.
Finding solutions for these transportation problems requires a comprehensive, cooperative effort by all public and private organizations that provide public transportation or that have a mandate to serve low-income, elderly and disabled populations. The Federal Government has recognized the need for this type of coordinated action and built such a requirement into transit funding legislation. In Virginia, the Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) is working with Planning District Commissions to develop regional Consolidated Human Services Mobility (CHSM) plans.
In PD9, development of the CHSM plan is building on a collaborative
effort already in place. RRRC, Aging Together, which represents dozens
of human service organizations in the region, Rappahannock Rapidan
Community Services Board (RRCSB), Virginia Regional Transit (VRT),
and the local Disability Services Boards have worked together and
shared information to map existing services and to identify unmet
needs. The next steps in this effort are to identify and prioritize
potential solutions and identify resources to start implementing those
solutions. RRRC will coordinate this planning effort. For more information,
contact Cathy Zielinski at cmzielinski@rrregion.org.
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Virginia
Stormwater Regulation Update
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The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is currently in the process of revising the Virginia Stormwater Management Program (VSMP) Permit Regulations to specify the minimum technical criteria for a stormwater management program and to establish statewide standards for stormwater management from land-disturbing activities.
The VSMP, which was delegated to DCR in January 2005, mandated management of stormwater quality and quantity for land-disturbing activities of one acre or greater or part of a common plan of development. While DCR currently permits, inspects, and enforces the VSMP on all construction sites meeting these conditions, localities will be delegated this responsibility within 12-18 months after the new regulations have been adopted. Localities covered by an MS4 permit and/or within the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act area will be required to adopt a local stormwater management program and issue the general stormwater construction permit, while all other localities will be able to opt-in to the program. DCR will implement the local stormwater program and continue to issue the general permit in localities not electing to adopt an approved stormwater management program.
Three components of the VSMP regulations are currently under revision:
the minimum technical criteria based on nutrient loadings; local program
delegation requirements; and permit fees. In addition, DCR is simultaneously
updating the Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook and designing
a web-based Stormwater BMP Clearinghouse. DCR anticipates completing
the regulations, the handbook, and the clearinghouse and presenting
them to the Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board in early 2008.
This will be followed by a public review and comment period of approximately
6-8 months. For more information, contact Matt Criblez at mdcriblez@rrregion.org.
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Warrenton Commuter Bus Proposed
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RRRC Commuter Services is currently exploring the feasibility of luxury commuter bus service from the Warrenton Park and Ride Lot to Metro, and possible additional stops in Washington, D.C., and would like to know whether area commuters would be interested in such a bus service were it to be implemented.
Feedback was solicited at a recent RRRC Commuter Fair, held at the
Warrenton Park & Ride Lot on September 18th, where commuters visited
with representatives from SW Tours & Charter, the proposed commuter
bus operator, and were able to check out their specially outfitted
and equipped luxury commuter bus. Feedback and comments can also be
submitted through an easy to fill out, 6-question survey regarding
the proposed commuter bus, available at http://www.rrregion.org/carpool.
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Regional
Stat: Building Permit Trends, 2005 - July 2007
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Building permits declined significantly, as one might
expect, consistent with prevailing national trends, from 2005 to 2006
in four of the five Rappahannock-Rapidan region counties and the trend
appears to be continuing into the first six months of 2007. The fifth,
Orange County is on pace to issue a higher number of building permits
in 2007 than in 2006. Below are building permits issued by county
for 2005, 2006 and January through June 2007, compiled by the Weldon
Cooper Center.
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2005 |
2006 |
2007 (JANUARY-JULY) |
| CULPEPER |
1,198 |
645 |
185 |
| FAUQUIER |
706 |
506 |
172 |
| MADSION |
123 |
96 |
N/A* |
| ORANGE |
652 |
412 |
260 |
| RAPPAHANNOCK |
60 |
67 |
8** |
*
- Madison County reports on an annual basis only.
** - Rappahannock County did not report for February, March, April,
May or July. |
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